Core Dad Advice: Love Your Spouse First

📍 When did you become a man? Most guys can't answer that question clearly—because they never had a defining moment.

Matt Hanson is on a mission to change that. In this episode, he shares the Ion Path—a 3-year Christian rite of passage for dads and their 12-16 year olds.

You'll hear:

➡️ Why Dad is "LeBron James" in the faith transfer game (50-60 points!)

➡️ How 30 conversations in 30 days can transform your relationship

➡️ The simple framework for teaching your kids 30 life skills before they launch

➡️ Why it's more important to be IN the conversation than to be RIGHT

What if you could give your son or daughter something most kids never receive—a clear moment when they know they've become a man or woman? In this episode, Matt Hanson shares the vision behind the Ion Path, a 3-year Christian rite of passage designed to help dads and their kids become co-learners on the journey to adulthood. You'll hear why only 8-10% of church kids keep their faith for a lifetime, what makes dad "LeBron James" in the faith transfer game, and how 30 simple conversations can transform your relationship with your child.

• Most kids raised in the church never experience a defining moment that marks their transition into adulthood—and it's time to change that.
• Dad is the single biggest factor in whether a child keeps their faith for a lifetime. If faith transfer is a 100-point game, dad is 50-60 of those points.
• The most powerful thing you can do for your kids is love their mother well and stay in the conversation—it's more important to be in the conversation than to be right.
• A 3-year intentional journey with your 12-16 year old—built around conversations, skills, challenges, and adventures—can launch them into adulthood with confidence and faith.
• You don't have to have all the answers. The Ion Path equips dads to go on this journey alongside their child as co-learners, not experts.

Matt Hanson is the founder of the Ion Path, a 3-year Christian rite of passage designed to help dads and their children become co-learners on the journey to adulthood. After a successful business career, Matt turned his attention to the crisis of faith retention among young people and assembled a coalition of faith leaders to create a standard for rites of passage across denominational lines. He and his wife Mary have three adult children—Savannah, Noah, and Tatum—and live in Southern California.

1. "It's more important to be in the conversation than be right. I heard one person say that they've only had one conversation with their daughter, but it started when she was four and it never stopped."
2. "If it's a 100-point game, Dad is the LeBron James. He's 50 to 60 points in that game."
3. "Ion is a Greek word that means a moment in time that impacts all of time. As dads, we are in a series of moments in time and we are forming the next generation, which will last a long time."
4. "If I finish and check off all 30 of those skills with my son, my son's not going to enter adulthood wondering if he's a capable person—because he's going to know there's at least 30 things I know, and I learned them from my dad."
5. "You get the dad, you get the family. You get the family, you get the church. You get the church, you get the community. It is the powder keg."

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• Aion Path: https://aionpath.com/

• Pastors Info Video (Aion Path)

• Ion Path 5-Video Text Series - Text "Aion Path Dad to 1-888-488-9429

• Three Year Breakdown of Aion Path

• National Rite of Passage Council