Dad Talk blog

Successful vs Faithful Life Balance

Successful vs Faithful

We are encouraged from an early age to be successful – Successful in getting good grades; Successful in making the team; Successful in your performance. Later in life it manifests into performing on the job; Climbing the career ladder; Improving the margin for your company.…
Rick Wertz
September 4, 2025
State of Fathering Seasons of Fathering

State of Fathering

Statistics provide one dimension of the ‘state of fathering’. Twenty-five percent of kids grow up in a home without a biological, step or adoptive father per the U.S. Census Bureau. These kids are often referred to as father-less and negative outcomes such as poor academic…
Rick Wertz
August 28, 2025
Ambassador to Next Gen Leadership

Ambassador to Next Gen

Ambassadors are diplomats that represent their home country in a foreign nation or international organization, such as the U.N. and NATO. The role of an ambassador is to maintain diplomatic relations, promote their country’s interests and ensure the security of their citizens living in or…
Rick Wertz
August 21, 2025
Demolish Like Josiah Leadership

Demolish Like Josiah

When a building is demolished, it is a highly technical, planned out operation. Explosives are strategically placed to knock out internal load-bearing sections so the building collapses into itself. The goal is to demolish the building without damaging surrounding structures. When temptations abound and sin…
Rick Wertz
August 7, 2025
Discipling Spiritual Growth

Discipling

One young dad was excited to get his daughter and son on the tennis court. He had visions of them being the next Steffi Graf and Andre Agassi. Following his love for the sport and his dreams for them, he led them through drills and…
Rick Wertz
July 31, 2025
Discerning Leadership

Discerning

When there were three major television stations and one local paper, there was at least a perception of balance in reporting on various issues in the city and across the nation. It has been said that everyone has a right to their own opinion but…
Rick Wertz
July 24, 2025
Get in Fighting Shape Spiritual Growth

Get in Fighting Shape

When Sylvester Stallone’s ROCKY hit the theaters in 1976, the half-dozen raw eggs in a glass, stirred up a bit, became the drink of choice for many young athletes prior to going on an early morning conditioning run. If there were stairs to run up, all the…
Rick Wertz
July 17, 2025
Feeling Like Job Spiritual Growth

Feeling Like Job

Tragedy in Texas – As of this writing, 119 are confirmed dead and over 170 are missing after severe flooding in the Hill Country of Texas. Victims include kids and counselors from Camp Mystic and other summer camps operating along the Guadalupe River, and families…
Rick Wertz
July 10, 2025
Freedom Under God HolidaysSpiritual Growth

Freedom Under God

William Wallace, the 13th century Scotsman depicted in the 1995 movie Braveheart, led the charge for freedom from the tyranny of the English. Five hundred years later, George Washington led a successful charge for freedom from English rule in the American Revolution. Then the work began…
Rick Wertz
July 3, 2025
Thank You Dad Family

Thank You Dad

An annual tribute to the dad that raised me in hope that it is an encouragement to you: Born in 1917, four years after his parents immigrated from the south of Russia, he spent his early years growing up in Nebraska. The family continued to…
Rick Wertz
June 19, 2025
Father’s Day 2025 Family

Father’s Day 2025

As you might expect, June is my favorite month of the year because it is Father’s Day month. Across this month, I encourage you as a dad, adoptive dad or spiritual father, to take inventory of where you are and commit to growing in your…
Rick Wertz
June 12, 2025
Last Time Family

Last Time

I remember talking with a friend in his final days of battling pancreatic cancer. With a smile he said, “It looks like I am going to be the first one in our small group to get promoted.” That was the last time I got to…
Rick Wertz
May 29, 2025
Mother’s Day Month Family

Mother’s Day Month

I am on a quest to declare May as Mother’s Day Month for two reasons – First, I was in the delivery room when our children were born and what I witnessed deserves much more than one Hallmark card day of pampering; Second, June is…
Rick Wertz
May 15, 2025
Mother’s Day 2025 Family

Mother’s Day 2025

An annual tribute to my mother and an encouragement to you: She was an incredible woman. Born in 1921, she aspired to be a vocal performer. As a senior in high school, she contracted tuberculosis. Her dream to perform was no longer possible and the…
Rick Wertz
May 8, 2025