A kid doesn’t need a perfect dad, but they do need a present one, and the window to shape a heart doesn’t stay soft forever. Father’s Day sets the tone with a simple poem, “The Sculptor,” and it lands like a warning and a gift: the impressions we leave on our sons and daughters tend to last. If you’ve ever looked at middle school years and thought, I don’t have the tools for this, you’re not alone.

We sit down with Matt Hanson, president of the National Rite of Passage Council, to talk about Aion Path, a three-year Christian rite of passage built for 12 to 14 year olds and the fathers who walk beside them. We get into why male discipleship is struggling, why outsourcing faith formation has not worked, and why the solution is often simpler than we think: warm conversations, shared time, and a clear structure that makes leadership doable. Matt explains how Aion Path starts with “30 conversations” (five to ten minutes a day), how kids choose “30 skills” they want to learn, and why an overnight adventure can become a turning point when your child gets real ownership.

We also unpack the power of tangible milestones like challenge coins, the role of a pastor as a “shepherd,” and how three trusted “guides” (financial, vocational, spiritual) create the intergenerational relationships that help faith stick. If you want a practical framework for raising resilient teenage boys and teenage girls, strengthening father-child connection, and building lifelong Christian faith at home, this conversation gives you a clear next step.

Subscribe, share this with a dad who needs a playbook, and leave a review with the one rite of passage you wish you’d had growing up.

Go to www.aionpath.com to learn more

Chapter Markers

0:00
Welcome And The Inner Fight
0:33
The Sculptor And A Father's Weight
3:16
The Hunger For Rites Of Passage
6:31
Year One Building Real Connection
18:14
Coins Skills And Trusted Guides
27:30
Letting Your Kid Lead The Journey
32:00
Year Two Faith Foundations And Year Three
35:41
How To Find Aion Path And Closing Prayer

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Visit www.thesavagepath.com for more on David, his book The Savage Path: A Memoir of Modern Masculinity, and the Savage Path Ministries Corp.