I DON’T JUST TALK ABOUT FREEDOM. I HAD TO FIGHT TO FIND IT FOR MYSELF.
For a long time, I wore the right face. Said the things people expected. Did the church stuff.
I was good at playing steady — Even when everything underneath was anything but.
There were wounds I didn’t want to admit were still open. Fears I couldn’t name. And patterns I didn’t even know were running my life.
I grew up in a well-known family. It seemed like everyone knew our name. And with that came something no one warned me about — This invisible weight that stuck to me like a shadow. It wasn’t loud. It wasn’t dramatic.
But it was there. Expectations. Unspoken dreams.
This pressure to keep the image from cracking — Like if I stepped the wrong way, everything would collapse. And for a long time, I kept quiet. Even when it cost me pieces of myself.
And it wasn’t until someone, who loved me enough to speak a harsh truth, told me that no one cares about my last name – something that I carried over from my mother’s constant concern of our image.
This hit me like a ton of bricks – not in an angry or hurt way – but in an eye-opening way that helped me understand that it was okay to let go of my family’s image and start working on being the man that God created me to be.
This calling?
It didn’t come wrapped in clarity or confidence. It came after messing up. After losing time. After getting tired of pretending. After hearing harsh truths. I’m not here because I figured it all out. I’m here because I finally stopped running from what was real. And now — I help other people do the same.
I HELP PEOPLE BREAK WHAT NEEDS BREAKING — AND BUILD WHAT LASTS.
I’m Clayton Wagner
I’ve walked with students who carried more pressure than peace. I’ve been in the middle of marriages falling apart — not just as a coach, but as someone who knows what it’s like to sit across from the person you love and still feel miles apart. I’ve felt the ache of two people trying — and failing — to hear each other. I’ve lived the weight.
I’ve passed some of it on. And I’ve learned what it takes to finally put it down. There’s a moment — usually quiet, usually late — when someone realizes:
“These stones I’ve been carrying… they were never mine to pass on.”
Helping people name what’s been buried.
Break what needs breaking.
And start building something real — something that lasts.
THE PROGRAMS I BRING
I created three experiences that go deep, hit hard, and change lives:
- Stones Are Not Inheritance – Generational healing through a visceral, spiritual experience
- Encounter – A clarity-driven, discipleship-rooted coaching journey for identity and direction
- Breaking the Bowl – A bold awakening for youth stuck in the “fishbowl” of fear, labels, and performance
All of it is grounded in one framework:
Discover → Develop → Deploy
Because I don’t believe in one-time hype.
I believe in lifelong change.
WHY I DO THIS
Because I know what it’s like to feel disqualified. To look successful but be spiritually bankrupt. To feel God calling you deeper but not know where to start. I’ve been broken, rebuilt, and burdened with a purpose: To walk beside others as they do the same.
MY MISSION
To help people encounter truth, release what’s been weighing them down, and walk boldly into the calling God placed on their life — fully equipped and finally free.
A LITTLE MORE ABOUT ME
- Founder of Iron & Oak Ministries, a brotherhood-focused movement sharpening men for life’s battles
- Coach and spiritual guide for churches, youth groups, and couples
- Southern-born, straight-talking, and deeply committed to soul-deep transformation
- Not afraid to get real, dig deep, and speak truth with grace
BOOK CLAYTON FOR YOUR EVENT
Whether you’re a pastor, a parent, a man on the edge, or a young person in the fog — if you’re ready for something real… I’m ready for you.