Truth Talk With Stu Epperson - Babies Babies BABIES!

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This is the Truth Network is anybody out there adopted will guess what. If you are a believer Lord Jesus Christ. Everyone of you adopted because of what he did for us because the fathers of the son to be the Savior of the world and were adopted. We calm our father but what is Christian adoption. Why is this so close to the heart of God. I'm sitting with two leaders I mean guys either heavyweights in the field of Christian adoption there. Both authors are both men of God. We just had a sumptuous breakfast or try to stay awake for this interview but herby Newell and Dr. Rick Morton God bless you guys think you're coming on here.

Thanks Dave. It's a privilege to tell everyone about lifeline in about how you got into this. Yes, the lifelines and services. A ministry it's based out of Birmingham Alabama with REITs in 14 southeastern states, but in 25 countries around the world and the heartbeat of what we do is to quit the body of Christ as well as believers to ultimately manifest the gospel. Orphaned children when the great ways we do that is the adoption we actually invite these children into her home.

As believers we love on them we care for them. Most importantly, we disciple them in the word of God and the truth of God, and in that changes the course and direction of a child's life.

We believe in and truly know that many of these kids are in unreached people group because they don't have that the families they don't have the systems by which they're able to hear the truth to know the truth and live in the truth don't pick that up there, you realize what you probably just said that one most powerful ways to change a life forever is to adopt a kid even in foster care. When I sat K if you look to God's word right he meant for us to be a part of the family. That was his equation course in the fall brought sin and brought the curse of sin and really we see our ministry as a light to undo when what sin has done by putting children into families or by supporting their biological family who is broken because we seen families biological fame is been broken into foster care through abuse or are through neglect, we seen them healed to the power of the gospel and to be made whole and I have a little drop the spoon moment having my parfait with you guys at breakfast when herby you said we minister to foster parents we minister to parents of lost her kids and I thought that is awesome. That's just like we talked why does it did that secular folks in the government is running social justice. Whatever happened to the church now. I just fed you up a softball there, but you got introduces your partner in crime. I mean I know is not very bright. You don't like to read the whole much about theology, but tells who this guy is will you and then allowing him to come in and in speak to that yet so grateful to have Dr. Rick with me and Dr. Rick is you know he is well known because of his writing is speaking, but he's also most importantly husband to Denise and a father to three children that they brought into their home through adoption man of God, a got guy that is just a thrill to be able to partner in this ministry with Dr. Rick tells about your passion, brother, yesterday we are stories is preconventional. I guess for adopt a family. We are there work. We adopted about 14 years ago first time little boy from Ukraine God God has continue to build our family. We adopted three kids to older kids from Ukraine but really you're my journey I was that I was a similar professor. I was it was you know someone who was teaching in an but had really never considered adoption and orphan care and and like how that relates to gospel ministry and and so the Lord really took me on a journey really humbled me and waterways in but but also really helped me to see kind of the threat of meaning as we as we move through the Scriptures of his heart for the orphan in his heart for the vulnerable and how that's not disconnected from the gospel but it's but it's directly connected to the gospel. We, you and I all of us. We were those strange children. We were those kids who were were outside of relationship with God and in through the work of Jesus is done we been adopted into the family of God. And so when we care for orphaned and vulnerable children and vulnerable families, and in those kinds of people. And when we do that with the gospel as you as the central message to why we do what we do. I cannot say like this, my family, I love to take my family to Sam's because I have an 1819-year-old son and I love to go around of the sample carts in and out and in context. All the food to keep them occupied and it gives us an opportunity to shop will your Sam's doesn't doesn't intend that that you are going to make a meal off the sample carts with antennas that were to get a little sample organ a little taste. And then were to buy the whole big bag right word and it were to take a whole big thing home and and ultimately that's what I think caring for orphaned and vulnerable children does in the world when we as believers step out and do this work were putting a taste on the lips of the world of of the kingdom of God of of the reality of what the gospel is purchased and and what Jesus is done in the fullness of the kingdom and so we were able to do these little small acts of mercy and will small acts of justice whether it be adopting or fostering or supporting a family is doing matter supporting a birth family were also having an opportunity to be able to put a taste on the lips of the world of the greater work of Jesus is done and we were doing the stuff people are curious why we do it and so we get the opportunity then to step through that door and say we do this not because we're good people, not because you because there's something inherently different about us. We do this because because of who our Lord is in and who her father is and because of his character, and you need to know him too well and that's the voice of Dr. Rick Morton with lifeline Christian Dr. ministries.

Also the author of the book you talk about all this and orphan ecology when the title have we you know if knowledge of your laughter breakfast it's it's one of this fun nonsense words we came up with, but it's kind of the intersection of orphaned and theology lying and in what we maybe have lost a little bit in the modern church is this idea that that God intends for his people to be engaged in caring for orphans and and so were phrenology for us as the book was a real passion project just to say to the church waterways that everyone can be involved in my Association yacht herby Hermes led lifeline for it for a long time for 17 years. I'm I'm kind of the new kid on the block that at this about seven but I was a raving fan of this ministry long before I was ever part of it and and the reason for that was the heart of this ministry to to come alongside local churches and come alongside believers and to help everyone in the body of Christ.

Find a way to be connected and and to find a way to live out James 127 and so when really it is unspotted from part by that. Yeah I got is not negotiable. We'll smoke will drink will go girl to do but the first part of that verse. The church is made an option like your share of nearly absolute. Like, you know, what would you what would you do if your pastor stood up the Sunday and said personal holiness is optional, right like there'd be a did there be an elders meeting deacons meeting or whatever happens in your church people think something wrong with your pastor, but we look at the first half. James 127 idea of of visiting widows and orphans and we know the word James used for visit is excellent work Pastor Sheppard were supposed to give the and what we do in engaging these people who don't have a family and don't have a voice and don't have a place and if so when we do that and maybe the way you do. That is not by adopting or not. By fostering it's by helping out of a foster family to to stay in it's it's bringing them a meal. It's praying for them. It's providing transportation or or all kinds of things we can do it. It's providing supportive community around the families that are doing this work it's it's mentoring and shepherding a birth parent to try to get the kids back out of foster care and bring the gospel to bear in their lives are all kinds of ways we can do this and what I love about what we get to do it. Lifeline is every day we get to wake up and think about kind of this narrow area of service and how we can help the church how we can help the body of Christ step in and and be the answer because I think you you have been ill had earlier this is this is work that the government doing because at some point we as Christians, step back, we dropped the ball but we have an opportunity to step in and to be involved in relevant ways and productive ways and endpoint people to your out time for broadcast when he destroyed a podcast herbage on your website will quickly wrote this amazing book image bearers. We have the author of or phrenology or Dr. Gordon got her renewal wrote this book image bearers shifting from Probert pro-life children why they should get involved. Right now some aspect of Christian adoption in Christian fostering yet when I'll call to Dr. Foster but we are all called to do something on behalf of orphan viable children and if you want to get engaged in any number of ways.

Go to our website@lifelinechild.org and you can always look at the book image bearers on Amazon and shifting from pro-burst of her life and that is a book that really is the manifesto with who we are as a ministry. I can't wait to read this. This is the Truth Network