Rick Morton and Chelsea Sobolik welcome Rachel Medefind, who leads the Institute for Family Centered Healing and Health at the Christian Alliance for Orphans and is the author of When There Is Crisis. Rachel shares her story, from growing up as a missionary kid in the Philippines to building a family through birth, adoption, and foster care. She explains why healing and formation come through small, repeated habits, drawing on both Scripture and neuroscience. The conversation turns to spiritual encouragement for exhausted parents, trusting that God intends good in suffering, and why families in crisis should not pull away from the church. Rachel closes with a reminder that parents remain the most powerful presence in a child's life, even when the fruit is slow to appear.

Rick Morton, Herbie Newell, and Chelsea Sobolik welcome attorney and advocate Palmer Williams, a partner at Holtzman Vogel and former general counsel of the ERLC. Palmer traces her heart for vulnerable children from her own childhood experience of need, through summers and a gap year serving at a children's home in rural South Africa, to the adoption of her brother. She talks about approaching communities with a gifts-first posture, why lasting service starts with relationship, and how the church can respond with grace to awkward or offensive comments. The panel digs into the difference between enforcing laws and writing new ones, why state and local policy matters so much, and how families can tell their stories to policymakers. They close with the steep decline in international adoption and why the church should keep raising the banner for children without families.

Over 3,400 children are in foster care in South Carolina, and some are staying in government offices because no homes are available. Rob, Herbie, and Ford discuss the need for families for teens and sibling groups, how to discern a call to foster, and practical ways to support foster families.

South Carolina has 3,432 children in foster care, and about 2,800 entered care last year, more than seven a day. Lifeline’s Lowcountry team needs 75 homes for sibling groups and 181 for children without siblings. The children who have waited longest are ages 8 and up, sibling groups, and kids with higher needs.
In this episode, Rob, Herbie, and Ford discuss:

• Why keeping siblings together and kids in their communities matters, and why safety always comes first
• The fear of saying goodbye, and what James 1:27 says about caring for vulnerable children
• Calling vs. feelings: how to discern whether God is leading you to foster
• Practical first steps, starting with talking to your pastor and community group
• Ways to support foster families through meals, encouragement, respite, and prayer

Ready to take a step? Visit lifelinechild.org/becomeafosterparent, call 205-967-0811, or follow Lifeline Child on social media. If you’re outside South Carolina, reach out and Lifeline will connect you with resources.

Chapters:
00:00 Welcome and the need in South Carolina
01:00 The numbers
02:30 Why siblings stay together
04:15 Keeping kids in their county
05:45 The fear of saying goodbye
06:40 James 1:27 and God’s sovereignty
07:55 Called to foster vs. called to advocate
08:50 Teens who need homes
10:40 Discerning your calling
13:20 How to get started
15:45 Engaging the next generation
16:40 Wrapping around foster families
19:10 Small acts, big impact
20:45 Closing

foster care, South Carolina, foster parenting, adoption, Christian, ministry, child welfare, teens in foster care, sibling groups, Lifeline Children’s Services, orphan care, church, family, Defender Podcast