Transcript

Dr. Jessica Peck is prescribing Hope for healthy families on American Family Radio

Dr. Jessica Peck: We would like to take a moment to thank our sponsor, PreBorn. When a mother meets her baby on ultrasound and hears their heartbeat, it's a divine connection and the majority of the time she will choose life. But they can't do it without our help. Preborn needs us, the pro life community, to come alongside them. One ultrasound is just $28. To donate, dial pound 250 and say the keyword BABY or visit preborn.com/AFR hello
 and welcome to the Dr. Nurse Mama show prescribing Hope for healthy families here on American Family Radio. Here's your host, professor, pediatric nurse practitioner and mom of four, Dr. Jessica Peck.

Dr. Jessica Peck: Well, hey there friends and welcome to my favorite time of day, getting to spend time with you prescribing Hope for healthy families. Hey, we're coming to you live here and I am praying for the first time named storm of the season, Tropical Storm Arthur, praying that everyone is safe there. But we are talking about, we're going beyond that. No storm can stop us from talking about something that I am so passionate about.

Show Hope offers a different narrative about foster care and adoption

I'm so excited to talk to you about children, about fostering, about adoption. And we live in a culture where there are many families who feel very overwhelmed by the complexities of adoption, foster care and thinking, do I have what it takes? Is God calling me to that journey? Is God calling me to support that journey in someone else? Maybe you've had your own personal journey of foster care or adoption. And in the face of that, in the face of so much need and so many vulnerable children, organizations like Show Hope, that's what we're talking about today, offer a different narrative, one that is rooted in the conviction that every child is created in the image of God. Every child is worthy of, belonging. And headlines often focus on the need, the crisis. There is also a remarkable story unfolding of churches of ministries and just ordinary families who are answering God's call to care for the least of these.

Emily Chapman Richards is advisor and ambassador for Show Hope 

Today I am so honored to introduce to you Emily Chapman Richards. She serves as an advisor and ambassador for Show Hope, a non profit organization that was co founded by her parents Mary Beth and Steven Curtis Chapman, that exists to care for orphans by engaging the church and reducing barriers to adoption. Amen to that. More than 9, 800 children from 60, more than 60 countries. Isn't that amazing? Have come to know the love and security of a permanent family with the help of Show Hope's adoption aid program. Now Emily is a principal for ECR Consulting. She has harnessed over two decades of experience, experience with adoption advocacy and child welfare reform to advance strategies that ensure both timely and ethical solutions to permanency for children living outside of parental care. She does so much more, and she lives in Tennessee with her husband, with her three daughters, and she is here with us today. Emily, we're so glad to have you here. Thank you so much for stopping by.

Emily Chapman Richards: Of course, of course. It's an honor, an honor to be here. And I'm, praying for everybody in the path of storm. Arthur, I'm just impressed that you're. That you're here. So grateful that we get to have this conversation.

Dr. Jessica Peck: I am, too. You know, when we had a Hurricane Ike that came through, I think it was in 2008, our. Our mantra was we stopped for no storm. We will not let a storm stop us from getting out a good message of hope. And I'm grateful to all the first responders and everybody who's working to keep everybody safe. But, you know, Emily, there's a lot of people who know the story of your family, and maybe they're even familiar with the ministry that you have with. But there are a lot of listeners, I think, who may not know the really big role that you played in spurring your family to have a passion for foster care, for adoption. Can you tell us about that?

Emily Chapman Richards: Yes, I would be happy to share. And again, thanks so much for having me. I just, My parents picked up my girlies earlier to. To have them today, and I told them I was going to get to talk with you, and they said, oh, please tell her. We said hello. We had just a great time chatting with her. And I think we're fellow Baylor Bears. It sounds so, sick, Em. yeah, so my. My mom and I, in, I'll date myself, but in 1997, I was in fifth grade and had the opportunity, to travel with our church, internationally to Haiti, on a missions trip. And, I. On that trip, we. We went with Compassion International, and we had the privilege of meeting, a child that we sponsored through Compassion. And, there was another. There was another family on that trip that were kind of our titans in this community in the adoption and foster care space. And so adoption and foster care was very much so part of my world as a young child, especially through being close friends with this other family that were on the trip, came home from that trip, and my heart was just really captured and shattered in many ways by what I had experienced as a child seeing other children, that didn't have what I so easily took for granted. Housing, education, clothing, food, parents who love me, and began at that point praying that we, as a family would do something to respond to the great need of children living outside of parental care, and was convinced that meant we needed to expand our family through adoption. As the wise fifth grader that I was, you know, very much so in the height of my dad's career, lots of traveling for him, many single, parenting days for my mama here, holding down the fort. Not single parenting. I mean, my dad was with her, but, you know, traveling. And so she's balancing a lot. And so, understandably, it became, you know, sort of like, that's. That's great. Maybe the Lord has that for you someday. but, you know, Jessica, I still. I'm, you know, decades older than now than I was at that point, but there's. I still very clearly remember, the prayers during that time, and just the presence, the Holy Spirit, like, it was very much so something that was bigger than me. Absolutely. And just kept leaning into these prayers that we would be faithful to, respond to God's call and follow, his path for us. And eventually that led our family to growing our family through inner country adoption. We welcomed Shoei home from China in 2000, and then, my sister Stevie Joy in 2003 and Maria in 2004. So I have two biological brothers, and then my three sisters that came home through adoption from China. and then the Lord didn't stop there. That. That's. That was my prayer. My parents were like, hold on a minute. What do we do with this? we have this platform, and now we've been exposed to this need, and we've met children much like our own daughters, who are waiting, to find belonging and security and in a permanent. And so that's really where the work and ministry of show hope was birthed, in 2003. So kind of right in the midst of all that.

Dr. Jessica Peck: Well, you know, Emily, one of my favorite things that you said about that story is that you were in fifth grade. That is incredible to me. And it just reminds me of the scripture. Don't let anyone look down on you because you're young, but set an example for the believers in speech and word and deed. And you have done that. I, mean, I look at the way that God planted a seed into your heart. He gave you a calling, he gave you a vision. He gave you a passion as a fifth grader, and that led to your family's adoption. But that has led to, as I said, I'm a ah, checks, notes. 9,800 children from more than 60 countries who have found a forever home because of the seed and the obedience that you had as a fifth grader. So I say that because I think that's really important for parents who are listening, you know, to listen to what God says to your, children. I had one guest one time who said, there is no junior Holy Spirit, like the same Holy Spirit that's in the adults is in the children. And that is a powerful thing. And you, you said, Emily, you know, that, that went on from. That went on from, you know, your family's, your family's journey to Show Hope. So tell us a little bit about Show Hope. We'll talk a lot more about it, but give us an introduction to the work that you're doing and the evolution of that that has occurred over the last decades.

Emily Chapman Richards: Yeah, absolutely. so show Hope. Well, really, when mom and dad, we came home with Sheli in 2000, and, by the time that was pre 9 11, so there was a big old crowd at the gate at the airport, and we didn't even make it out of the airport. And we had had multiple families stop my parents and say, man, we would really consider growing our family through adoption. And, we've got space in the house and another car seat in the car, but we don't have money in the bank account to go through the actual process, which can range anywhere between, you know, 35 to $55,000. It's an expensive process. And we know many of these children, come home with ongoing medical needs and certainly behavioral health needs just because of their adverse childhood experiences and what we know now of how that impacts our early childhood development. and so we as a family, my mom, my parents. Joke. They probably said it when they were on with you. My, my mom started writing checks faster than my dad could write songs. That's what they like to say. Yeah. And, you know, really felt compelled with the platform that they had been given. How could they help stand in the gap? Weren't looking to start anything. In fact, had conversations with other non profits and organizations that all kind of scratched their head and said, huh? If there's nobody that's helping reduce the, the financial barrier to adoption for Christian families, perhaps the Lord has something for you. And so that's really the, the birth of Show Hope was a, was a dinner table conversation as a family. Wouldn't it be neat if we could help 100 other children come to know the love of a family like Showy and Stevie and Maria know now nowhere in our wildest imagination did we have what has become known now as Show Hope. And yeah, nearly 10,000 children that have come home is just really, I mean that you don't get that kind of roi without the Lord being, you know, in, in it. And I mean the Chapman's are. We're just another family. And the Lord just had this as part of our journey. And so yeah, Show Hope was started really with that primary mission, to care for orphans by engaging the church and reducing barriers to adoption. The primary barrier being the financial barrier. So we still to this day give adoption aid grants to families that are in the adoption process, Christian families. And we. My mom has sat in every single grant review meeting. It's just an amazing. She's just so engaged and invested in the work. She has reviewed every family that's come through the doors of Show Hope, which is really special. as our work has evolved over our 20 plus year history, so too is our understanding of what it means to go deeper with these families. My parents are very much. So go deeper, not wider people. And they want to not only champion caring for children who have been orphaned, well, they want to do that holistically. Right. So we can champion people to the cause. But if we're not really equipping them to go on the journey successfully, then we've really done a disservice and certainly don't want to ever be agents of further harm or yeah, in the process.

Show Hope focuses on reducing adoption barriers through financial and medical grants

And so we talk about the three primary barriers our work seeks to reduce is the financial barrier through our adoption aid grants, the medical barrier which we now do. Medical care grants. So for the first 10 years of our organizational history, we supported a network of therapeutic care centers in central China for children who had been orphaned and needed minor therapeutic intervention or surgical intervention to sustain life to be able to be eligible for adoption and come home. We cared for about 2,700 children through that work. 800 plus we know came home through adoption, which is an incredible gift. we had to transition that work, for understandable reasons in kind of circa 2020. And we, my parents said, okay, well we're not done addressing the medical barrier. So how do we go deeper? What do we do? Well, we give grants. So we now do medical care grants, which is a post finalization grant. So families that have brought children home through adoption, whether that be private, domestic, inner country or foster to adopt, that have ongoing medical needs that Maybe insurance doesn't quite cover or there's a gap in services, certain qualified, services, you can receive medical care grant and then the knowledge barrier, which is where our pre and post adoption support work and student initiatives work, which is a lot of the trauma informed care training that we do both for professionals and everyday caregivers through our Hope for the Journey, online training platform. So that's kind of how the work has evolved and really, if you think about it, just kind of trying to, trying to journey well with children and families and, and continue to go deeper, move towards hope and healing well.

Dr. Jessica Peck: Emily, I feel like your life is just such a living, breathing testimony of the faithfulness of God. And I'm thinking to him who was able to do exceedingly, abundantly all that, all that we can ask or imagine, that is definitely what has happened from the dreams of a fifth grader to now the dreams of 10,000 children. And just to see, see God raising up people who will respond to the need. That's a, a question I get a lot is how, how, how is there a good God in such a bad world? And I say, I see God working every day through people like you, Emily, through families like yours, through organizations like Show Hope. And that is so encouraging to me and I encourage you to look and to see what does the Lord have for you for this journey. Maybe you, you are going to be called, or maybe you already are called to fostering, to adoption. Maybe you're called to support a family member or friend. Maybe you're called to support an organization like Show Hope. My husband and I have been sponsors since pretty near the beginning. We have sponsored those adoption grants because we feel so strongly about the work that God is doing there. I pray that you would pray about it and, and remind you that Emily's story reminds us adoption is not just something that happens. It's a journey of faith and one that stretches a whole family. We'll have so much more with Emily Chapman Richards when we come back.

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Dr. Jessica Peck: Just $28 sponsors one ultrasound. $140 helps rescue five babies. To donate, dial pound 250 and say baby. That's pound 250, baby. Or visit preborn.com/AFR, that's preborn.com/AFR Right now, more mothers need that moment of hope Just $28 sponsors one ultrasound and $140 helps rescue five babies. Your generous, tax- deductible gift also helps provide mothers who choose life with loving support and care for up to two years. Please don't wait. Helps around mothers and babies with compassion, truth and hope today. To donate, dial pound 250 and say the keyword baby. That's pound 250, baby. Or visit preborn.com/AFR- that's preborn.com/AFR. Children of God by Third Day Praise to the father of our Lord Jesus Christ our God and our King to him we will sing in his great mercy he has given us life now we can be called the children of God great is the love that the Father has given us he has delivered us what he has deliver us Children of God, sing your song and rejoice for the love that he has given us Song Children of God by the blood. Children of God. Children of God

Dr. Jessica Peck: welcome back, friends. That is Children of God by third day. And that's exactly what we're talking about. We're talking about the children of God, the children of the world. Recently, as I've shared with you, I was on a mission trip in Kenya. And I will tell you that standing with a bunch of little children who were singing, he's got the whole world in his hands. I saw the world in a whole new way. God does have every child in the world in his hands. He cares for every child. He made every child in his image. And there are many children around the world, and including here in the United States, who need a forever family who, for whatever reason, have lost their biological parent or parents just have a situation where they need a family to adopt them, much as God adopted us. And today we are talking to Emily Chapman Richards about that and what began as a response to her family's, personal adoption experience that God put in the heart of her as a fifth grader. It has grown into one of the most influential Christian organizations supporting adoptive and foster families. We're talking about Show Hope. And it is known not only for helping remove financial barriers as Emily just shared with us, but also for equipping families with resources to help children heal and flourish. And Emily, I'm sure that as you've seen this ministry grow over time, you know, it started with your family's own personal journey. It started with being on location, you know, providing care in another country. It now, you know, you, you're adjusting to the world as the world changes so quickly, you're still working to meet the needs of children. I want to know what some of the high points, what are some of the milestones, some of the things that you look back and you say God met us in that moment.

Emily Chapman Richards: Well, oh my. How long do we have? No, Just kidding.

Dr. Jessica Peck: As long as you want.

Emily Chapman Richards: No, seriously, man, I, think back to honestly the very first moment in so many ways, what kind of epitomizes Show Hope and the work of Show Hope to me is the, the moment she was placed in my parents arms. And my mom, talks about this very openly, writes about it in her book Choosing to See. there was a, there was a bit of a fear in her own heart which I think if we're all honest with ourselves is some of what holds us back from leaning in to knowing to engaging and caring for children in our community, in our world that need homes is like can I, can I love the way that I would, would want myself to love and give lavishly. And can I, for my mom, can I love a child that's coming into my home through adoption? Like I love my children that came to my family biologically. And her honesty, in that struggle is a gift to all of us. But that moment that Sheli was placed in my mom's arms, I mean minutes before she had sat us down on the bed in the hotel room in China was like, I don't know what's about to happen. Just remember, I love you guys. I've always loved you. It was like this dramatic, you know, she just was like feeling it all. And just to see in that moment like a mother's, a mother's love and a family's love, and not to the denigration of Shoei's first family who loved her into the world, but to see the continuation of care and support wrapping around this little human was, is, is, I mean is a miracle, moving forward. How many families that have written to us, that have received a Show Hope grant and it's down the amount of the grant is down to the penny literally that they needed to finalize their adoption expenses. I Mean it had, that has happened time and time again. In fact, during the pandemic we were in a situation where we, where we were able to give a little extra on top of the grants that were awarded. And there was one family that literally they had a couple of outstanding fees that they didn't realize their agency had contacted them, had no idea they were being considered for additional funds from Show Hope. And it just, it all hit right at the same time. So those types of moments, I think about, I think about God's providence in are meeting Dr. Karen Purvis at the timing in which we did in early gosh, I mean 2008, 2000 before that, 2006, 2007, you know, tbri wasn't even. It was. They were researching, you know, at the institute, we didn't even have trust based relational intervention coined yet. and the Lord's providence to allow us to be co laborers for a season before the Lord called her home and then to continue that legacy. And our partnership with the Karen Purvis Institute of Child Development at Show Hope through Hope for the Journey and TBRI practitioner trainings that we offer, that just seems like such an incredible kindness from, from Jesus. of course the opportunity we had on, on location in China for a season, our partnership with the social welfare institutes and the collaboration there for the season God allowed us was in was remarkable. Just like, how did this happen? In fact, this is fun. I was cleaning out. We speaking of storms, winter storm Fern really impacted us and we had trees fall on our house. So we've the whole nine yards getting the roof redone and all that. So I've been in my attic a lot and I just found an article from when we were in China and it's about my dad's music and it's all in Mandarin. And we were over there doing a trip and I was like, oh, I had remembered in my mind seeing that and I wanted to show my girls and the Lord was kind that I actually stumbled across it in a box and got to show them, which was cool. So those types of moments where you just scratch your head and go, what in the world? How do we end up here?

Dr. Jessica Peck: Well, you know, after I interviewed your parents not too long ago about their book that they just had that came out about marriage still here, which was such an encouraging conversation, they were gracious enough to invite me to an event for Show Hope and one of the videos I saw there, oh my goodness, it had me just at the corner of my Table. Like, it took me a little bit to get my composure back. And one of the stories that they were sharing was now Show Hope. Because of the length and the legacy of your work, you are now doing second generation adoptions. And they were showing the story of of a little boy who had been adopted through a Show Hope grant, who had then come back to Show Hope and was getting a grant to adopt. What, what does that kind of legacy mean to you? I mean, not wanting to date, you know, you've already outed yourself as fifth grader and how old you are and everything. But really looking at that kind of legacy work, what does that mean to you?

Emily Chapman Richards: I mean, I have, I have chill, you know, goosebumps. Just, I mean, yeah, I, I, I'll get even, you know, a little emotional because it's just, you know, it's the Lord's kindness, like to, to go, we're, we're just a, we're just a family. The Lord entrusted a platform to my dad by way of the, the talent he gifted him with. But to just to, and I'm proud, I'm proud as a daughter to see my parents have just been very faithful to steward what the Lord has given them. And they've stayed real focused and decided we need to just keep going deeper with these families. and what that has meant, I think and I, and I Hope has translated into like the Show Hope family. That's how we refer. You know, we'll say you're part of the Show Hope family now and that our, our families we support do feel like they're known and seen by us as best we can as an organization. that they do, they know we're in their corner. And so now to know second generation is happening, we had, alongside that family, we had another family. the, the mom is a sibling of a Shoho, grant recipient and so not a recipient herself, but a sibling who grew up in a home and knew like, okay, Show Hope's in our corner. And now they've, she's chosen to expand their, you know, her and her husband are growing their family through adoption. They've received a adoption, a grant. And so yeah, it's just, you don't, you don't ever dream of that. You don't even, you can't even dream that big when you're going, maybe we can help 100 families. Like, so you're on this side. It just feels like a, a gift, you know, a kindness.

Dr. Jessica Peck: It is the kindness of the Lord. Because I look at so many Things, you know, he calls you to do something and you think, oh, could I do that? And so often, Emily, I found in my own life, you know, beyond my wildest imagination, I think, how much more do I miss out on? Just walking in disobedience and walking in fear and saying, oh, I don't know if I could do that. Oh, I. I'm not sure, you know, oh, I think I'm limited. But God is limitless. And I am so encouraged to hear about what he did because I'm sure that you would say, emily, you know, you haven't said like, well, yes, I was a brilliant businesswoman. And, you know, I mean, that's not what we're talking about. Although I'm sure you are that too, because your parents were very quick to praise you. And I'm very. As an oldest daughter myself, I'm very quick to shout out all the oldest daughters who are all the guinea pigs and get everybody else in order. Right. But at the risk of, you know, romanticizing this and making it sound like, oh, it's a fairy tale, it's a happy ending, I do want to spend some time, Emily, talking with you.

A lot of adoptive families have experienced trauma

You. You mentioned the realities that face families. And a lot of times with families of children who are being adopted, they have experienced trauma. They've always experienced some kind of trauma. But whether that's big T trauma, little T trauma, you know, whether that's extended, it's complex. All of those situations are different. You mentioned Dr. Karen Purvis, who I am a big fan of and trust, based relational intervention. Tbri. You can actually go onto the institute, is it. With Texas Christian University, and you can become a tbr, practitioner. Will also tell you about some training that Show Hope is providing. But, Emily, let's. Let's dive into that a little bit more.

Early childhood experiences profoundly affect us as individuals

What are the realities that face families? Because I know there's going to be some families listening, thinking, we are called to this, but they need to be not afraid, but prepared for the realities that face them ahead.

Emily Chapman Richards: Yes, yes, absolutely. that's, strategically why we have named our pre and post adoption support work at Show Hope. Pre and post adoption support work because we hope that we give you the information on the. On the front end that you go into the process. Eyes wide open. right. We know that early childhood experiences deeply and profoundly affect us, as individuals and particularly for our children that have had numerous, adverse childhood experiences. We know now more through the gifts of child development and psychology and neuroscience, neurobiology, the impacts of trauma on Our bodies and our brains, our belief systems, behaviors. And so to. I think it's twofold to understand that and understand the ramifications as a family, and then to begin to pivot our mindset as parents and caregivers that there are deep needs behind big behaviors, and that has to, stretch our creativity and our imagination in parenting and providing care for children who, the behavior might look like willful disobedience, but what's behind that behavior is a deep, deep history of limited access to food or what, you know, we could start going through the, through the list. and so I think parents have to. On one hand, you don't want to. At the expense of romanticizing adoption, the adoption journey or foster care journey. The other hand is I certainly don't want to stigmatize, a population that has incredible resilience. I mean, the most impressive individuals that I have the privilege of learning from, working alongside in this space are foster youth alum, adult adoptees that are harnessing their experience to provide a path for better services for those to come after them. so I certainly, I also, you know, am cautious to go. It's all, you know, run, run. because these children, so often we're learning more and more through research. It takes one committed adult in their life. It's one. It's like. And you don't know, you don't know if you're going to be the one. So I think at the expense of romanticizing adoption and foster care, yes, certainly. My mom loves to say all the time, God doesn't call everyone to adopt, but he calls everyone to do something. You know, if you very well could be that one person in that child's life, you're the coach, you're the Bible study teacher, you're the orchestra conductor, you're the, after school art club coordinator. And that experience that that child has with you, whether they're in foster care, they've come home to their adoptive family, is what helps instill and reaffirm in them their preciousness that carries us, so far into adulthood. And we're starting to see that in some of the research and studies that are coming out, alongside DCS and DCFS departments and whatnot. So, you know, I think it is important though, to go in with our eyes wide open and understand that these early childhood experiences profoundly impact our little ones that come, to us by way of foster care and adoption.

Dr. Jessica Peck: Well, Emily, you present a really good, balanced view, and that's true for any children of any origin. We never know. There is a degree of unpredictability. You don't never know what life is going to have for you, what the Lord has for you. And there are all kinds of parents and all kinds of situations that are called to minister to kids who have experienced trauma or trial or tragedy or anything of that kind. But I'm so encouraged to hear about what you're doing because you're so right. The research shows for resilience that all it takes is meaningful connection to one trusted adult and a healthy relationship in their life. And there's so many opportunities, Emily, where we get to side we will. Will we step into that child's life? Will we be that one? And as much as we're learning about brain science and how trauma can rewire the brain if kids get stuck in what we call toxic stress. But when we step in and we give words of affirmation and we give a healthy physical connection a high five, a hug, you know, when, when that and appropriate boundaries, those things rewire the brain for resilience. And God has given us that kind of hope. And I hope that you will go to show hope. Go to showhope.org and find out more. Maybe you're a family who wants to apply for a grant. Maybe you want to learn more about the training. Maybe you want to support families in that situation. But you can learn [email protected] this isn't a one time act of compassion but this, this is an ongoing call and the hearts of believers will have more with Emily Chapman Richards when we come back. America's 250th birthday. It's a great excuse to have some extra cake and ice cream but we can help your celebration go well beyond that. Show your patriotism with America 250 apparel that will become a memento of this special year. We also have special episodes on AFA Stream to help underscore that America is a Christian nation and help you find God in the Constitution. Find all of this and more in one place. afa.net/topics/250 Live Out Loud by Steven Curtis Chapman Imagine this. I get a phone call from Regis. He says, do you want to be a millionaire? They put me on a show and I went with two lifelines to spare and a picture of this. I act like nothing ever happens and bury all the money in a coffee can. Well, I've been given more than Regis ever gave away. I was a dead man who was called to come out of my grave and I think it's time for making some noise. Wake the neighbor. Get the word Out. Come on.

Dr. Jessica Peck: Crank up the music by the Mountain at a top this is life We've been given way to be the doubt so la la la la.

Emily Chapman Richards is the daughter of Steven Curtis Chapman

Welcome back, friends. That is live Out Loud by Steven Curtis Chapman. And imagine this, we have his daughter on the program. Today. We are talking to Emily Chapman Richards. And Emily, when I talked to your dad when I interviewed them, I said, I'm sure you feel like your parents, like everybody does, like, okay, dad, how many times am I going to have to hear you sing that song? But I did out myself. You already dated yourself a little. I'll date myself. Because when I interviewed them, I'm like, okay, I have every CD you ever made. I have all of the CD jackets. I have been to the concerts. But honestly, Emily, your dad's music has just been a large part of the soundtrack of my faith and has encouraged me since I was in high school. I can remember being very early in high school and saddling up my horses and all the things, but it's so amazing and I'm so glad that we get to talk to you about the role that you have played. Your parents just sang your praises as is deserved. And I'm so grateful, Emily, for you sharing your story. The vision that God put in the heart of a fifth grader that has now become a world class foster care and adoption Christian organization to support families who are walking through this. Go to show hope.org to figure out what you can do. What is the Lord calling you to do? Maybe you're going to bring a program to your church. And I'm about to ask you about that, Emily, about Hope for the journey. But you and I were just talking during the break and you said one of the questions that you get asked a lot is, okay, you're passionate. You made your parents adopt. Are you going to adopt? And you have agreed to share with us part of your journey in that.

Emily Chapman Richards: Yes, absolutely. my husband's listening and so he might be getting nervous right now. He's like, oh, no. Is she going to tell the world something? No. so, yes, that's a question I get often. And, the Lord blessed us with our three girls. biologically and early on I was working very much so full time. Have, have continued to being engaged and involved with the work of Show Hope. So in their early years, we would often frame for them like, this is the way that we contribute and we can, it can help. Is that as a family, Mommy's doing this and we support this as a family. But that has my girls are getting older now, and I had my own notes on the pillow a couple years ago of mommy, we should pray about opening our home to provide foster care. My parents were like, ha, ha ha, let's come back.

Dr. Jessica Peck: No, I love it.

Emily Chapman Richards: And so the Lord in his kindness brought, my husband and I to the same page, which is so important, in stepping into this, Jo, to be on the same page with, your partner. And we started the process this time last year to become licensed foster care providers. and we're in a season where, we're, we're just providing respite care. So we're not taking long term placements right now. But we, have met some amazing foster families that are in it for the long haul and we can just kind of come alongside and provide, weekend care or if they have to travel and the child needs to stay in state. And so you go through the whole full licensing process and who knows where the Lord will take us. But it's been a sweet gift as a family to kind of have this as our next, our next step in our own little family's ministry and continue the legacy of what the Lord has put in my heart from a young age. So, who knows where it will go? But that's where it's at now. And I just share that to encourage anyone listening. There's so many unique ways, to get involved. And like we've said, you know, already, it can be, it can be very, very small. It might seem small to you, but, but it's monumental in the life of a child. So volunteer for that Sunday school class or the foster care parent night out at your church and be the snack coordinator. You know, that all contributes so incredibly. So anyways, just a little encouragement.

Dr. Jessica Peck: You know, Emily, I feel like those moments as a parent can be sweet. They can also be bittersweet when you teach your children to pray and then they come back and they convict you and they're like, well, I'm going to challenge you to pray about that. You're like, oh, okay, that bit me. And I understand your parents laughing about that. I've had that happen in myself for sure. And one of the, you know, it's interesting because I have such, I have such a heart for children who are in foster care adoption. God has not called me, to that journey, but he has called me to testify in the US Congress and state capitals and to start organizations to equip nurses. You and I were just talking about this. We have, the alliance for Children in Foster Care  that helps equip nurses especially to be able to meet those specific unique needs of children who are in foster care. All of those things. Who knows what the Lord has For me, I feel like, you know, my, my kids are listening in. They may be coming and saying, oh hey mom, have you prayed about that? And we'll see what happens. Exactly. Tell us a little bit about the advocacy that you do. Because to have a voice for children who are often voiceless is so important and such a God honoring thing.

Emily Chapman Richards: Yes. Well, gosh, we could talk for a long time. So when you find a fellow advocate you can go down those rabbit holes. But from a young age, I watched my parents travel to D.C. and advocate on behalf of adoption related policy. So particularly adoption, tax credit refundability and ways to continue to. How do we come at the. Reducing the financial barrier from many different ways, and then you know, continuing to advocate for ah, various, just different situational, as they arise, advocating for children to continue to come home, improve government efficiencies and whatnot for the processes for both American services to American citizens and then also as a global, you know, a leader on the global stage and what it looks like to provide for our children and care well for vulnerable children, that makes something that makes us unique as a country. And so, anyways, I have the privilege to travel to D.C. about quarterly to do some advocacy at the federal level and then have had a privilege, just to be involved in some state level stuff here in the state of Tennessee. we've had a unique season with a governor and a legislature and an attorney general commissioner who are all very honed in on permanency efforts for particularly transitional youth and making sure that we're doing everything that we can, to find our children a permanent and safe and loving home before they transition into adulthood without a support network. Because as you know in the work you do that oftentimes is a pipeline into trafficking and we really need to go upstream. And so and so we're doing. Tennessee is doing a lot here as are some, many other states. Incredible work. And so. So yeah, I get to do that too. Which is super fun and exciting.

Hope for the Journey is an online trauma training platform for caregivers and volunteers

Dr. Jessica Peck: Well Emily, for those listeners who maybe don't live in the great state of Tennessee or can't make it to D.C. there's something much closer to home that I want to make sure they know about. There's an event that they have called Hope for the Journey. You can participate in this event online and you can also bring it to your church. So if you're wanting to know more about tbri, trust based relational intervention and it doesn't even have to be an adoption or foster care journey, it can be any children and who have experienced any kind of trauma might be really helpful, especially maybe for your staff and children's ministry. Emily, tell us about Hope for the Journey.

Emily Chapman Richards: Yeah, Hope for the Journey really was the. It's an online training platform that's designed to educate the everyday caregiver or volunteer. Like think about a 60,000 foot view of understanding trauma in the brain, how trauma rewires. Like you were talking about some of our neural pathways and the, and the practical things that we can do as caregivers to help reduce that anxiety, build resiliency, help children feel safe in our care. Really designed at the faith community and churches so that yeah, if there's a church that wants to expand their foster care, their foster care ministry or they've got their, you know, locate located in a city that has a vulnerable population nearby, this could be a way that, that provides exposure to this training. And then there's so many other resources through partner organizations that you can like deep dive as much as you want in trauma informed care. But this sort of serves as a megaphone to help capture the general public imagination within the church of what it could look like to be a trauma informed congregation. It's modular based, five modules. The fifth module is TBRI and the Gospel. So how do we connect this to our faith? Understanding, the inherent relational nature of us as human beings created in the image of God and the beautiful gift that science gives us in understanding the brain and how we've been hardwired for relationship like that's God's design. So TBRI is not the gospel. The gospel is the gospel. But TBRI can sometimes for us and then into, you know, trauma informed care can help give us a little bit of a glimpse when we talk about children with, with early, you know, hard stories. How do we help, how do we help translate and meet them in the story to help journey them toward hope and healing. And so yeah we would love, love, love for hope for the journey to be a resource for your church, your community. You are, you are in your community. God has sent you there. No one can be a missionary like you can be in your own community. And so this is just really meant to be wind in the sails to help help you be a beacon of hope in your community and meet the needs that you uniquely know are there to be met.

Dr. Jessica Peck: You know, Emily, it's really interesting to me because in this last year especially, I've had a lot of requests for me to come and speak about trauma and how it impacts kids. And I'm speaking not to professional audiences, of healthcare professionals. I am doing that and all of that, you know, nerdy professor stuff, stuff, but really it. There is. The church has a hunger for this. They're saying we recognize that children are growing up in a world that just seems like it is unprecedented, the challenges that they are facing. And we want to be equipped and want to be ready. And just like you said, the gospel is the gospel. But my pastor, he phrases it as common grace. It's everyday common grace that he equips people to, to use their minds, their intellect and their gifting and their calling, to come alongside and to build some practical tools that can help that. And that is what I see TBRI as in the work of Dr. Karen Purvis.

Emily, what excites you about show hope in the future?

Well, Emily, you know, we've looked back at show hope, at the beginnings, at the evolution of what's happened. What excites you when you look at the future? What do you see on the horizon? What are you dreaming about and thinking about and hoping for?

Emily Chapman Richards: Yeah, one thing that, probably the paramount thing that excites me, and I alluded to it earlier, is we have incredible lived experience, experts that are leveraging their story to speak into at the highest level of policy formation, at the grand, you know, the micro granular level of what it, what does a church nursery look like? You know, everything in between. we're really seeing, a lot of adult adoptees and foster youth that are wanting to leverage their experience and story to make a, make a better pathway forward. And I think that is, that's really exciting. as someone who's been in the field, what else excites me is that the church, you just alluded to it. The church is really wakening up to how can our imagination be captured, to care winsomely and creatively and holistically for these children that in our, are in our community. And I think that there is, there's such, there's just, there's a lot of room for play in that and growth and really like mirroring preciousness to one another. You're, you're you're a practitioner in the medical field. I'm a theologian by trade. So, you know, I'm like, well, let's bring our two, the two forces together because I'm I go, man, yeah, like that trinitarian theology, right? Like Jesus is who he is by way of the Father and the Holy Spirit too. It's all this, it's all working together. And so my formation to become the child of God, God's created me to be, is partly being in community with you like you are part you are. We're doing this together, you know, and so to see, to see the church grab hold of that and really go, okay, these children are. We are. We're together in this is, is really exciting.

Dr. Jessica Peck: It is really exciting to me, Emily. That's one of the reasons I'm such an enthusiastic supporter of Show Hope. Looking behind the scenes at everything that you're doing. There is. There are a lot of people, I think, who are really well intentioned, but maybe don't feel well equipped to step into this space because you've just talked about some of the most important things, like having that, that lived experience, having people who have walked through their own foster care adoption that are walking alongside you, saying, this was my experience, this is what's helpful. But you also have scientists and researchers and policy makers and, and so many of those arise through secular channels. But when we have the theologian, Emily, I feel like that's the crown jewel of everything because you are the one who comes in as part of your part in the body of Christ is to put. Put is to be the eyes to help us see through that gospel centered lens. And that's what makes me excited because, you know, I say this often, you know, when I work with children who have been trafficked, like, I want to tell them, I'm so sorry this happened to you. You know, you are loved and you are special and, and we want to see hope for you. But I don't see how I can give the best hope without saying, you are made in the image of God and God has a purpose and a plan for your life, a plan to prosper you, not to harm you, to give you a hope in a future. And to that eternal hope is something that just excites me every time. Emily, we could talk all day. I'm so grateful. Thank you for these beautiful reminders that, the gospel itself is a story of adoption, that through Christ we are invited into God's family and we are called to reflect his love to a hurting world, which you and your family are doing so well. And whether God is calling your family to adopt or foster or support, support a family, to mentor a child, to teach nurses, or just become more aware of the needs around you. Every believer has a role in bringing hope to vulnerable children. I hope that you will go to show hope.org and ask the Lord what He has for you. And as you do, I pray as I always do, the Lord will bless you and keep you and make his face to shine upon you. I'll see you right back here tomorrow.

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Jeff Chamblee: opinions expressed in this broadcast may not necessarily reflect those of the American Family association or American Family Radio.