Relatively Functional Dads

The Relatively Functional Dads
  • 5.0 (6)
  • Parenting

Relatively Functional Dads is a podcast for fathers doing their best and learning every day. Hosted by three young dads and brothers-in-law, we have honest conversations about faith, fatherhood, and real life. From sleepless nights and discipline struggles to marriage, leadership, and growing in faith at home, we talk about what it really looks like to show up as a dad. We’re not experts—just dads figuring it out together. Some days we’ve got it together. Other days, we’re just trying to make it to bedtime. If you’re a dad in the middle of it, you’re in the right place. New episodes every other Thursday

  1. 2d ago

    Episode 016 - This Won't Last Forever: Persevering Through the Seasons of Fatherhood

    It's 2 a.m., the baby won't stop crying, and you're wondering if you'll ever sleep again. Then one day you realize the contact naps are gone too, and nobody told you the last one was the last one. Sound familiar? This episode is for you. In this episode of the Relatively Functional Dads podcast, Buddy and Reese are joined by Noah on a Friday night with the wives away, the kids (hopefully) asleep, and the baby monitors on the table. They talk about a truth that cuts both ways: nothing in fatherhood lasts forever. The sleepless nights, the tantrums, and the blowouts with no wipes in the bag will end. So will the contact naps, the "Daddy, watch this," and the bedtime stories. The guys get honest about the seasons that felt endless, why perseverance isn't pretending things are easy, and how to be present in a good season before it's gone. In this episode: Would you rather know when every "last time" with your child is happening, or never know?The parenting seasons that felt endless while we were in them, from newborn gas pain to round two of the threenager stageWhy perseverance isn't pretending, and why you need grace for today, not strength for the next five yearsStewarding the season you're in instead of escaping into the life you wish you hadWhat our kids are doing right now that we know we'll miss somedayWhy we need to stop living in "once": once they sleep, once work slows down, once things get easierChallenge for the week: In something hard, ask, "What would faithfulness look like today if I knew this wasn't forever?" In something good, ask, "What am I experiencing right now that I don't want to take for granted?" The hard moments deserve endurance. The beautiful moments deserve attention. Subscribe for more conversations on: Christian fatherhood, perseverance and presence in every season of parenting, raising babies, toddlers and young kids, and a good bit of dad humor. Episode Mentions: The Jesus Storybook Bible - Sally Lloyd-JonesThe Chronicles of Narnia - C.S. LewisWe'd love to hear from you! Leave a comment or send questions and feedback to relativelyfunctionaldads@gmail.com Music Provided By: Derek McClardy Spotify

  2. Sep 24

    Episode 015 - Raising Kids Who Trust God, Not Just Obey Him w/ Meredith Miller

    Your kid asks a big question about God. You start answering... and halfway through, you realize you're not sure you believe it yourself. Sound familiar? This episode is for you. In this episode of the Relatively Functional Dads podcast, Buddy sits down with pastor and author Meredith Miller, who's spent over 20 years walking alongside kids, families, and faith communities. Meredith wrote Woven: Nurturing a Faith Your Kid Doesn't Have to Heal From — a book that's become a go-to resource for parents who feel the pressure to lead their kids somewhere spiritually they've never fully landed themselves. Buddy and Meredith dig into why faith isn't something you build brick by brick, but something you weave — flexible enough to bend without breaking when life happens. They talk trust before obedience, what to do when your kid asks a question that stumps you, and why "I don't know" might be one of the most faith-building things a dad can say. In this episode: Why the "wall" metaphor for faith sets kids up to crumble, and what weaving a "web" of faith looks like insteadWhy trust has to come before obedience and what goes wrong when we skip straight to behaviorWhat a faith someone "needs to heal from" actually looks like, and how common it isWhat to say when your kid asks a hard question you don't have the answer toThe research-backed power of family warmth in nurturing a kid's faithEncouragement for dads who feel like they don't have their own faith figured out yetChallenge for the week: Pick one thing you and your kid already do for fun (play catch, ice eat cream, walk at the park)  and connect it to God in a single sentence. No lesson, no lecture, just one line. Subscribe for more conversations on: Christian fatherhood, faith-based parenting, raising kids who trust God, discipleship at home, and a good bit of dad humor.  Episode Mentions: Woven: Nurturing a Faith Your Kid Doesn't Have to Heal From - Meredith MillerWonder: 52 Conversations to Help Kids Fall in Love With Scripture - Meredith MillerFollow Meredith on InstagramRead Meredith's newsletter on SubstackWe'd love to hear from you! Leave a comment or send questions and feedback to relativelyfunctionaldads@gmail.com Music Provided By: Derek McClardy Spotify

  3. Sep 10

    Episode 014 - Dad Desires Pt 2: Don’t Kill Them, Rule Them

    Why do you know exactly which of your desires is loud and which one is quiet and still let the loud one win anyway? In this episode of the Relatively Functional Dads podcast, we pick up right where Part 1 left off. Knowing your strong desires from your deep ones is only half the battle — you can know exactly which one is talking and still let the strong one win. One more quarter of football instead of time with the kids. One more beer instead of water. Staying late at work instead of hurrying home. The goal was never to kill your desires… it's to rule over them so the loud ones stop taxing the quiet ones, and today we get practical about how. We talk through how to actually tell a God-given desire from one that's about to wreck your life standards, prayer, honest community, and enough silence and solitude to hear the quiet stuff. Then we get specific about our own structures: what we keep out of the house, when we stop working, when we go to bed, our weekly Sabbath, and why one of us has basically no privacy left on purpose. And we don't dodge the hard question. What's at stake ten years from now if the loud desires keep winning, and what's possible if they don't. In this episode: Dad Decisions: your kid thanking you today for how you're parenting them vs. thanking you at thirtyShould Have Known Better: a "low-commitment" fantasy football league that turned into an unpaid second jobShould Have Known Better: two toddlers, a deer blind, and zero bug sprayHow to actually tell a God-given desire from one about to run wild on youThe real habits and structures we've built to give our deep desires a fighting chanceWhat's at stake ten years from now if the loud desires keep winning — and what's different if they don't Challenge for the week: Plan a 15-minute phone-free window this week to ask, "What do I actually want in my life, and why?" Then bring one thing you noticed back to your spouse or friends. Mentions in the episode: Your Baby's First Word Will Be DADA - Jimmy FallonLive No Lies - John Mark ComerFat Fruit Friends - Nate Bargatze Subscribe for more conversations on: Christian fatherhood and dads podcast encouragementDesire, discipline, and spiritual formation for menParenting young kids, marriage, and family lifeDiscovering God's design for your lifeReal, honest dad life moments We'd love to hear from you! Leave a comment or send questions and feedback to relativelyfunctionaldads@gmail.com Music Provided By: Derek McClardy Spotify

  4. Aug 28

    Episode 013 - Strong vs. Deep: What Your Desires Are Telling You Pt. 1

    Why do you want to be home more AND get ahead at work? Why do you finally get the kids to bed... and immediately miss them? In this episode of the Relatively Functional Dads podcast, we're digging into something every dad feels but rarely names: the constant tug-of-war between competing desires. Advancing your career vs. being home more. Craving quiet vs. craving community. Wanting peace at the end of the day vs. missing the chaos the second it's gone. We name the desires actually competing inside the average dad on a Monday night — and talk about why the tension isn't a malfunction, it's just being human. Then we get into the heart of it: John Mark Comer's line that "our strongest desires are not actually our deepest desires." A strong desire is loud and wants to be satisfied right now — the mindless scroll, the extra drink, the cheap laugh. A deep desire is quiet and long-term — the marriage that lasts, the kids who actually love God, the work that means something. Strong desires shout. Deep desires whisper. And most of us have gotten really good at listening to the wrong one. This is Part 1 of a 2-part series. Next episode, we go further — how your deepest desires can actually work like a compass, pointing you toward how God specifically made you. In this episode: Dad Decisions: 3 hours alone every Saturday vs. your whole family telling you how much they appreciate youDad Decisions: being an incredible dad who everyone outside your family thinks is the worst vs. a decent dad everyone thinks is the bestShould Have Known BetterNaming the desires actually competing inside the average dad on a Monday nightWhy so many dads feel guilty for wanting things at all — rest, hobbies, adventure, successThe difference between a strong desire and a deep desire (and why one satisfies for an hour and the other for a lifetime)A real example: a strong desire shouting over a deeper one, straight from our own weekHow to actually tell, in the moment, which kind of desire you're dealing with Challenge for the week: The next time you catch yourself chasing something right now — a scroll, a snack, an escape — pause and ask, "What am I actually wanting underneath this?" Write down the deep desire you think it's covering for. Mentioned books: The Lord and His Prayer - N.T. Wright Subscribe for more conversations on: Christian fatherhood and dads podcast encouragementDesire, temptation, and spiritual formation for menParenting young kids, marriage, and family lifeDiscovering God's design for your lifeReal, honest dad life moments We'd love to hear from you! Leave a comment or send questions and feedback to relativelyfunctionaldads@gmail.com Music Provided By: Derek McClardy Spotify

  5. Aug 13

    Episode 012 - Comparison: Raising the Child You Have, Not the Child You Imagined

    Comparison is sneaky. It steals your joy and changes the way you see your kids, your wife, and yourself as a dad. In this episode of the Relatively Functional Dads podcast, we get honest about comparison in fatherhood: comparing our kids to other kids, ourselves to other dads, and our families to ones that don't even exist. We talk about what happens when hopes become expectations, and how trading comparison for curiosity changes the way you love and lead your family. We wrap up in John 21, where Jesus answers Peter's "what about that guy?" with a simple "What is it to you? Follow me." In this episode: Big Dad Energy: a solo birthday party survival story and a last-minute birthday bike missionDad Decisions: beat your kid in any competition but tweak a muscle every time, or lose to them forever?The expectations we carried into fatherhood and the ones our kids shatteredComparison vs. curiosity: asking "Who has God made this child to become?"What Jesus says when you catch yourself asking “what about that dad?” Challenge for the week: Replace one comparison with one moment of curiosity. Instead of "Why aren't they more like ___?", ask "What is God uniquely developing in this child?" Episode Mentions: Woven by Meredith Anne Miller Subscribe for more conversations on fatherhood, faith, marriage, and intentional parenting. We'd love to hear from you! Leave a comment or send questions and feedback to relativelyfunctionaldads@gmail.com Music Provided By: Derek McClardy Spotify

  6. Jul 30

    Episode 011 - Fatherhood Is Not a Solo Mission

    Who's a dangerous man? A dad with no one keeping him accountable, no one speaking into his life, and no brothers in the trenches with him. In this episode of the Relatively Functional Dads podcast, we get real about male friendship, brotherhood, and why building community as a dad only gets harder — and matters more — once you have kids. Between marriage, work, and parenting young kids, it's easy to let deep friendships slide into isolation and loneliness. We share our own stories of losing community, moving to new cities, starting over, and slowly building the kind of Christian brotherhood where you can show up at 6 AM, half-articulate, and still be understood. We also answer a listener question every dad faces: how to survive solo parenting when mom is sick or away for the weekend without losing your patience or your mind. In this episode: Why isolation lies to us and why men need community and accountabilityHow to make friends as an adult man: weekly coffee, rec leagues, church community, and reaching out firstWhat makes a friendship impactful: humility, honesty, shared experience, and guys who push youMentors, brothers, and rookies: why every dad needs men ahead of him, beside him, and behind himReese opens up about addiction, shame, and the mentors who helped him walk in freedomWhy proximity matters and how to mourn old seasons of friendship without missing the one you're in Challenge for the week: Text one dad and put something specific on the calendar — breakfast, the gym, garage night. A real day and time, not "we should hang out soon." And if they can't make it, follow up with the next date. Bonus: if you've got a potential mentor in mind, ask him. Worst case, you buy an older guy a coffee. Relatively Functional Dads is a Christian fatherhood podcast for dads who want encouragement in parenting, marriage, faith, and friendship… becoming the fathers God calls us to be. Subscribe for more conversations on: Christian fatherhood and dads podcast encouragementMale friendship, brotherhood, and community for menParenting young kids, marriage, and family lifeMentorship, accountability, and men's spiritual growthOvercoming loneliness and isolation as a dad We'd love to hear from you! Leave a comment or send questions and feedback to relativelyfunctionaldads@gmail.com Music Provided By: Derek McClardy Spotify

  7. Jul 17

    Episode 010 - How Having Kids Changes Your Marriage

    Where did my wife go? If you've become a dad and felt like your marriage changed overnight… you're not imagining it. In this episode of the Relatively Functional Dads podcast, we're getting honest about what no one tells you…becoming parents doesn't just change your sleep schedule, it changes your marriage. The connection that once came easily now takes effort. The fun that used to be spontaneous now has to be planned. And the woman you married is carrying a load you may not even see. But here's the good news: it's also an invitation. We share what we've learned to deeply appreciate about our wives as they've stepped into motherhood, the tenacity, the sacrifice, the capacity that keeps growing. And we get practical about how to support her through the identity shift, the mental load, and the pressures moms carry that dads often miss. Because being reactive in fatherhood keeps you from being proactive in your marriage. In this episode: Listener question: What fears do you have as a parent and how has God helped you through them?NEW SEGMENT: Dad DecisionsWhat we've learned to love about our wives as mothersHow to support your wife through the identity shift of motherhoodThe invisible pressures moms carry (mom brain is real)Why couples lose connection after kids and how to fight for itPractical habits that keep us connected: weekly calendars, morning coffee check-ins, and planned alone time Challenge for the week: Ask your spouse one simple question: "What is one thing I can do this week that would help you feel more supported?" Then actually do it. Subscribe for more conversations on: Christian fatherhoodMarriage after kidsFaith-based parentingSupporting your wife through motherhoodBiblical leadership in the homeReal, honest dad life moments Music Provided By: Derek McClardy We’d love to hear from you! Leave a comment or send questions and feedback to relativelyfunctionaldads@gmail.com  Instagram: @relativelyfunctionaldads

  8. Jul 2

    Episode 009 - WHY GOD WENT SILENT AT 2AM w/ Zach Unger

    It's 2AM. You've tried everything. Baby's still crying. You let out one final prayer  and hear nothing. If you've been there, this episode is for you. Buddy and producer Noah sit down with their good friend Zach to talk about what happens to your faith when sleep training pushes you to the edge. Zach opens up about months of sleepless nights, prayers that seemed to go unanswered, and the moment he started to wonder if God was cruel  and what brought him back. But this episode isn't really about sleep training. It's about what happens when you're physically, emotionally, and spiritually depleted  and God still seems quiet. We unpack one of the most powerful parenting metaphors we've come across: spiritual tummy time. Just like a baby strains on their stomach to build strength they didn't know they needed, God's silence in your hardest seasons might be doing something you can't see yet. In this episode: What sleepless nights reveal about your relationship with GodWhy unanswered prayer isn't the same as ignored prayerHow to protect your marriage when you're both running on emptyThe danger of letting shame keep you from showing upWhy community with other dads is non-negotiable Music Provided By: Derek McClardy We’d love to hear from you! Leave a comment or send questions and feedback to relativelyfunctionaldads@gmail.com  Instagram: @relativelyfunctionaldads

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5
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About

Relatively Functional Dads is a podcast for fathers doing their best and learning every day. Hosted by three young dads and brothers-in-law, we have honest conversations about faith, fatherhood, and real life. From sleepless nights and discipline struggles to marriage, leadership, and growing in faith at home, we talk about what it really looks like to show up as a dad. We’re not experts—just dads figuring it out together. Some days we’ve got it together. Other days, we’re just trying to make it to bedtime. If you’re a dad in the middle of it, you’re in the right place. New episodes every other Thursday

Information

  • Creator
    The Relatively Functional Dads
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    18
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 The Relatively Functional Dads
  • Show Website
    Relatively Functional Dads