Our personal declaration that Jesus reigns

I want to make it public to all who know us, that if indeed Nicodemu and Anouarite make it home to us in safety, that it will be an absolute miracle from the hand of God.  God forbid that as we cry out to Him and He moves in mighty deliverance, that I would neglect or cower in giving Him all of the glory.  I am specifically pleading with God, Abba "Daddy" Father, through the powerful blood of His Son Jesus Christ.  Whether you agree or disagree, this is what the Holy Scriptures say about the One in whom we put our trust.

Colossians 1:15-17  He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.  16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities- all things were created through him and for him.  17 And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.

It would be foolish of us to trust in anything less, and wise of us to put all of our hopes in Him.  I know much of the world would call us foolish but that's okay.  He's worth it and this earth is not our permanent home.  There is mighty power to save in the name and the blood of Jesus.  We believe in the resurrection!  I want anyone who knows me and us and our adoption to know, to hear clearly from us, and I have to continually tell myself, that it will not be by chance or by coincidence if something were to happen to allow these children out safely and moreover to become ours. 

It seems that the Rebel M23 group has overtaken Goma and the airport we were hoping could play a role in getting them out of there.  We did hear this morning that the children are still alive.  For them to get out to safety and for there to somehow be clearances for the children to legally make it through the system that is maybe no longer a system at all, would be an act of God.  By God's grace, we'll declare it as such.  May He pry my lips open to be more faithful to Him.

More than anything, I want to hold those sweet children and rub and kiss their heads and tell them that they are loved and belong with us and that God has delighted to place them in our home and family.  I was reminded this morning as I was praying that my God is not a God who is distant and who is unacquainted with suffering.  He seemed to be telling me, "Karen, I know this suffering very well.  You and the people of Goma, and Nicodemu and Anouarite are not suffering alone.  I am right here with you all in this."  How could our foolish hearts ever reject Him every time we are met with the sufferings of this world?  The God of the Bible is not one who judges from afar, but who in love asks us to lay our burdens and sins on Him.  He has borne them lash by lash, was despised and rejected as He entered into our pain.  His love for us is beyond our comprehension.  Just as Jesus prayed in the garden that the Father would take this cup of suffering from Him, He also prayed with full trust and full surrender to the wisdom of God, "not my will but yours be done".  We stand where He stood.  "Abba, we beg you to take this cup of suffering from us and them.  We know you are mighty to save.  You have proven it throughout all generations.  We eagerly await the parting of the sea so that you can show off your glory again!  And we say with Jesus, not our will but yours be done."  

Hell on earth

http://apnews.myway.com/article/20121120/DA2LMET82.html

The airport has been seized by the M23 rebel group, they are now in the city center.

Our friend was able to get in touch with the orphanage director and the children are still alive.  That is all we know about them at this point.

We are working from every direction to find out how we can get them out of there to safety.  God still sits on the throne and He is with them!  I will say again this morning, nothing is impossible with God.  We humble ourselves before His power, wisdom, and love.

First concern of prayer, the safety of all involved.  Secondly, that the volatility and (seeming?) overturning of governmental power won't stop the adoption procedures.  Thirdly, wisdom for us and provision of a way out.

Urgent!!!

Urgent prayers needed!

The M23 rebel group has now advanced on Goma and began heavy fighting last night, retreated for negotiations, and when they were told negotiations wouldn't happen, this morning began the fighting again .  Goma is under heavy attack at this very moment.

In the mean time, our attorney is doing what he can to legally get clearance to get them out of there to safety (7 children total being adopted), even though the adoption is not yet complete.  Please pray for clearance and for their safety!!!!!  If this is granted, they will have to wait for the airport to re-open to fly out to Kinshasa.

God has been very gracious in steadying our hearts so far to not grumble against Him.  Pray for us in the testing of our faith, that it will prove genuine.  We are hoping in Him for a miracle.  No matter what we put our trust in Him, He alone is God.  And He is always good.  God, their lives and our hearts are fragile.  Let us see your glory!
http://apnews.myway.com/article/20121119/DA2L5VEO0.html

English lessons

We found out today that the kids are spending 5 hours a day in English studies!!!  We knew they had been taken out of their school to study English with a private tutor with the other 5 children also being adopted to America.  I guess I thought they were getting a bit here and there.  They are becoming fast friends I am sure, as we parents are on this side.  Five hours a day?!  I sure hope they have a good teacher!

Breakthrough

Do you remember when I first posted why we are adopting and I mentioned that we are on a journey of learning to take risks and trust God, while He proves himself again and again?  I am so glad we have a God who is the same yesterday, today, and forever!  The kindness of the Lord is pouring in as we get nearer and nearer to having Nicodemu and Anouarite home.  We have more good news than we can report!  Just 3-4 weeks ago we were beginning to despair and wonder if the red tape would ever be able to be cleared.  Here is how our God has moved.

A friend, Andrea, has been faithfully praying with us about the children and for months has been praying that they would make it home by Thanksgiving.  As she told me she was still praying for this, I laughed and thought it is in no way possible, but God can do anything.  Andrea organized a meeting of our friends to pray for every step of the process and for all of us as we make this transition.  This time was such an encouragement and I believe that God put that on Andrea's heart because He was ready to move.  They won't be here by Thanksgiving, BUT it does seem that they could be legally ours by Thanksgiving!!  Thank you Andrea for pulling this prayer time together.

Our case should be heard in court next week and it is expected that we should receive the final judgment by then as well.  The judge said his docket is really full Monday through Wednesday so we are hoping and praying that he can still get our hearing in this week!  Once the judgment is received, we will begin our second and final 30 day waiting period.  Once the adoption certificate is signed after these 30 days, they will legally be our children.  Hetzlers!  Then we will still have to wade through the immigration process, which could take another 2-3 months.  Then we can finally travel to get them.

The children received our package yesterday!  We have pictures of their enormous smiles as they were handed their packages.  We have seen some sweet smiles from them both but we saw Nicodemu's biggest smiles today!  We even noticed that they have a matching dimple under their left eye when they are smiling really big.  They tried on their new clothes and were very happy to be wearing them it seemed.  Nicodemu and Anouarite are both smaller than Annalise, based on the size clothes we sent.  Though Nicodemu especially is small for his age this is very understandable considering the years of malnutrition during their formative childhood years.  They are now eating well and look much stronger and bright eyed.  Chuck was joking with me that he just knows as soon as they get here I'm going to be pumping them with protein until I give them gout.  You better believe it!  We also sent some small toys, some snacks (protein packed Cliff bars, Lara bars, and almonds of course), some English/Swahili children's books, pictures drawn by Nathanael and Annalise, bead bracelets spelling their names, and even got to see pictures today of them looking at pictures of us in a family photo album!  Gilbert reported that they said in Swahili of course, "we can't wait to live with our parents".  My parents are in town and got to join in on all the good news and tell Gilbert to tell them hello from their Mimi and Daddy G too. 

Pastor Gilbert, on his way in to visit the kids and deliver our package

As if that's not enough kindness from the Lord, a dear friend of ours and recent graduate of Princeton, Trent, just took a job in Musanze, Rwanda.  We prayed for him and commissioned him to Africa just a few weeks ago right here in our living room.  He is fluent in Swahili, and is the one who gave us his Swahili textbooks.  He is now living about an hour away from Goma (REALLY?!)  He shared with us that he had a dream that we came to visit him.  Though he has been living in Africa for less than a month, he has already met up with Gilbert in Rwanda (Gilbert is the one who takes food in to the orphanage every two weeks and the one who told Nicodemu and Anouarite about their adoption, read them a letter from us, delivered our package, got them an English tutor, and takes new pictures of them every time he goes).  Trent is working to get his travel visa to travel into the Congo and visit the kids himself!  He plans to make videos AND we will call him while he is there and talk with the kids for the first time while Trent translates!!!  What an unlikely and extravagant gift from our Heavenly Father!

I am sure there is more, as so many good things have piled up.  Once the children y are legally ours, we can post all their pictures here.  There is no denying that they are brother and sister.  They look so much alike!  We hope they will love us as much as we love them.  From what God has unfolded so far, we believe He wouldn't have it any other way.  This must be His plan and when His hand is in something, you better reach out and grab on.  He remains the God who loves to give good gifts to His children.  Feels like Christmas in October around here.

We have birth certificates!

Today, the sherrif was able to deliver and have signed by the mayor of N and A's home-town, their first ever birth certificates!  This is significant for many reasons, but most importantly it is the last of 2 documents needed to file for the adoption hearing.  So, and I hesitate now to give any timelines, the adoption hearing should get scheduled within the next few days.  We don't know how long the wait is for a hearing but at least now, the Congolese attorney is able to schedule it.

We have a few other bits of great news!  Chuck and I, along with other families, were growing increasingly concerned about the amount of time lapsing between steps.  We were beginning to discern that the children might not ever make it home without some significant supernatural intervention (which we believe He has again provided in the past 2 weeks after many prayers) or changes in our agency's oversight of the more relaxed Congolese style of going about business.  The good news is that after reaching out to our agency with our concerns, the International Director has stepped in and is personally overseeing our case and the other 2 that we know of in Goma.  He is setting firm expectations and is in regular, now almost daily communication with the attorney in the Congo.  We have also been getting very regular updates ourselves to what attempts have been made at things, even if they were not successful.  This gives us the confidence that they really are watching things with a careful eye and pushing things along now much much more than before.

Also thankfully, Gilbert was able to visit our children a couple weeks ago and took about 50 amazing pictures of them!  They look SO much more healthy than they did from their pictures in March now that they are eating 3 meals daily as opposed to 1.  They are so happy and laughing in many of the pictures, even playing hide and seek and laughing from behind a giant plant of some sort.  One of our questions was whether or not N and A knew each other and understood that they are brother and sister.  There are 180 children now in the orphanage and I imagine that relationship could get muddied if not nurtured.  They clearly know and love each other!  In one picture, A is snuggled up behind her brother's shoulder, seemingly seeking protection.  In another, they are holding hands.  In another they are sitting head to head.  There are many of them playing together.  Gilbert said they didn't seem to have been told about the adoption, though we sent a letter many months prior.  No one had taken the time to sit down and read it to them I guess.  But he was able to begin telling them and he said they were so very happy.  He was there again this past Monday and we are waiting on a new report.  Gilbert has such a selfless and Christ-like spirit.  He was so eager to begin telling them all about our love for them, read them our first letter, and show them our family picture for the first time.  Hopefully he was able to do this Monday along with his normal bi-weekly food delivery.  He has agreed to deliver to them our package that is filled with clothes, bracelets the kids made them, a couple little toys, and snacks.

We have many hurdles yet to get over but we are recently greatly encouraged.  We are still a few months away from having them home but we hope it is 6 months or less and I think now that may actually be possible!

sending a package!

Thank you all for expressing your care and your frequent trips to our blog for any new information.  I haven't posted because there is so little to share and we are expecting to hear good news any time.

So, here is what I can share.  Our first 30 day waiting period is over!!!  The Municipality in Goma has been very slow issuing the Certificate of no Appeal apparently because the person who signs off on these has not been there for many days.  This is kind of the way things tend to work.  Our attorney is working to have those certificates issued asap, hopefully even this week.  Once he has that and the birth certificate, he plans to "file immediately" for the final (2nd) judgement.  This is the really big step when it comes.  We are not sure yet once it is filed for how immediate or not the hearing will be scheduled.  So... we will keep you all posted as we expect to hear something within the next few days.  And pray that the hearing will be scheduled very soon.

In the meantime, we shopped for their first clothes yesterday!!!  It was such a special feeling.  The whole family went and the kids helped us pick out 2 outfits for each of them and a hoodie (it gets a little cool at night).  At the store we saw a pair of shorts that Annalise already has and Annalise really wanted us to get the same ones for Anouarite so they can match.  Among Nicodemu's new clothes is a red shirt that Chuck found with an American flag on it that says "Gold medalist in training".  Pretty cute.  We have learned of a group from Alabama taking a mission trip to Rwanda and they are willing to take, we hope and are waiting for verification, a small package as space is very limited.  They will not actually see the children or go to the orphanage but the Rwandan pastor who takes food in to them every 2 weeks will retrieve the package and deliver it to them with the food!  We have also put together a family photo album for each of them and will send a letter as well.  Please pray that all of this makes it to them, that the clothes fit, and that they learn of our deep love for them.  We have sent 2 letters but we don't know if they have received them so we don't know what they know about us!

Hoping to update you all more very soon.