On the September 25th edition of The Defender Podcast, Drew Raynor, Pastor of Harvest Church in Cary, North Carolina joined host Herbie Newell to discuss church planting, adoption, and discipleship. Drew is married to his wife, Taylor, and has three children, two biological and one through domestic adoption. Drew was part of a church planting

  In September, we had the honor of hosting an official delegation from NingXia, China at the Lifeline offices in Birmingham, Alabama. The six-member delegation was made up of government and orphanage officials from this beautiful, autonomous region in north-central China. While the group was in the United States they experienced true southern culture, heard

Nicolas Osorio, one of the pastors at Iglesia Bautista Renacer in Bogota, Colombia, joined Herbie Newell on the September 18, 2019 edition of The Defender Podcast. Nicolas is married to Juanita, and they have two young sons. Although he has been a part of Iglesia Bautista Renacer since its start by his father twenty-five years

On the September 11, 2019 edition of The Defender Podcast, Herbie Newell talked with Jedd Medefind, President of Christian Alliance for Orphans (CAFO) about the work of CAFO and engaging the local church in caring for vulnerable children. CAFO was established in 2004 when Christian leaders from various organizations came together with a common desire

On the September 4th edition of The Defender Podcast, Tony Merida joined Herbie Newell to discuss adoption, justice in the church, prioritizing family as a dad, and how the gospel has been evident in his own family’s life. Tony and his wife, Kimberly have five children, four adopted from Ukraine and one adopted from Ethiopia.

At Lifeline, we believe in the value and dignity of all women, and we know that birth mothers are incredibly brave and driven by love. Our pregnancy counselors and domestic adoption team encounter amazing women every day, who seek to care for their children in sacrificial and loving ways. Christie Mac Segars, Lifeline’s Vice President

On the August 28th edition of The Defender Podcast, guests Ann Maura Hinton and Rick Morton joined Herbie Newell to discuss advocating for children in the education system. Ann Maura is the Education Specialist at Lifeline, providing families with expertise in navigating the education system and providing educational helps for children. Rick Morton is the

On the August 21st edition of The Defender Podcast, Krista Stotler joined Herbie Newell to share how her church has cultivated a heart to care for vulnerable children through adoption and foster care. Krista is the Director of Foster Care and Adoption at Fielder Church in Arlington, Texas. Along with her husband of 24 years,

Rob Pacienza joined Herbie Newell on the August 14, 2019 edition of The Defender Podcast to share about his experience with grief and loss after the death his youngest daughter. Rob is the Lead Pastor of Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church (PCA) in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida and a graduate of Samford Univeristy in Birmingham, Alabama. Rob

  On the August 7th of The Defender Podcast, Lynn Beckett joined Herbie Newell to discuss transitioning children from summer to a new school year. Lynn is a vital part of Lifeline’s Counseling and Education team and helps families navigate post adoption challenges and issues that arise. Summer tends to have its own challenges, with

  The July 24, 2019 episode of The Defender Podcast featured Josh Caldwell, Lifeline’s VP of International Programs, and Karla Thrasher, Lifeline’s International Adoption Director, as they shared their knowledge and heart for international adoption. Josh noted that one deterrent to families pursuing adoption is being fearful of the process because their questions have gone

On the July 17th edition of The Defender Podcast, Pastor Raphael Kajjubi and Adalyn Newell joined Herbie Newell in a discussion about (un)adopted’s partnership in Uganda and how its unique qualities enables the local church to impact their community. Pastor Raphael is the pastor for King Jesus Church and who helps oversee the Busega School

Soraya Diaz, Lifeline’s legal adoption representative in Colombia, has more than twenty years experience working with adoptive families in her native country. She traveled to Alabama to be with many of her families at the Lifeline Family Reunion. During her time here, she joined Herbie Newell on the July 10th episode of The Defender Podcast

On the July 3rd episode of The Defender Podcast, Herbie Newell talked with Travis Wussow of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission about the current landscape of religious liberty today. Their interview included a discussion concerning how Christians can practically engage politics and our culture in a way that glorifies God, respects others, and stands

“Mom, can we PLEASE do a lemonade stand today,” begged the kids. They had been wanting to do one for a long time, so I reluctantly agreed to do a stand that hot day in May 2015. We got a poster board, some lemonade, a table, and headed down to a park in our neighborhood.

  Several years ago, when videos of Planned Parenthood selling baby parts went viral, I wrote the below post, after contemplating “what ifs” related to abortion. I asked myself the following questions: What if abortion became illegal in the U.S. tomorrow? What would I do? How would I respond? Now, as Alabama has passed the toughest abortion law

In response to numerous issues of spiritual warfare that has been occurring with staff and prospective adoptive parents, a call to prayer was issued for Lifeline Children’s Services staff. As an overflow of this prayer time, Herbie Newell, President and Executive Director of Lifeline wanted to encourage families through Scripture and to offer prayer for them as

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines

Imagine saying “yes” to moving your life across the world to share the hope of Christ with a people who likely have never heard it and in a place with restrictive conversion laws. This reality is what the Whitleys experienced when they obeyed God’s call for their family.

It’s the main goal that the directors have — that the girls would know Christ and know their value in this world. But this place of work – “in the middle” — between familial/cultural troubles and changing a girl’s life with the gospel, is no easy task.