Kayla and Lauren have been online friends for 10 years, writing and mothering in similar spaces. This conversation takes a deep dive into the relationships parents have with others who mothered our children both before and after they joined our families. Kayla writes heartfelt prayers for parents who are in need of a ministry of words in seasons of deep grief or spiritual dryness. Her top-rated Substack newsletter offers weekly breath prayers, playlists, and encouragement for raising safe and...

Once you see how institutionalizing children can be harmful to their development, how do you continue to be involved with the care of orphans and vulnerable children? Brent Phillips, CEO and Programs Manager at Cherish Uganda, shares how this organization has evolved over the years to best center families within their care strategy. Brent speaks candidly and truthfully about the unique challenges of this transition, and how the posture of programming organizations is critical to the success...

It is critical to center the voices of lived experience experts in any human rights conversation. This episode is sure to give you pause at different moments, as David Sanon shares his experience growing up in a boarding school in Haiti, where American donors sponsored his education. After meeting Steph DeLuca Robinson and other trusted partners, he found an opportunity to lead and develop his fellow Haitians into independent, sustainable solutions that promoted their freedom from foreign...

Eric Gott began working with kids who hold difficult narratives as a play therapist in Nashville, Tennessee. He then became a foster dad, and after 3.5 years of courtroom appointments, he and his wife, Leah, became the legal parents of four young children. Eric now serves as a Children’s Minister in Birmingham, Alabama, where he has brought trauma-infused thought to the way the church creates inclusive spaces for kids who may need help regulating emotions and behaviors. And, you’ll hear him...

Jamie Finn is no stranger to the attachment journey for children and families. Having shared her life as a foster mother for a decade, Jamie knows the beauty and the sorrow of loving kids with difficult beginnings. In this episode, you’ll hear Jamie share the ways her heart posture has changed over the years. If you’re considering becoming a foster parent, if you’re currently walking through the attachment journey yourself, or if you’d like to learn how to better support families wrapped up...

In a law-oriented society like the United States, it is critical to engage legal professionals who frame our understanding of adoption and foster care policies in the field of child advocacy. Elizabeth Kirk, who holds a doctorate in law from Notre Dame, is passionate about adoption policy because of the way her own life started and the way she and her husband have grown their family. As a leading voice in both the legal community and the Catholic pro-life movement, Dr. Kirk sheds light on the...

Dr. Nicholas Darby obtained his Doctor of Medicine from the University of Alabama School of Medicine and is a distinguished Fellow of the American Academy of Family Physicians.  He is a managing partner of Florence Medical Associates, where he practices primary care in Florence, Alabama.  He served as chief resident during his time at Cahaba-UAB Family Medicine Residency and has also enjoyed roles as a clinical professor for nurse practitioner and medical students.   Dr. Darby and his wife...

As medicine continues to advance, reproductive technologies provide more options to hopeful parents. Lauren’s sister, Ansley, shares her journey to motherhood with great vulnerability. This episode provides a frame for those who have wandered through ethical questions of in vitro fertilization. The things Ansley discusses here offer both challenge and hope in the midst of family planning. ... Episode Highlights An introduction to Ansley Smith (3:34) Ansley’s health and family journey...

As the mother of four children who joined her family through adoption, Shannan Martin shares how loving and walking alongside the marginalized of her community not only revolutionized her faith, but also made her an unapologetic ally with those who are negatively impacted by the U.S. prison system.  Shannan, whose husband is a chaplain in their local jail, shares what she has learned by living with and loving the incarcerated. In this episode, you’ll hear about how Shannan accesses the...

Since her release in 2019, Cyntoia Brown Long has been able to travel the U.S. speaking about her experience within the criminal justice system where she was tried as an adult and placed in a womens’ prison at the age of 16. Her story started long before her arrest, however, and long before she found herself fearing for her life in the home of a man who offered to pay her for sex.  Cyntoia shares about her journey out of early childhood foster care and into a loving adoptive family–a...

In this episode, Dr. Patt van Eys provides an incredible foundation of understanding about psychiatric illnesses and the U.S. system for diagnosing and treating mental health concerns. Listeners will find this conversation SO helpful as Dr. Patti connects child development, attachment, and dissociation to the critical ages of neurological growth for babies 0-3 years of age. For those parenting or teaching children who are neurodiverse, this episode will bring clarity to new research around...

Angela Tucker has been a long-time trusted voice in the space of transracial adoption. As an advocate for children growing up in foster and adoptive homes, she shares her own experience of finding her safest place amongst others who were raised apart from their birth families.  Angela facilitates the connection of a vibrant adoptee community full of teens and adults who share a unique journey to finding themselves and their identity. This episode is a critical listen for any parents who have...

***This episode contains themes of self harm, some mild language, and other concepts that may be sensitive to listeners.*** ... Milton Washington leads a number of ventures as he shares a powerful narrative of an identity formed through transnational and transracial experiences. In this episode, he sheds light on the unique origin to his story, and how he learned to grow into his own identity with pride. Listeners will be challenged in this episode as Milton bravely gives testimony to the...

Kimberly and Lauren discuss the particular landscape of orphanages in Thailand, where $40M is donated to homes in 2 of the 76 provinces alone. Kim, a veteran advocate for reformed care led by Thai churches and families, shares how she’s seen practices shift over the years, and where donor churches still need to evolve in their understanding of child development and attachment. Kimberly leads StepAhead Thailand, an organization that offers training on scriptural frameworks for care as well as...

As the President of CAFO (Christian Alliance for Orphans), Jedd Medefind invites people with any skill set or particular burden to care for the needs of vulnerable children and families. Whether that is through offering prepared meals, financial support, intercessory prayer, physical space, or emotional respite, there are things anyone in the Church can offer in the ecosystem of family-based care. Lauren and Jedd set the stage for the rest of this season, and offer a guide to posturing our...

When Lauren was in graduate school, she committed herself to bringing research and data to inform the ways Christians engage with humanitarian issues. Dr. Kristen Cheney is an incredible resource for Churches to understand the psychology of attachment, best practices around child protection, and the need for excellent qualifications in the field of child development in order to appropriately work in the field of care. As you listen to this episode, consider the years of research that has been...

Like many guests on this season, Megan Boudreaux found herself swept up into the church industry or orphanages. The longer she stayed in Haiti, the more she noticed that something was awry with the North American approach to placing children in institutionalized care. Megan and Lauren discuss the crisis of children aging out of orphanages with no connection to their city, their family, or their culture. This episode is an invitation for Christians to consider the large how the conversation...

If there is a good place to start this conversation for our season on Orphans and Vulnerable Children, Brandon Stiver is the right person to set the tone. With years of experience in this space, Brandon helped Lauren curate this episode through his knowledge and his connections to voices in this space. He is a co-host of the Think Orphan podcast, and has dedicated his work and his research to family preservation and family-based care for vulnerable children. Listen to Brandon and Lauren...

Lauren is back with another season exploring the complexities of a global issue that engages many churches, but not always with a cohesive impact. As we follow the mandate of ‘pure religion’ outlined in James 1:27, what does it really mean to care for orphans and widows? What is the invitation to this work, and why isn’t it as simple as a few words in a New Testament epistle? Hear the purpose behind this season, and how the conversations will address not only global orphanages, but also...

For this episode, Lauren spills her heart (and a bit of her life history) to explain the purpose behind this season’s episodes. She discusses how her biblical worldview has changed over time, shares stories from experiences with churches spotted across the world, and offers a hope for a future faith community that stewards responsible Gospel messaging. ... EPISODE SHOW NOTES EPISODE TRANSCRITPION ... Links Kindred Exchange - Learn more and support ethical missions Shop ABLE - Get 15%...

Dr. Aaron Wheeler, the Director of Missional Development for Kindred Exchange, chats with Lauren about four different frames through which people see the world and their place in the Story of God. Too often, he says, our evangelism problem is rooted in a limited theology–we have a “good news” that doesn’t match people’s bad news. This two-part episode series will significantly inform the way followers of Jesus share their belief with others, providing a set of powerful questions to ask and...

Dr. Aaron Wheeler, the Director of Missional Development for Kindred Exchange, chats with Lauren about four different frames through which people see the world and their place in the Story of God.  Too often, he says, our evangelism problem is rooted in a limited theology–we have a “good news” that doesn’t match people’s bad news. This two-part episode series will significantly inform the way followers of Jesus share their belief with others, providing a set of powerful questions to ask and...

Lauren talks with Jeje Godfrey Nzirimu, President and Founder of East Africa Energy Solutions, about the many complications of mobilizing both aid and religion across cultures. Jeje highlights concepts of power dynamics, and explains why so many development efforts fall flat or cause unintended harm. With loads of generosity and grace, he shares wisdom for Westerners engaging in the majority world to help them be better partners and more humble co-laborers in whatever goals they have for...

Rob Touchstone, the Director for the Center for Vocational Discovery at Lipscomb University, shares his journey through different jobs in formal church-based ministry to social enterprise. He and Lauren discuss the Hebrew concept of Avodah, or the convergence of our work also becoming a form of our worship. In this episode, you will hear some new spins on the story of the Rich Man and Lazarus, and will hopefully feel compelled to continue sharing yourself with the world around you as you see...