Called to Love: An Adoption Podcast for Christian Parents - Christian Adoption, Trauma and Healing, Foster Care, Parenting Adopted Children

Joining me on this episode is a sexual abuse survivor and author: Ben Locke. When Ben Locke was in his darkest valleys, he was determined to tell God exactly what he thought. He poured out his agony and anger--and was met with God's grace, love, forgiveness, and mercy. He discovered in those moments that God can handle it. All of it. In this episode, Somer and Ben discuss how the church should...

Joining me on this episode is animator, author, and father of four adopted children: Tim Wolkiewicz. Tim is a very talented animator who has worked on Veggietales, Hasbro’s “Transformers Rescue Bots,” Warner Brother’s “Green Eggs and Ham,” and Disney’s “Monsters At Work." He is also passionate about adoption and foster care. Him and his wife both fostered and adopted children, two of which int...

Welcome to the Called to Love Podcast. I hope you enjoyed the Refresh episodes with Kelly Hamilton as much as I did! If we're being honest, the summer season is not always full of fun and relaxation... in fact, it can be hard, lacking consistency, and stressful! That's why I wanted to pause and remind myself of those tools for behavior and emotional regulation, and these tools have been pe...

Summer is a busy season for all families, including my own! That's why I thought this would be a great opportunity to refresh our memories with this incredible series, "Mindful Parenting" featuring my special guest:  Kelly Hamilton . Kelly  is the Founder and Executive Director of "The Connected Life." She helps people build healthy connections to God, themselves, and others. S...

Summer is a busy season for all families, including my own! That's why I thought this would be a great opportunity to refresh our memories with this incredible series, "Mindful Parenting" featuring my special guest:  Kelly Hamilton . Kelly  is the Founder and Executive Director of "The Connected Life." She helps people build healthy connections to God, themselves, and others. S...

Summer is a busy season for all families, including my own! That's why I thought this would be a great opportunity to refresh our memories with this incredible series, "Mindful Parenting" featuring my special guest:  Kelly Hamilton . Kelly  is the Founder and Executive Director of "The Connected Life." She helps people build healthy connections to God, themselves, and others. S...

Summer is a busy season for all families, including my own! That's why I thought this would be a great opportunity to refresh our memories with this incredible series, "Mindful Parenting" featuring my special guest:  Kelly Hamilton . Kelly  is the Founder and Executive Director of "The Connected Life." She helps people build healthy connections to God, themselves, and others. S...

Welcome to the Called to Love Podcast. This week, I am tackling a question submitted from a listener. I am unpacking what certain behaviors mean, how to tell if its "trauma or drama." Let's be honest, kids can act out for a number of reasons and we need to know how to respond appropriately. In this episode, I go over a variety of behaviors, signs, things for you to look out for, and gi...

Welcome to the Called to Love Podcast. This week, I am joined by Dr. Gary Chapman. Gary is an author, speaker, and counselor— and he has a passion for people and for helping them form lasting relationships. He is the bestselling author of The 5 Love Languages® series and the director of Marriage and Family Life Consultants, Inc. Gary Travels the world presenting seminars, and his radio programs ai...

Welcome to the Called to Love Podcast. This week, I am joined by author "M is for Mama" Abbie Halberstadt. Abbie is the busy mom of ten kiddos who also finds time to encourage Christian mamas in their calling of motherhood. As moms, we are laying the foundation for our kids to know Christ; it is a heavy responsibility but one we can do with God on our side. In this conversation, we talk ab...

Welcome to the Called to Love Podcast. This week, our special guest is an attorney to help us answer all the legal and financial questions: Lucrece Bundy. Lucrece always had a passion for helping children but didn't expect God would call her to helping children and parents from a legal perspective. Now, she is not only a lawyer advocating for families but has a YouTube channel dedicated to adv...

Welcome to the Called to Love Podcast. This week, I am joined with the incredible Jennifer Kritner who shares her powerful story of foster care and adoption. Jennifer had a difficult time having her two biological sons but then due to some medical challenges, she was given the devastating news that she could no longer have children. Through this heartbreak, God led her to foster care, which was no...

Welcome to the Called to Love Podcast. This week, I am joined with author, professor, speaker, and mother of three precious adopted children: Dr. Laurel Shaler. Laurel has co-written a book with Dr. Gary Chapman titled "Loving Adopted Children Well: A 5 Love Languages Approach" which has sparked today's conversation. Laurel and I discuss some of her unique background with adoption whic...

Welcome to the Called to Love Podcast. This week, my special guest and I are talking about addressing the tough questions our adopted kids ask. Common ones can be "Why are you my parents?" "Why am I not with my real parents?" and "Why don't I look like you?" "Why am I different?" and so many more. We need to welcome these conversations so our kids feel safe and...

Welcome to the Called to Love Podcast. This week, my special guests and I are talking about our adopted child's experience from their perspective. They are going to have a lot of questions about their identity and who they are, and as parents we need to help them navigate this. Joined with me on this are the authors of the book "Whose Am I" Jackie Darby and Axia de Lopez. Jackie Darby...

Welcome to the Called to Love Podcast. This week, I am joined with a special guest who has an incredible story that needed sharing. Rebekah Finney has had a long journey to finding God's goodness in adoption and foster care, a story which many of us can relate to or understand how beautiful yet painful this calling is. Rebekah's story is exactly that, full of the pain of miscarriages and y...

Welcome to the Called to Love Podcast. Often people think infertility leads to adoption. It isn't always the case, but it can be for some. Joined with me on the podcast are authors Jenn Hesse and Kelley Ramsey who were connected from miles apart thanks to social media. They both share similar infertility stories which is what dawned their friendship and eventually collaborating on this book, &...

Welcome to the Called to Love Podcast. It's been a while since it's just been you and me on the podcast. We've had a lot of incredible guests over the past several weeks and I just wanted to take a moment to pause and get into a common struggle with adoption and foster care, and that's how to raise all the siblings together. I offer you some practical advice, my own rough experienc...

Welcome to the Called to Love Podcast. I think as parents, we can feel like we're not enough and we're limited by so many things: time, money, energy, etc. And it's true. We are limited, but it is in those limits that God makes up the difference. It is through God's unlimitedness, that we are able to overcome those challenges in parenthood. In this episode, I am joined with pastor,...

Welcome to the Called to Love Podcast. Joined with me this topic which resonates so deeply with foster and adoptive parents is Nicole Unice. Nicole Unice is a bivocational leader, serving both in the ministry and in the marketplace. As a pastor and community leader, Nicole is the author of several books on healthy faith, honing in on the connection between our emotional and spiritual life. She’s t...

Welcome to the Called to Love Podcast. Joined with me on this very important episode is Hillary Morgan Ferrer of the Mama Bear Apologetics. Hillary is the founder and President of Mama Bear Apologetics. She feels a burden for providing accessible apologetics resources for busy moms. She is the chief author and editor of the bestselling books   Mama Bear Apologetics:  Empowering Your Kids to Challe...

Welcome to the Called to Love Podcast. Joined with me on this episode is Brent Dusing, creator of TruPlay which sparks today's conversation about screentime for our kids. On average, children spend 52 hours per week on a screen, and approximately 30% of kids in the U.S. today are believers... those are staggering statistics and the harsh reality is kids are being exposed to poison from the big...

Welcome to the Called to Love Podcast. Joined with me today is the author and mom of both adopted and bio kids: Sara Hagerty . Sara recently published a book titled " The Gift of Limitations " which sparked this raw conversation about dealing with disappointment in this season of motherhood, naming our emotions, and working through grief. One thing that resonates is how we can't skip s...

Welcome to the Called to Love Podcast. Joined with me on this episode is Adam Holz from Focus on the Family's Plugged In where he oversees the editing and publishing of Plugged In’s reviews as the site’s director. Here we discuss the need as parents to be screen-savvy! We talk about establishing healthy boundaries as partners with our spouse, to be united on this front. We discuss the need for...

Welcome to the Called to Love Podcast. This is a new series I'm titling Listener Q & A, where I respond to a question or comment from a listener sharing a piece of their story that may be super relatable to this calling... and super relevant to you listening at home! This question is a big one: Am I really called to adopt or foster? It is such a big commitment and there's a lot we can...