Intentional Fatherhood

• Marriage, Digital Hygiene, Discipline, Rhythms, and Dating Your Spouse

  Feeling overwhelmed as a father? Like you’re constantly reacting instead of leading with intention? Maybe you lose your temper more than you’d like or feel like you’re just running a daycare with someone you used to date. You might even wonder if you’re failing as a dad.In this episode, we get honest about the struggles of fatherhood and explore how simple, consistent habits can shape the atmosphere of your home. From bedtime liturgies and breath prayers to marriage rhythms and boundaries around technology, we unpack small yet meaningful habits — often formed through our own failures and weaknesses — that have become tools of spiritual formation in our families.The truth is: we become our habits, and our children become us. The routines and rhythms in your home aren’t just daily tasks; they’re shaping the hearts and minds of your family. You already have habits unfolding — responses, defaults, routines. The question is whether you’re being intentional about them. In moments of conflict or chaos, these habits often determine your reaction. So how do we practice our way into something more grounded and loving?God isn’t waiting outside the mess of our homes — He’s right in the middle of it. The gospel lives in the ordinary friction and beauty of parenting. These small habits, practiced with consistency and grace, can begin to rewire how we love our spouse, our kids, and the God who’s with us in it all.These rhythms won’t change God’s love for you — but God’s love for you should change your rhythms. So be intentional.Scripture Mentioned: 1 Peter 3:7Book Mentioned: Habits of the Household: Practicing the Story of God in Everyday Family Rhythms by Justin Whitmel EarleyResources Mentioned: Bottom-Up vs. Top-Down Parenting Resource, Hang 10 Movement + Digital Rule of Life PDFBedtime Liturgy:Father: Do you see my eyes?Child: Yes.Father: Can you see that I see your eyes?Child: Yes.Father: Do you know that I love you?Child: Yes.Father: Do you know that I love you no matter what bad things you do?Child: Yes.Father: Do you know that I love you no matter what good things you do?Child: Yes.Father: Who else loves you like that?Child: Jesus.Father: Rest in that love.Submit Questions: Send a voice recording to [email protected], mentioning your name and where you’re from.Intentional Fatherhood Website (for Diagram of Framework)Follow @intentionalfatherhood_ on InstagramWatch + Subscribe on YouTubeIntentional: Website + InstagramJustin Whitmel Earley: Website + Instagram

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• Your Fatherhood Needs You to Know Your Story, Facing Generational Sin, Trusting God to Bless What’s Been Broken, and Practical Steps Toward Health

  Note: This episode contains mature themes that may not be suitable for younger listeners. Please use discretion.We are storied people, living within the grand narrative of the kingdom of God. And as a father, you need to know your story. Not just the highlights or heroic moments — but the whole of it. The truth is, your past shapes your present: in your work, your marriage, your friendships, and your fatherhood. To lead well, you must face the story that formed you — including both your own childhood and the generations that came before.In this powerful episode, we look back to move forward. Together, we explore how our family of origin — with all its beauty and brokenness — deeply influences the families we are building now. Brook opens up about the story he comes from: one marked by abuse, secrecy, and chaos. He shares honestly about the slow and painful work of healing, and how unaddressed generational sin began to surface in his own work, relationships, and family — which nudged him toward the hard work of transformation.Justin shares a different story: one of inherited blessing, and how he nearly squandered it. But ultimately, he chose to surrender and let God build something new from the foundation he was given.Together, we reject the lie that we’re doomed to repeat the past — that we’re destined to become our fathers or perpetuate the cycles we grew up in. Through grace and intentionality, there is a better way. God longs to redeem what’s been broken and restore what’s been lost.This Spirit-led conversation offers practical steps for examining your story, seeking help, and moving toward healing. It’s an invitation to believe in the promise of Joel 2:25: “I will repay you for the years the locusts have eaten.”Scripture Mentioned: Joel 2:25-26, Romans 8:28 + Matthew 25:14-30Books Mentioned: The Common Rule: Habits of Purpose for an Age of Distraction by Justin Whitmel EarleySubmit Questions: Send a voice recording to [email protected], mentioning your name and where you’re from.Intentional Fatherhood Website (for Diagram of Framework)Follow @intentionalfatherhood_ on InstagramWatch + Subscribe on YouTubeIntentional: Website + InstagramJustin Whitmel Earley: Website + Instagram

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• Your Fatherhood Needs Your Exercise, Eating, and Physicality to Shape a Life of Love

  Believe it or not, caring for your physical body is essential to becoming the intentional father you're called to be.In this episode, we explore the deep connection between physical discipline and spiritual formation — and why your body isn’t just a shell, but an integral part of your discipleship. We push back against the gnostic idea that separates the material from the divine, grounding our conversation in Genesis 2:7, where God breathes spirit into dust to form a whole human being.Drawing from Justin’s upcoming book, The Body Teaches the Soul: Ten Essential Habits to Form a Healthy and Holy Life, we talk about the spiritual implications of everyday physical habits — from how you eat and sleep to how you rest and move. We also highlight the link between physical health and mental well-being.Like a gardener entrusted with land he didn’t choose and weather he can’t control, you’ve been given a body — with all its genetics, limitations, and challenges. But just like a garden, it’s worth tending.We encourage you to prioritize rest as the foundation of physical discipline. Step away from the pendulum swing between indulgence and shame around eating, and embrace a rhythm that allows for both fasting and feasting — as well as the steady habits in between. And finally, push your body through physical exercise, knowing that pain and endurance often form what comfort never could.This isn’t about self-optimization. It’s about faithful stewardship — of the body God gave you, and the life He’s called you to live.Scripture Mentioned: Genesis 2:7, Romans 6:13, Genesis 3:6, Romans 6:13, Romans 12:1Books Mentioned: The Body Teaches the Soul: Ten Essential Habits to Form a Healthy and Holy Life by Justin Whitmel EarleySubmit Questions: Send a voice recording to [email protected], mentioning your name and where you’re from.Intentional Fatherhood Website (for Diagram of Framework)Follow @intentionalfatherhood_ on InstagramWatch + Subscribe on YouTubeIntentional: Website + InstagramJustin Whitmel Earley: Website + Instagram

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• Habits, Rhythms, and Spiritual Disciplines for Intentional Fatherhood

  Before we can be fathers to our children, we must first learn to live as sons of the Father. The truth is, it’s impossible to be a good father — let alone an intentional one — without the power and presence of the Holy Spirit.In this episode, we explore the essential role of spiritual disciplines in the life of a father. From kneeling prayer to spending what we call “luxurious wasted time in God’s presence,” we share personal rhythms and honest reflections — not lofty ideals, but grounded, consistent, doable practices that shape who we’re becoming as men and as fathers.We talk candidly about the habits that form us, the spiritual reading that challenges us, and why your kids don’t just need your presence — they need a father who’s being formed. Because in the journey of spiritual formation, there is no neutral ground. As Romans 12:2 reminds us, we are either being conformed to the patterns of this world or being transformed by the renewing of our minds.So choose something rather than nothing. Start small. Plant the seed — and trust that the Lord will grow it. Your habits may not earn God’s love, but His love should absolutely reshape your habits. Intentional fatherhood begins with intentional formation. And that starts with being a son.Scripture Mentioned: Romans 12:1-2 + Romans 6:13Books Mentioned: The Common Rule by Justin Whitmel Earley, Celebration of Discipline by Richard J. Foster + Prayer by Richard J. FosterSubmit Questions: Send a voice recording to [email protected], mentioning your name and where you’re from. Intentional Fatherhood Website (for Diagram of Framework)Follow @intentionalfatherhood_ on InstagramWatch + Subscribe on YouTubeIntentional: Website + InstagramJustin Whitmel Earley: Website + Instagram

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• Why Your Fatherhood Needs Soul Friends, Confession, and Transparency

  If you’re trying to live as an intentional father, you need to know this: the enemy is after you. Fatherhood is not neutral terrain — it’s a battleground. And too often, that battle drives men into vice, isolation, and quiet resignation. But there’s an antidote: covenant friendship.In this episode, we explore the transformative power of soul-level friendship — the kind that sees all of you, calls out the best in you, and refuses to walk away when things get hard. We share personal stories of how covenant friendship has rescued us in dark moments, sharpened us in seasons of growth, and held us accountable when we wanted to give up.We talk about why deep friendship is not just helpful but necessary — and why it requires courage: the courage to be known, the humility to be challenged, and the commitment to stay. Drawing from scripture and our own stories, we reflect on how covenant friendship is one of God’s most powerful tools for shaping us into the fathers we are called to be.Authentic friendship may be inconvenient. It will almost certainly be costly. But it’s not optional — not if you want to fight the good fight of fatherhood well.So if you're feeling isolated, distracted, or stuck, don’t retreat. Reach out. This episode is a call to step into the kind of friendship that empowers you as a father.Scripture Mentioned: Ephesians 6:12, Proverbs 27:17, Ecclesiastes 4:12, John 15:9-17, Revelation 19:6-9 + Hebrews 10:24-25Book Mentioned: Made for People by Justin Whitmel EarleySubmit Questions: Send a voice recording to [email protected], mentioning your name and where you’re from. Intentional Fatherhood Website (for Diagram of Framework)Follow @intentionalfatherhood_ on InstagramWatch + Subscribe on YouTubeIntentional: Website + InstagramJustin Whitmel Earley: Website + Instagram

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