There is a truckload of parenting advice on how to fathers can make more time for their families. This is especially the case for new fathers and fathers-to-be. Dragging ourselves through chapter after chapter of self-help drudgery, only to be told how much we’re not doing, and how much more we need to be doing, can be a soul-sucking experience. What’s offered as help to maximise time — nearly always with ...

Yes, you can learn to father. Hear from 86-year-old Clive on how he went from having no relatable dad in his life to becoming the pivot around which many from inside and outside of his bloodline proudly call him ‘dad’. How do you learn to be a father when you have not had a good example from your father? Can you just trust instinct? Is that enough? And when you decide ...

Thanks so much for all the wonderful help with the End of Financial Year ‘Help the Children’ Appeal. Your giving will help Dads4Kids to keep going. The good news is, we are just over halfway to our target. I am sure we will get there in the end, but it just might take a bit more time. If you would still like to support the Dads4Kids Help Children Appeal, please DONATE ...

What is worse than death of a partner in a relationship? For those who have been through it, finding your partner has cheated on you brings pain that can seem to be impossible to deal with. How will your relationship survive? How will you survive? What about the kids? In this blogpost and podcast, Phil will give you hope and a pathway forward that works. Help! My Partner Has Had An ...

Dads, investing in your teenage daughter is an investment that will deliver positive returns for decades — perhaps even for eternity. One way you can invest in her is to affirm her as a valuable young woman — just for who she is. Guy recently took up the challenge to invest in one of his teenage daughters on a Fathering Adventure to tropical North Queensland. Find out why, how and the ...

Pornography is holding more men and women in bondage than ever before. Despite the gloom, there are victories. Luke’s story is one. Will you be the next to be free from porn addiction? There was a time when pornography seemed like it was a part of growing up and gaining liberty from stereotypical norms, or rules our parents and religion had imposed on us. But more than that, it seemed like ...

Arguably, the most intelligent thing any real man should be doing is caring for his wife. In this short post, Guy outlines 7 easy things you can do today to love your wife and improve your life. I’ve heard it said that a man’s wife is his glory.  Another version often stated is “happy wife, happy life”. Proverbs 12:4a outlines it a slightly different way: “A virtuous [or in some translations: ...

Gratitude now has a voice. We as fathers need to be encouraged to be thankful, so we can encourage our children to be the same. Thankful people are happy people. Thankful families are happy families. I even try to teach this to myself, but some things are better caught than taught! When my friend Mark Powell sent me the video below, I nearly leapt out of my skin with excitement. Mark ...

Have you every found yourself in a battle against a system so powerful that they can squash you like a bug, irrespective of what your rights are? In this podcast, Chris shares his ongoing battle to get some answers and have his rights recognised in a David vs Goliath battle that is not yet over. Most of us have heard about David vs Goliath.  It is the quintessential underdog story or ...

Change is stressful, so we all need tips on how to deal with change. Real Talk 4 Real Men episode 56. Change brings on stress, and so in part 3 of Thrive Through Change, we dedicate an entire episode on how to deal with stress. We all know that when negative things are going on in our lives, it causes stress. Things like a relationship breakup, a job redundancy, a health ...

Are you making slow progress managing change? Not sure what to do next? Low confidence in your ability to make the right decision? … help is here. Managing change, especially managing personal change, can be like heading into a high-grade river rapid. The transition is filled with a combination of adventure and chaos that can leave us dazed, confused and doubting ourselves and our future. In part 2 of 13 Principles ...

Going through a life transition is like going from smooth water to white-water. Find out how to stay afloat… Ever gone rafting or kayaking and experienced the change from flat calm water to raging rapids? The calm disappears and you enter into a mix of chaos and adventure. Life transitions are like that, and like rafting white-water, life transitions require a certain skill-set and preparation to handle well. Get Ready For ...

Anyone who has been a father and then a stepfather knows that they aren’t the same. While many aspects of these two roles are similar, it is the unique ones that lead to disillusionment. Franklin put it this way: “I’ve been to every Promise Keepers conference and I’ve studied fathering with my men’s group many times. But nothing has prepared me for being a stepfather. With my own kids I have a ...

I can remember as a young 7-year-old boy going to an Easter Egg-rolling Competition in Scotland. You are probably thinking — what is an Easter egg-rolling competition? Good question! Easter egg-rolling seems to have Viking and Nordic roots. It is a custom in Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Scotland and the northern parts of England. Now US presidents even do it! Apparently, it is symbolic of the stone being rolled away, and so ...

When all hope is lost and you are at the end of your rope, whom do you call? Until recently, you could call Eric Trezise (1930-2021), friend of the friendless and hope for the hopeless. Sadly, Eric passed from this life to the next recently, at 91 years of age. I first met Eric Trezise at the Dads4Kids Fatherhood Forum in Parliament House, Canberra in 2005. Tony Miller, founder of Dads ...

Editor’s Note: I worked closely at times over the last few decades with Ps Eric Trezise. He was the equivalent of an army chaplain in Vietnam and spent his life in service of others. More importantly, in service of his Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ. The story of Eric’s life (1930 – 2021) could fill several books. He was awarded an OAM in 2001 for his successful work in youth suicide ...

Ian ‘Watto’ Watson said, “I have never seen a bloke go backwards with encouragement.” Ian Watson spoke at the very first Men’s Leadership Summit at Paluma Range, north of Townsville, in 2013. Sadly, Ian passed away in 2019. The good news is that he left a massive legacy of encouragement for men the world over.   Rhonda McKenzie, Ian Watson’s niece, said this about him at his memorial service in a ...

Only 5 sleeps till Christmas and I just cannot wait. I love Christmas. My fifth music album was all Christmas Carols, from Once in Royal David’s City to Christmas Day. Christmas really is one of the greatest times of the year, especially for our children. But early in my life I had a love/hate relationship with Christmas. I guess it all started when I was about six years old and I ...

Byrd Bagget says, “Work hard, do your best, live the truth, trust yourself, have some fun… and you will have no regrets.” Only twelve more sleeps till Christmas. All the more reason to live life with no regrets. Warwick, why are you talking about no regrets, twelve days out from Christmas? I thought you would never ask! Recently, my wife and I were invited to speak together at a church by ...

On Father’s Day Sunday 1 September 2002, we launched the very first Dads4Kids weekly newsletter for men. Sign Up Here. We have not missed a Sunday since. It is up to eight hundred and ninety-nine issues later, and no, I am not counting. Let me share the reflection from the very first newsletter. I believe the greatest thing a father can do for his children is to love his wife. Love ...