After the exciting news a few days ago about passing immigration, we were hit with several successive pieces of information that took the wind right out of our sails.

First was the new rule that we could not ask for an embassy appointment for our kids until we had passports for them. Previously, the wait for the passports had occurred during the wait for the embassy appointment. It’s been taking many families about 6-8 weeks after getting immigration approval to get their passports, and it’s also been taking about 6-8 weeks to get an embassy appointment. So the processes had been concurrent, until about 2 weeks ago. Now they’re sequential.

Then came the news that there was a new rule about how many embassy appointments could be scheduled. They’ve just changed it to 2 per week for the immediate future until a new employee can be trained. Total. For all agencies. Besides our agency, there are likely more than a dozen other agencies who are also requesting embassy appointments. So while appointments had been scheduled 6-8 weeks out, with the new decision to only process 2 per week, the timeline would likely and quickly grow. Perhaps by months. It wasn’t just a slow down. It was a near stop.

So yesterday we realized if you add the 6-8 week wait for passports to the already 6-8 week wait for embassy appointments, which is getting longer every day, and then tack on getting visas, we realized that we were looking at adjusting our timeline from around 2 months to at least 5 months. It looked like it was quite possible that we wouldn’t have our kids home by Christmas. AGAIN. (They were supposed to be home last Christmas.)  

BUT THE KIDS’ PASSPORTS CAME IN TODAY. Our embassy appointment has been requested, and we should find out Monday when it is. Then we’ll have a pretty good idea of when we’ll be travelling to get them!

I cannot tell you what a gigantic relief this is. I couldn’t even explain how bleak things looked until about 2 hours ago. What had gone from elation from getting immigration approval had gone to absolute despair realizing that we had been caught by rule changes and policies that just came up in the last few weeks.

Now we’re back to elation!

Praise the Lord! Thank you so much for those of you who prayed, who didn’t even know how very much we needed prayers. Our kids have to be some of the most prayed-over children on the planet! Thank you!

As it turns out, April 20th may indeed not be the worst date of the year. In fact, it was the date that our case was approved. I think that was God winking at me and redeeming the date. I had been so certain that immigration approval would come on my birthday that I was genuinely shocked when it didn’t.

Turns out, I was right! It just took a few days to find out!

So where do we go from here?

We’re currently waiting for our kids’ passports.

Once the passports are received, Embassy appointments are made for the kids in the DRC. Appointments are currently being scheduled approximately 6 weeks after being requested. Then visas, which usually take just a few weeks to iron out.

Then we travel.

But everything now hinges on getting our kids’ passports. They were applied for a while ago (we’re not sure exactly when because our agency does it), as others in our group on the same timeline have already received theirs, but not us. Some are saying that they think that siblings are taking longer to process because of increased child trafficking in the DRC. In general, passports have always been processed quickly until the last few months, when things have really slowed down. Some have been waiting for passports for months. It doesn’t seem like they are processed in any particular order.

Sigh.  

The other important new development in the process is that starting at the beginning of May, embassy appointments are going to be scheduled further out because of a change in personnel in the embassy. So our timeline may be stretched out even further, the longer it takes to receive our passports.

So, when do we travel? I know it’s what everyone wants to know. But that’s still so hard to pinpoint. If that sounds vague, it’s because it is. The DRC in-country process is known for being very unpredictable. If we got our passports tomorrow, I would guess 2 months. But every day we wait increases the wait exponentially.

So: Would you all pray for our kids’ passports? Pray that they come in soon, and that they are free from errors. Most of all, pray that God would make the way smooth for us to go get our kids and that He would hold them until we can!

We got our Immigration approval today for both kids! We’re moving forward!

I dreamed last night that we received a letter from Immigration today.

When I opened the mailbox, indeed, we received two letters from Immigration today, one for each child. No huge news, just that they received our file on April 5th and are processing it. So there’s nothing more to do than just wait some more. And pray for our paperwork to be found without fault. And wait. And pray for the officer who is reviewing our file. And wait. And pray that we will not go absolutely crazy with all the waiting while our children wait in an orphanage in Africa.

Our file was sent to immigration over a week ago, and I know that by now, it is sitting in a pile on an officer’s desk.

I know that he or she has a lot of things to do today. I know that they have a lot to do on any day.

I know that they might feel overworked and underappreciated.

The pile of endless paperwork, paperwork, paperwork must get discouraging at times.

After all, they never see the faces of the families that are brought together. They never get to hear “thank you,” or see the tears of joy that come from their work.

They just see hundreds of pages of paper. Names. Birthdates. Court orders. Certificates. Tax records. All day. Every day. Overwhelming. Endless.

So today, I’m praying that whoever that immigration officer is, that God would bless them immensely today. That as their hand brushes against our file, that God would give them a vision: a vision of two small children in an orphanage, of two parents with empty arms, and the hundreds of people who are praying those children home.

I pray that as they process our file in the next few weeks, that God would give them inexplicable joy. I pray that they would catch a glimpse of what it means to give these two children a future, a family who loves them, and an eternal hope. I pray that our file would be more than a stack of papers, but a beautiful story in which they play a critical role.

We’ll never meet this officer. Chances are, we’ll never even know their name. But God knows them deeply, and knows what they need in their life today to find joy and fulfillment.

And I pray that God would allow our file to be a part of their joy and fulfillment today.

 

I am a sucker for all things orphan. From the time I was very young, I was heartbroken for children in the world who didn’t know the love of a family. So when our campus e-news mentioned a week ago last Friday that the Red Bus Project was coming to our campus on Friday, I was all in!

Red Bus Project is a double-decker bus, converted into a thrift store to raise money and awareness on college campuses about the plight of the orphan. Caleb Chapman (fabulously talented son of Steven Curtis Chapman) travels with the bus and performs with his band CALEB to draw more attention to the bus.

So we grabbed some food truck cuisine, and set out for the Quad on campus to enjoy an evening picnic. As the opening act and our meal was wrapping up, the sky began to drip scattered raindrops — but not enough to be concerned about.

The band was setting up on stage when all of a sudden KABOOM, it began to POUR rain. We all ran for cover, as they announced they would move the concert indoors to the lobby of the student center. Many people ran for the cover of their dorm or called it a night, but we decided to stay and head in to the student center.

So all of the professional equipment that CALEB had brought on tour was reduced to a couple of acoustic guitars, most of a drum set, and their voices. No microphones. No speakers. The only lights were office lamps behind them.

And it couldn’t have been any better.

And if you looked really closely, you noticed that there was a family sitting in the corner, with a mom, dad, and two little girls. They were soaked, just like the rest of us. Then Caleb called up the dad — his dad– to sing a song or two.

So Caleb Chapman handed over his guitar to Steven Curtis Chapman, who did a couple of acoustic songs to perhaps the smallest audience ever, with no mics, lights or fanfare. Just a bunch of people who came out to support the cause of the orphan.

When Steven sat down after his songs, Caleb admitted he had just asked him to sing so that he would tune his guitar, and we all had a good laugh. Stevey Joy Chapman even got in on the act and communicated her own message (by whispering in her dad’s ear, who “translated”) about how she was once and orphan, and we all needed to help more orphans like her.

Caleb’s concert was awesome. We enjoyed every minute of it, and knew that bringing it inside to a smaller venue only added to the authenticity of the cause.

We got the chance to hang out and talk with Steven Curtis Chapman about our kids after the concert. Of course we showed him pictures and celebrated our most recent paperwork breakthrough. He hugged us both and wished us continued blessings in our journey.

We genuinely hope that someday, the Chapman family will not be remembered as much for the Dove and Grammy Awards, or even the music that they perform. We hope that the Chapman’s lasting legacy will be the voice they have given to orphans around the world. To find out more about their work in caring for orphans, check out their organization Show Hope and their latest adventure The Red Bus Project.

I must admit that we were caught a bit off guard receiving BOTH things we were waiting for last week . . . which then meant we had a BUNCH of paperwork to fill out. I was thinking that we’d start on it after we got one of the two things we needed, and when they came in within 24 hours of each other, panic set in!

Fortunately, last Saturday was one of the few Saturdays that Ken has off this spring, so we could work on paperwork together. One of the things we needed was to do our 2011 taxes. Since we itemize deductions, got new windows, have a new HSA account, and Ken’s a pastor, our taxes are a little complicated. Ken’s MBA definitely helps! But wanting to have a fair division of labor, I asked him if he would do taxes while did the immigration forms for our adoption.

Three hours later, Ken was done with our taxes, and I was still on the first of 5 forms. Delegating is clearly not my strength.

So with a hefty dose of sleep deprivation, panicked posts on our discussion board, and not-so-nice thoughts about what we put immigrants through in this country, Ken and I finished a few hundred pages of documents to send off to our agency on Monday. We actually had to send them in a box because they don’t make envelopes big enough!

And  thus the waiting begins . . . again. It seems like that’s the story of international adoption. Brief bursts of flurried activity, followed by months of nothing. We are thankful that we are now in a part of the process where the “nothings” should be fewer and shorter. The process is now back in the hands of the Americans who are much more predictable in their processing. In the last few months, cases have been processed faster than usual, and we hope that trend continues with us.

We’re praying that whoever the officer is who reviews our case would find joy in putting a forever family together! And quickly! 😉

 

We received word from our agency late this afternoon that our Certificate of Non-Appeal (CONA) came in today! It still has to be translated, but that should just take a “couple days.” 😉  CONA means that the judgment that the childrens’ birth family can no longer change their minds. They are officially OURS.

Our agency is still in communication with the Embassy about the errors in our court documents and what exactly needs to be fixed, and how. But now that it’s the ONLY thing we’re waiting on, I’m hoping that the urgency in figuring this out will increase. Once that fiasco is figured out, we’ll be able to file with U.S. Immigration to start the process of bringing the children home.

So, prayer warriors, cross the CONA off the list! I am 100% certain that the CONA was released because of YOUR prayers! Now, pray for the court documents to be straightened out! God is at work!

Nearly two weeks ago, we finally got our corrected court documents . . . only the corrections were incorrect. Worse than they were to begin with, in fact. What was supposed to only take a few days took two months, and they were irritatingly inaccurate. Had they only typed what we had said, there would be no problem. They didn’t.

Our other issue is our Certificate of Non-Appeal, lovingly referred to as CONA. It’s the document issued 30-60 days after the final judgment is pronounced that declares the children to be irrevocably ours. We’re now marching toward 90 days, and still, we’ve received nothing.

So we’re stuck on two different fronts: the incorrect court judgment, and the missing Certificate of Non-Appeal. The longer we’re in this process, the more the timelines are getting stretched out. Having been told initially that we would travel by the end of 2011, and now we’re hoping to travel by the end of 2012. Embassy appointments have slowed down. Passports have slowed down. Visas have slowed down. With increased numbers of people adopting from a country with minimal infrastructure, many are travelling 7 months or so after they received CONA, and we don’t even have that yet. We don’t expect even that timeline to hold. Even if we did get CONA, our court documents are still hopelessly lost in translation. Families that we were on a concurrent timeline with are now months ahead of us.

Our agency is trying to help: the U.S. Embassy has been asked for clarification regarding our situation. They’re talking to Immigration. Our CONA has been requested  . . . again.  We’re caught working with a country that does not share our priority of timing, punctuality, meeting deadlines; and working with a U.S. government department that deals exclusively with people with no rights as citizens, so again, there is a lack of urgency.

When we originally started this adoption journey, I was warned: Satan hates adoption.

While we believe that we’re on a mission to rescue the fatherless, Satan is doing everything in his power to disrupt, discourage, disappoint. It is not a battle with a court reporter, an immigration official, or a translator. Ephesians 6:12 NIV says,

“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” 

Is Satan angry that these two children will be raised in a loving home and taught to know the love of Jesus from the minute we embrace? Absolutely.

We laughed today in Sunday School about a Biblical theme that few of us talk about in The Church:

• God calls.
• A person answers.
• Then bad things happen to that person.

To think that we can boldly follow the will of God and remain comfortable and safe is NOT Biblical. When we do anything spiritually significant, Satan feels threatened. Then he fights back.

I used to believe and tell people all the time that our adoption timeline is all in God’s timing and He has the appointed day when the children are ready, and when we are ready, to go and get them just when they were meant to be ours. I now equate that to telling someone whose house burned down that Jesus had chosen the precise day that they would lose all that they had, and shouldn’t they be excited about God’s timing?

God hates the brokenness in a world that causes parents to abandon their children. God hates the war, poverty, and famine that leave children without families. My children had all they knew stolen from them  — even if it wasn’t much to begin with. Every day they are there and we are here, they are being robbed of  loving parents, healthy meals, bedtime prayers, a safe community, an education, and so much more.

So no, it’s not okay that our timeline is getting drawn out, any more than it is okay to watch a fire burn your neighbor’s home to the ground and say, “It must just be God’s will for them.”

It’s simply not okay.

And really, it’s not okay with Jesus either.  The fact that it’s not okay is why He led us to this country, to this orphanage, to these two kids.

I was reminded recently of this by my dear friend, adoptive mom, and orphan advocate, Angie, when she wrote to me, “Please hold on to the happy ending. Someone has to for these children. They need a family. Children thrive in families, and lose hope without them. God WILL not forsake them or you in this process. Hold on to that.”

Someone has to advocate for these children. God has chosen us.

We hope you’ll stand with us. To tell Satan to take his hands off of these kids. To pray for God’s intervention in their court documents, and in their Certificate of Non-Appeal. To pray for every official who will process their paperwork in the steps that follow. To pray for the safety of the children, their caretakers, and for our travel to go and get them . . . . someday.

We need friends who are willing to not be okay.

Are you?

You’ve been asking for them. We’ve been waiting for them.

Our new t-shirts have arrived! 

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The gray shirt is a cotton/poly unisex shirt that comes in sizes from youth small up to adult XXL and is $15

The scoop neck shirt is a ladies shirt a super-soft 100% cotton shirt available in adult ladies sizes small to 2XL and is $20.

Money raised will help us raise the $10,000 to $15,000 we will need for travel to go get our kids! We’ll be selling them after church in Ken’s office, you can stop by our house (call first), or catch me at work.

If you’d like to buy one (or five) and you’re not local, don’t worry! We’re hoping to open up an Etsy shop soon. We have PLENTY of inventory! And if we run out of your particular size, we can reorder pretty quickly, as the printer is local.  

Thank you for helping us bring our kids home!

Special thanks to oneof my former students, another adoptive mom, and a very helpful printer who helped us put these together.