The Intentional Dad

In this second conversation on transition, we turn our attention toward one of the most important transitions in a young man’s life: the journey into manhood. Listen in as Aric and Ben invite Ian into an honest conversation with the youngest in the family about his own experience of initiation, identity, growth, and what it means to begin stepping out of boyhood and into mature masculinity. Togeth...

The Intentional Dad podcast returns after a six-month pause with a new series focused on one of life’s unavoidable realities: transition. In this opening conversation, Aric is joined by his sons Ben and Ian as they reflect on the many kinds of transitions that shape a human life—some anticipated and joyful, others bittersweet, and some deeply painful and unexpected. Together, they explore everythi...

“Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven.” —  Matthew 5:11–12 In this final episode of  The Way Through the Sacred Gap , Aric and Tyler reach the crescendo of Jesus’ Kingdom vision in the Beatitudes — a vision utterly different from anything the world has...

“Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” — Matthew‬ ‭5:10‬ ‭NIV‬ In this penultimate episode of The Way Through the Sacred Gap , Aric and Tyler explore the startling conclusion to Jesus’ vision in the Beatitudes: persecution. Why would Jesus end his list of blessings with suffering, rejection, and slander? This deeply personal and t...

“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.” ‭‭Matthew‬ ‭5:9‬ In this episode, Aric and Tyler begin diving into the final triad of the Beatitudes, exploring the call to be a peacemaker as a pinnacle expression of spiritual maturity and Kingdom calling. Framing the Beatitudes as a progression from inner healing to outward mission, they revisit the arc from brokenness and...

"Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God." — Matthew 5:8 In this episode, we explore the culmination of Jesus' vision for healing and the Kingdom—what it means to be pure in heart and how it leads us to truly see God . The Beatitudes are not just a list of virtues; they form a progressive journey of inner healing, restored relationships, and manifested love in action. At this moment i...

The more we understand Jesus' invitation for the Kingdom life, the more compelling it is. In this episode, we continue our discussion of mercy as the central ethic of Kingdom living by sharing a story of apprenticeship. It is very good to learn from Jesus and catch his breathtaking vision for Kingdom life. Where it really matters and where his vision is realized, though, is not in knowing about it...

The more we understand Jesus' invitation for the Kingdom life, the more compelling it is. Listen in as Tyler and Aric continue to explore Jesus' compelling vision for Kingdom life through his opening words of his Sermon on the Mount. As we discussed in our previous series, he offers a promise of healing and transformation that frees us from our shadow stories into lives lived more and more fully i...

The more we understand Jesus' invitation for the Kingdom life, the more compelling it is. Listen in as Tyler and Aric continue to explore Jesus' compelling vision for Kingdom life through his opening words of his Sermon on the Mount. As we discussed in our previous series, he offers a promise of healing and transformation that frees us from our shadow stories into lives lived more and more fully i...

The more we understand Jesus' invitation for the Kingdom life, the more compelling it is. Listen in as Tyler and Aric continue to explore Jesus' compelling vision for Kingdom life through his opening words of his Sermon on the Mount. As we discussed in our previous series, he offers a promise of healing and transformation that frees us from our shadow stories into lives lived more and more fully i...

The more we understand Jesus' invitation for the Kingdom life, the more compelling it is. Listen in as Tyler and Aric continue to explore Jesus' compelling vision for Kingdom life through his opening words of his Sermon on the Mount. As we discussed in our previous series, he offers a promise of healing and transformation that frees us from our shadow stories into lives lived more and more fully i...

The more we understand Jesus' invitation for the Kingdom life, the more compelling it is. Listen in as Tyler and Aric continue to explore Jesus' compelling vision for Kingdom life through his opening words of his Sermon on the Mount. As we discussed in our previous series, he offers a promise of healing and transformation that frees us from our shadow stories into lives lived more and more fully i...

The more we understand Jesus' invitation for the Kingdom life, the more compelling it is. Listen in as Tyler and Aric continue to explore Jesus' compelling vision for Kingdom life through his opening words of his Sermon on the Mount. As we discussed in our previous series, he offers a promise of healing and transformation that frees us from our shadow stories into lives lived more and more fully i...

Episode 21: "The Way" through The Sacred Gap (Part 1): What are you doing with your pain? (Suffering and Confession) The more we understand Jesus' invitation for the Kingdom life, the more compelling it is. As we discussed in our previous series, it is a promise of healing and transformation that frees us from our shadow stories into lives lived more and more fully in the true story and the Kingdo...

Listen in as Aric and Pete conclude the series What Story Are You Living? We have come a long way and in this final discussion, we build on the idea of divine rebellion. As we have discussed, the experience of the true story is something that is very opposed. Which means we have to learn to fight an enemy who is relentlessly on the prowl to steal, kill, and destroy and keep us stuck in our shadow...

Christmas is here. With the season comes a familiar echo of deeper things...things that are abstract and difficult to name but our hearts still know that we long for. But for so many of us, the Christmas season comes and goes, as the mad rush of the season sweeps us along yet again, and we're left wondering what happened. Listen in as Pete and Aric get very practical this Christmas season. This is...

Christmas is here. With the season comes a familiar echo of deeper things...things that are abstract and difficult to name but our hearts still know that we long for. But for so many of us, the Christmas season comes and goes, as the mad rush of the season sweeps us along yet again, and we're left wondering what happened. Listen in as Pete and Aric get very practical this Christmas season. This is...

Listen in as Aric continues the discussion around the question "What Story Are You Living? In the last episode, we introduced the idea of divine rebellion. In this episode, you are invited to ramp up that rebellion as we go further into the rabbit hole and learn that healing that leads to freedom is found not by running from pain but by moving toward it. What will you do with your pain? Our discus...

Aric and Pete continue their discussion around the question "What Story Are You Living?" We live in a universe at war and, in previous episodes, we have worked to understand the reality of an enemy whose hatred for God and humanity is thorough. He is a sophisticated and deadly enemy. But, in the last episode, we discovered that for all of that sophistication, his playbook is shockingly simple. Whi...

Listen in as Pete and Aric continue their discussion around the question: What Story Are You Living? Having set the stage in previous podcasts, today they invite you to take steps with them as they go deeper "into the rabbit hole." We have an enemy heavily invested in keeping each of us from knowing and experiencing the reality of God's true heart that we are loved, we belong, and we have nothing...

Pete and Aric continue their series "What Story Are You Living?" Having explored the concept of a shadow story, they now turn to understanding what...or more to the point...who is at work behind every shadow story. As the famous ancient philosopher Sun Tzu once said, "Know Your Enemy." The reality of an enemy waging war against God by waging war against humanity is a reality presented throughout S...

Pete and Aric continue their series on the question: What Story Are You Living? In this most recent conversation, they dig into the concept of a shadow story and invite listeners to begin a journey to discover and to understand their own shadow story. This is the second half of that conversation. To access the notes and reflection questions referenced in this podcast, go to: https://www.theintenti...

Pete and Aric continue their series on the question: What Story Are You Living? In this most recent conversation, they dig into the concept of a shadow story and invite listeners to begin a journey to discover and understand their own. This is the first half of that conversation. To access the notes and reflection questions provided for this and the next episode, go to: https://www.theintentionald...

Whether you are aware of it or not, each and every one of us is living out a story. The story you live shapes everything about how you interpret your experiences, the ways you define success, and the things you prioritize. If we are going to have a meaningful discussion about life, relationships, and intentional fatherhood, we have to start with awareness of the story we’ve been living and how tha...

The New Year ReVolution continues with stories of apprenticeship. In this episode Ben joins Aric to share his story of how God fathered him through a long season of injury, surgery, and recovery. It was an experience that deepened his reliance on God and his resilience in the face of pain and suffering...suffering that turned out to be a reason to, as Paul says, rejoice. Listen in as Ben offers hi...