DadAwesome
DadAwesome

DadAwesome

Jeff Zaugg

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ACTIVATING DADS TO LEAD WITH WONDER Walking with dads as they lead and love their kids toward God's awesomeness. We're on a mission to see dads fully alive and fully activated in their roles—leading with wonder to build intentional connection with their kids while experiencing God's awesomeness together. We partner with dads at every stage of the journey by providing practical fatherhood resources to catalyze connection with their kids, and also with other dads.

Recent Episodes

DA419 | Don't Long for Someday, The Discipline of Gratitude, and Becoming the Best Version of You as a Dad (Bart Scharrer  FROM THE VAULT)
JAN 29, 2026
DA419 | Don't Long for Someday, The Discipline of Gratitude, and Becoming the Best Version of You as a Dad (Bart Scharrer FROM THE VAULT)
🚴 FROM THE VAULT BOOK >> recieve the book 5-weeks early >> join the ADVANCE TEAM: https://www.dadawesome.org/book Bart Scharrer has walked through some hard seasons with his daughters. Health crises. Uncertainty. Plans that didn't go the way he expected. But here's what he's learned: Gratitude isn't just a nice idea. It's the way through. ----------------------------------- ✅ Why longing for "someday" can cost you today ✅ How to set the temperature in your home (for better or worse) ✅ A simple practice that taught his daughters confidence and connection ✅ What it looks like to trust God day by day when answers don't come This is a conversation about presence, purpose, and staying the course. -------------------------------- SUMMARY When health crises hit your family and life doesn't go as planned, how do you keep leading well? In this episode from the vault, Bart Scharrer shares how he and his wife have navigated seasons of uncertainty with their daughters—and why gratitude isn't just a nice idea, it's the way through. You'll also hear how teaching your kids to ask good questions can shape their confidence, relationships, and even who they marry someday. Key Takeaways: Don't long for the next season at the expense of today. Embrace where you are right now with your kids. Gratitude is the discipline that keeps you other-centered when life gets hard. It's not ignoring the pain—it's the way through it. Teaching your kids to ask good questions builds confidence, connection, and character that lasts into adulthood. You set the temperature in your home. Your presence, tone, and emotional awareness shape the climate your family lives in. Serving together as a family—in the neighborhood and at church—creates lasting values and surrounds your kids with great people. GUEST Bart Scharrer is a pastor, board member at DadAwesome, and father of two young adult daughters. He and his wife Amy have walked through significant health challenges with their girls and have learned to lead their family with gratitude, presence, and trust in God's timing. Bart is passionate about helping dads stay engaged and intentional through every season of fatherhood. Quotes "Gratitude is the way through. If I don't live in gratitude, it's so easy to live in complaint." "Don't long for someday at the expense of today. There's so much to be thankful for right now." "Shy is not an excuse for rude. Look people in the eye and ask a question." "I can control how much I love Jesus. I can control how much I love my family." "What's the best version of me? That gives me a target for what I'm practicing towards." #DadAwesome #christiandad #dadlife #parenting #dadpodcast #fatherhood #gratitude #intentionalparenting LINKS DADAWESOME Book: dadawesome.org/book Send a Voice Message to DadAwesome Apply to join the next DadAwesome Accelerator Cohort Subscribe to DadAwesome Messages: Text the word "Dad" to (651) 370-8618 Send a Voice Message to DadAwesome
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40 MIN
DA418 | Celebrating 8 Years of DadAwesome: Minivan Miracles, Ripping Out Fences, and the Power of Unlikely Friendships (Craig Allen Cooper)
JAN 22, 2026
DA418 | Celebrating 8 Years of DadAwesome: Minivan Miracles, Ripping Out Fences, and the Power of Unlikely Friendships (Craig Allen Cooper)
🎉 8 YEARS OF DADAWESOME! We're celebrating with an incredible conversation with Craig Allen Cooper, the man behind Walker Hayes' song "Craig." ✅ The minivan miracle that softened an atheist's heart ✅ Why Craig's kids are PRAYING for friendships like their parents have ✅ The 5 P's of fatherhood: Provide, Protect, Prepare, Propel, Present ✅ Tables vs. Tablets and real connection with your kids DADAWESOME Book >> join the Advance Team: https://www.dadawesome.org/book SUMMARY After eight years and 418 episodes of DadAwesome, we're celebrating with a conversation that captures everything this ministry is about. Craig Allen Cooper shares the story behind Walker Hayes' song "Craig," why his kids are praying for adult friendships like their parents have, and the five P's that guide his fatherhood. Plus, you'll hear how a minivan miracle led to a stadium-filling artist bowing his knee to Jesus. TAKEAWAYS Your kids are watching your friendships, and they're praying they'll have the same kind of adult community they see modeled in your life. Trust is the foundation of friendship with your kids. When they know you're for them no matter what, the door to real connection opens wide. Tables beat tablets every time. Eye-to-eye, heart-to-heart connection happens around tables of mercy and grace, not through screens. The 5 P's of fatherhood: Provide, Protect, Prepare, Propel, and be Present. These aren't about perfection; they're about direction. Arrows are meant to fly. Your job is to prepare and propel your kids toward their God-given calling, not keep them close forever. What's upstream matters most. Feasting on God's Word daily is what fills you with gladness to pour into your family. GUEST Craig Allen Cooper is the co-author of Glad You're Here: Two Unlikely Friends Breaking Bread and Fences with country music artist Walker Hayes. He is the subject of Walker's hit song "Craig," which tells the story of their unlikely friendship and Craig's influence in Walker's journey to faith. Craig is a speaker, podcaster, and devoted father of four who lives near Nashville, Tennessee with his wife Laura. He's passionate about discipleship, authentic friendship, and helping men feast on God's Word. QUOTES "Dude, I would give you my blood. You know that, right?" "I've heard my kids say over and over again: I'm praying that I'm going to have adult friendships like you and mom have." "There's a huge difference between table connection and tablet connection. Table connection is eye to eye, heart to heart, soul to soul." "An arrow is meant to fly. There's a tendency to just want to keep it around us, but at some point that arrow will fly." "Every grain of glory, every ounce of praise for anything good in my life belongs exclusively to the Lord Jesus Christ." LINKS DADAWESOME Book: dadawesome.org/book Send a Voice Message to DadAwesome Apply to join the next DadAwesome Accelerator Cohort Subscribe to DadAwesome Messages: Text the word "Dad" to (651) 370-8618 Send a Voice Message to DadAwesome Glad You're Here by Craig Allen Cooper and Walker Hayes Glad You're Here Podcast Mechanics on a Mission TAGS: DadAwesome, Craig Allen Cooper, Walker Hayes, Christian fatherhood, fatherhood podcast, intentional parenting, faith and fatherhood, tables over tablets, friendship and faith, 5 P's of fatherhood, Christian dad, parenting podcast, raising kids, family discipleship, Glad You're Here, unlikely friendships, generosity, minivan miracle, dad community, launching kids
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41 MIN
DA417 | From Control to Influence, Eradicating the Child-Centered Home, and the Love Jug (Ted Cunningham)
JAN 15, 2026
DA417 | From Control to Influence, Eradicating the Child-Centered Home, and the Love Jug (Ted Cunningham)
🏠 Is your home revolving around your kids? Ted Cunningham joins us to explain why eradicating the child-centered home is one of the best things you can do for your family. ✅ The "Love Jug" illustration that will change how you think about your source of life ✅ Why parenting is a journey from control to influence ✅ How honor bombardments and honor lists create close-knit families ✅ The "princess to queen" conversation every dad of daughters needs to hear DADAWESOME BOOK (join the advance team!) https://www.dadawesome.org/book SUMMARY Parenting is a journey from control to influence—and the fastest way to squander influence is to be controlling. In this episode, Ted Cunningham shares his famous "Love Jug" illustration, explains why your marriage is actually your greatest parenting tool, and unpacks why eradicating the child-centered home is essential for raising kids who are ready to leave. Plus, you'll hear the powerful "princess to queen" conversation he had with his daughter and how honor bombardments can transform your family culture. TAKEAWAYS Parenting is a journey from control to influence—and the fastest way to squander influence is by being controlling. Your marriage is part of your parenting plan. Kids have a front-row seat to how you treat your spouse. Jesus is your source, not your spouse or your kids. Fire them from that role. The child-centered home creates prolonged adolescence: too much privilege, not enough responsibility. Honor bombardments and honor lists create close-knit families by calling out what's valuable in each person. GUEST Ted Cunningham is the founding pastor of Woodland Hills Family Church in Branson, Missouri, and a sought-after speaker and author on marriage and family. He has written multiple books including Trophy Child and has partnered with the late Dr. Gary Smalley on numerous projects. Ted and his wife, Amy, are celebrating 30 years of marriage and have two adult children. He's known for his humor, practical wisdom, and passionate belief that strong marriages create strong families. QUOTES "Parenting is a journey from control to influence. With every year, you're losing control and hopefully replacing it with influence." "The fastest way to squander influence is to be controlling." "Jesus is your source, Satan is your enemy, your spouse is your companion." "What's celebrated, what's spoken out loud gets multiplied." "Delete the narrative that says it's too late. Delete the narrative that says it's my fault." LINKS DADAWESOME Book: dadawesome.org/book Send a Voice Message to DadAwesome Apply to join the next DadAwesome Accelerator Cohort Subscribe to DadAwesome Messages: Text the word "Dad" to (651) 370-8618 Send a Voice Message to DadAwesome Trophy Child by Ted Cunningham
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43 MIN
DA416 | Vision, Will, and Community: Standing Against a Culture That Wants to Destroy Your Family (Jeremy Pryor PART 2)
JAN 8, 2026
DA416 | Vision, Will, and Community: Standing Against a Culture That Wants to Destroy Your Family (Jeremy Pryor PART 2)
🔥 What if going with the flow is the most dangerous thing you can do as a dad? Jeremy Pryor is BACK for round four, and this conversation will challenge everything you thought about provision, legacy, and multi-generational family. FULL SHOW NOTES ➡️ Why vision, will, and community are your only defense against a culture trying to exploit your kids ➡️ The biblical case against "Labanism" and lifetime wage-earning ➡️ How your son-in-law becomes your SON in a multi-generational family ➡️ Why family at 55 should be FAR better than family at 35 SUMMARY If you just go with the flow in today's culture, it will destroy you and your family. In this episode, Jeremy Pryor unpacks why we're living in the Age of Intentionality—where vision, will, and community are the only things standing between your kids and a world trying to exploit them. Plus, he shares why your family life should get richer as your kids grow older, and how to break free from "Labanism" to build assets that serve your family for generations. TAKEAWAYS We live in a unique age where going with the flow will destroy your family. Intentional fatherhood requires vision, will, and thick community. God's five-part mission for families—be fruitful, multiply, fill, subdue, and rule—is the preloaded vision every dad can build on. "Labanism" is the cultural trap of lifetime wage-earning that keeps fathers dependent and unable to truly provide for their own families. Your son-in-law is your son. Multi-generational family means gaining more kids through marriage, not losing the ones you raised. Family gets better with time. What you experience with your kids at 25 should be far richer than when they were 5. GUEST Jeremy Pryor is the founder of Family Teams and the author of Family Revision and The Ruling Generation. He and his wife, April, have five children, two sons-in-law, a daughter-in-law, and a brand new grandson. Jeremy is passionate about helping fathers build multi-generational families that thrive for centuries. This is his fourth appearance on Dad Awesome. LINKS: Send a Voice Message to DadAwesome Apply to join the next DadAwesome Accelerator Cohort Subscribe to DadAwesome Messages: Text the word "Dad" to (651) 370-8618 Send a Voice Message to DadAwesome Family Teams Podcast Family Teams Resources: familyteams.com FREE video course from Jeremy: https://familyteams.com/awesome The Movie David (in theaters) QUOTES "If you just go with the flow, do what's natural, it will destroy you and your family." "The only thing that can stand up against what's coming at our kids is an intentional father." "Your son-in-law is your son. Your daughter-in-law is your daughter." "It gets better. It should be so much more rich when your kids are 25 than when they were 5." "Make it your goal to work with your hands, to mind your own business, so that you will not have to be dependent on anyone." "We are blessed to be a blessing."
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27 MIN
DA415 | Your Superpower Is Hurting Your Kids, Creating Emotional Warmth at Home, and Why Attachment Is Everything – Part 1 (Jeremy Pryor)
JAN 1, 2026
DA415 | Your Superpower Is Hurting Your Kids, Creating Emotional Warmth at Home, and Why Attachment Is Everything – Part 1 (Jeremy Pryor)
🚨 If you just go with the flow, it will destroy your family. Jeremy Pryor is BACK on the podcast with a wake-up call for dads everywhere. In Part 1 of this powerful conversation, he's sharing: ➡️ Why your ability to emotionally detach is hurting your kids ➡️ The difference between "Do I love my kids?" and "Do they FEEL loved?" ➡️ How to become a warmer, more emotionally available father ➡️ What ancient Hebraic families understood that we've forgotten SUMMARY If you just go with the flow in today's world, it will destroy you and your family. In this episode, Jeremy Pryor returns to share why the superpower that helps men provide and protect can actually be the very thing that pushes your kids away. You'll discover why emotional detachment is hurting your children and how to become the warm, present father your family desperately needs. TAKEAWAYS The ability to emotionally detach is a fatherhood superpower for providing and protecting—but using it against your family will cost you their hearts. Your kids can sense emotional distance, and they need to know that what happens to them actually impacts you. The question isn't "Do I feel attached to my kids?" but "Do my kids feel attached to me?" Learning from ancient Hebraic family culture can revolutionize the way we build multi-generational bonds. Your wife has a relational map of the family that you desperately need—invite her advice and steward it well. GUEST Jeremy Pryor is the founder of Family Teams and co-host of the Family Teams Podcast with Jefferson Bethke. He's an author, speaker, and advocate for multi-generational family who has spent years studying ancient Hebraic family patterns and helping modern fathers build lasting legacies. Jeremy and his wife, April, have five children and four grandchildren and lived in Israel on and off for about ten years. LINKS Send a Voice Message to DadAwesome Apply to join the next DadAwesome Accelerator Cohort Subscribe to DadAwesome Messages: Text the word "Dad" to (651) 370-8618 FREE video course from Jeremy: https://familyteams.com/awesome Family Teams Podcast Family Teams Resources: familyteams.com
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34 MIN