Agency Re-accreditation

Thank you for praying for our agency and the rest of the agencies working in Haiti to find families for adoptable children.

While the re-accrediation list came out late on Friday of agencies granted two year approval to work in Haiti we did not learn until today that our agency did not make the list.

 We just received an e-mail from them explaining a few things.

• No explanation was given why they did not appear on the list.

[From the Facebook group some folks speculating some agencies not approved because they did not submit at least one case a month]

• Agencies not approved "will receive a special authorization from IBESR mentioning the conditions and limits of their operations in Haiti until the finalization of the said dossiers".  To us that means we will be able to finish out any cases we currently have that are already filed with IBESR or the court system. 

• The appeal for our agency to gain approval has already started.
• With the holidays it is unlikely that any additional information will be known before January.
• Our agency never experienced any problems or issues of any kind or been informed of any by IBESR, the creche, any person or entity in Haiti.
• "The bottom line is that we ABSOLUTELY want to continue placing children from Haiti and will do what we can to obtain the governmental approval that is required to do so. "

So we will continue to pray for our dossier, our case, our littles and our agency.

Praying for the children needing families and other families at all stages of the process.

Praying for our referral early in the new year. 

Praying for the 'refreshing' of our fingerprints for the visa paperwork.

Praying for folks to sign needed papers.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. 

Thank you for your interest in our journey.

Special thanks for all those joining us by praying for our family. 

Embassy Visit

Trip: a 4 hour and 20 minute ride to the Ortlip Center the first day, followed by an early 1 1/2 hour ride to the US Embassy the second day put us in line about 15 minutes after 6 a.m.

A nice gentle man directed us to the second place in a short line to the side. Three other longer lines formed on the other side. We watched the sun rise over the mountains and admired the two health moringa trees growing in front of the Embassy.

A couple of times security folks asked us our reason to be at the embassy and we explained noting we did not have an appointment. They just nodded but around 7:30 a.m. when everyone else in our short line had appointments I asked Cory to confirm again we were in the correct line....nope.

So we moved to the end of the longish visa line. Waited less than 5 minutes and the staff person came to apologise noting he'd checked and the first line was correct. So we moved back.

In less than 15 minutes we were cleared through security and in the large, cold waiting room sitting before window 27. Same location we waited on Oct. 1st, 2013 when we did our fingerprints the first time.

We talked to a staff person at one point and then waited some more. Found it interesting she asked how we got our fingerprints done the first time... with paper and ink?!? A bit disconcerting.  Lots of time to pray for our littles, the staff, the process and for our fingerprint renewal.

Called up to the window we were told that the prints could not be done but they would contact the office in the USA to have them 'refreshed'.

Could we have something in writing? No they will E-mail us in 2-3 weeks when it's done.
Could we have proof that we'd visited the Embassy and tried. Nope.
How about a business card or her e-mail. Nope. Against policy.
She noted we already had the e-mail for the office.
       Yes, but that was the same e-mail we'd tried twice to get an appointment for the fingerprints for. Well, they didn't respond because they don't do them.
    She didn't respond when I asked her why they couldn't have e-mailed us that, saving us a 6 hour  
    [one way] trip.
She did end up giving us her name by signing one of our e-mails, assuring us that they would be contacting the USA office within the week.

So we'll wait to hear. With the holidays do not know if we'll hear soon or not. The prints expire on January 23 so would like to know before then!

Still waiting....

Our American agency talked with the Haitian creche last week, and then sent us a nice E-mail.

Deadline for hearing about the agency re-accreditation was yesterday. Since they did not let us know we're assuming that the deadline moved into December. Still praying that the agencies receive their approvals.

Our file remains in IBESR. The in-country representative visits every two weeks to check and keep our name/file active in the staff's minds. They now know the representative and we look at that as a good sign. [Hear stories of files sliding behind desks or file cabinets and being lost for a while!!]

Confirmed that our file/dossier did complete all needed review steps and now waits for the child/children that match our home study approval to be declared legally free for adoption and then we will match.

Reasons for the long wait that were listed: "process has been very long due to the number of children being processed, insufficient man power, massive flooding in CAP, etc" and we know it's a complicated process with many people and signatures involved.

The creche did get their first referral since IBESR started the new process!! Praise the Lord and open the gates!!

Still waiting to hear from the Embassy about renewing our fingerprints. After waiting our 7 business days without word after the first E-mail we resent and now count down the second 7 business days.

Praying for all involved in the process. Rejoicing to hear about parents meeting children and 5 this week going 'home' from a orphanage near Port.

10 months in IBESR. No personal news.

Keeping busy with the book translation and school helps fill up the time between prayers and keeps me from pondering too deeply the process as we continue to wait.

Our file passed the 10 month mark in IBESR without any news.

I knew that we needed to renew our fingerprints sometime in January so early November I pulled the information to review it. The form can be used for different steps and confused me for a while. Thankfully the part that needs the updated home study will not be due until after late February and not in 2 weeks as we initially thought.

The two week deadline was only for contacting USCIS for an appointment to update our prints. They responded by e-mail the same day and directed us to the Haiti branch. That E-mail was not responded to in the ‘7 business days’ so we resent it today.

Not worried about it at this point as we started the ‘paper trail’ that proves we did start more than two months before expiration working to get the renewal done.

Praise! Heard of one mayor going to sign chart of an abandoned child. Pray for the mayor of the area served by God's Littlest Angles to go and sign off on 17 of their children's charts so that they can match with their families and get one step closer to home.

A recent meeting at the US Embassy on International Adoption and the Hague occurred. According to Dixie from God’s Littlest Angles it was very informative and interesting.

Main Points: [Full blog here and the previous blog]

Visa approval may now take 4-8 weeks after the USCIS approval of I-604 [used to be just days] as they look into the validity of the documents.

Looks like the director of the orphanage where the child is may get to sit in on the matching committee and have a voice in the match.

Children’s court: Sounds like Judge Gabard understands the process but Judge Marlene is not.

Family dossiers entered into IBESR after Oct. 1st will be treated as Hague Cases. These will not have the US Immigration Service doing Orphan Investigations as they will be done by the State Department and Adoption Section of the US Consulate.

Folks to pray for:
Adoption Chief [3 years] Ms. Chinwe Obianwu
USCIS field office Director Mr. Richard Polny [starts in Dec.]
Children’s Court Judges Judge Gabard, Judge Marlene
        Local mayors to sign off on abandonment cases.


Staff in Government departments: Justice [courts both Civil and Children’s] Immigration, Social Services [IBESR], Archives, and Mayor’s offices.

Referrals have started!!

Rejoicing with each family who's received a referral in the last couple of months.

In September at least one family a day from the Facebook group fasted and prayed for the process but disappointment hit at the end of the month with news of only 5 referrals.

October passed with only a couple at the end of the month. But already in November there is news of 10!!! Yeah! Praise the Lord.

Apparently the director had been gone for a couple weeks in October but is now back at work. Praying for many families to move up a step in the process before the holiday slow down next month.

Just read of the first Italian family getting a match!

No news from our agency. So we pray and wait.

Folks with other agencies report that they heard that IBESR will not be matching anyone with children until some time next year when they have a committee in place to do so. If this is true then we would be in that group. It could be possible that our agency submitted our chart with a suggestion of children without telling us-then we could match earlier.

Praying that if waiting children have all their paperwork in place they do NOT need to wait until some time next year for a committee to form and do matches. Especially those with medical issues, sibling groups, older children or abandoned children.

Ultimately the Lord controls when we match, with whom we match and with what orphanage. Trusting in Him!

Praying that we can wait well, praising Him, trusting Him. Praying that we're becoming the family our little ones need us to be. Praying we don't miss the lessons we should be learning during the wait.

Waiting.

Andy Stanley " Your greatest contribution to the Kingdom of God may not be something you do but someone you raise."

A year ago today we learned of our dossier's arrival in Haiti.

Bud Irish wrote a letter home during WWII to his sweetheart "It would be so different if a fellow knew he just had a certain length of time to be here in the army. He could say "Well, just X days to go." Instead it's just another day gone by and a lot more coming up. June 27, 1943 page 134 from the book A THOUSAND LETTERS HOME.

I echo Bud's sentiments but substitute the adoption for the army. Some days I really wish I knew how much longer. Even if it turned out to be a long time one could then easier push things to the back of one's mind I think. I'd add countdown lists to our computers, to our calendars and have other ways to show us visibly where we were in the countdown.

But although we cannot see the referral date, the Lord can so we fix our eyes on Him.

But maybe then the intensity of my prayers would fade. Perhaps I would fall victim to procrastination. The willingness to work to improve may weaken. My reliance may shift to man and away from the Lord.

I've changed up my prayers a bit of late. No longer 'Lord open the doors of IBESR to start referrals and getting folks out of IBESR. Now my prayers sound more like "LORD blast the doors off so that they cannot be closed again. Let referrals start and CONTINUE. Fight for your children!

[At least one family in the Facebook group was released from IBESR this week and one family entered and exited MOI [Ministry of Interior] in 17 days!!]

Praying that we learn the lessons we need to learn during the wait. May I wait well! Singing His praises while focusing on His love, power and plan.

Why the long referral wait?

Adoption consists of a complicated process that produces a lot of paperwork. [and just telling of this one step...a long blog]

Times of transition generally mean backlogs of charts and delays with the discussion and implementation of proposed changes. Haiti's transitional delays we pray result in a smoother system with reduced possibilities of abuse.

One of the big changes in Haiti's adoption process involves declaring a child's adaptability status prior to referral. This should prevent referral of children not meeting 'adoptable requirements' of Haitian and American governments.

In theory: A Haitian family meets with the social service team and makes an adoption plan. If after every possible effort to keep the family together, including education, and counseling the family stand firm on the decision to place the child up for adoption and IBESR agrees it is in the child's best interest, a one-month waiting period starts. After a full month, consent can be granted.

Abandoned children remain in an orphanage for at least 6 months while the family is looked for after which time IBESR can decide to make a referral for adoption. The mayor of the area where the child was found will need to appear in Children's court.

Child's Dossier - after IBESR declares the child adoptable these items need to be collected:

1. Passport Pictures
2. Birth Certificate
3. Attestation of signature on Birth Certificate or a copy from the National Archives
4. Legal relinquishment of custody by family/mayor if abandoned in family Court [this step can take 2-3 visits]
5. Death certificates and extracts from archives of biological parents if applies
6. Parent's marriage certificate if applies
7. Psychological evaluation
8. Medical evaluation
9. Laboratory tests
10. Social history

Now a referral can be proposed. The orphanage/creche directors will be asked to review the charts of waiting families. Once IBESR approves a potential match  the adoption agency will be given an official letter, and the family notified. After notification, the family will have 15 days to consider the match and accept or decline the referral. 

At this time, no one knows what will happen should a family not feel able to accept a proposed referral. 

As you can see there are many steps in the process and many potential areas for delays and problems. Praying for protection for everyone, every step, every paper, and every signature.   

Pray for us to be patient, wait well, and for our children while they wait too. Yesterday marked our 9th month in IBESR.  

No families without a 'soft' or 'pre-matched' admission to IBESR along with a proposed child have yet reported a match by IBESR on the Facebook group.  

We know that generally a child's development becomes more delayed for every month they live in an institutionalized setting, but we're praying our children will miraculously thrive.   

IBESR Update

Thankful again for Dixie from God's Littlest Angel's for sharing what she knows about Haiti's adoption process. Her long detailed blog can be found here. Lots to pray about!

Without flash. 

Summary- Dixie does not want to be passing along rumors so waited to hear confirmed news from a meeting between the Joint Council Haiti Caucus Meeting and IBESR. The basics:

1. NO changes in the procedure to declare a child adoptable. Total of 3-4 trips for family members to IBESR. 
2. Family will also need to sign away parental rights in front of the Children's Judge.
3. IBESR prepares the child's chart. Then the creche staff pick it up, bring to court staff, then when ready to sign bring the family to sign before the judge. [Detailed and time consuming]
4. No details yet if the US consult will do away with parent interviews currently needed at the end of the process before a visa is issued. 
5. IBESR will do all the matching of all children. Creches to be involved but no one knows what this looks like yet.
6. Multi-disciplinary team at IBESR to be formed by early 2015 to make the matches.
7. Starting with dossiers accepted after Oct. 1st 2015 the referral can come from any creche accredited by IBESR.
8. IBESR currently working on the backlog of dossiers and intend to start with those that were submitted first and been waiting the longest.
9. A family/agency will be able to submit a letter of intent for a specific child with special needs.
10.  Fees given to a creche to care for child is being reduced. IBESR says the creche will need to make up the difference in funds in other ways. Each creche will receive the same amount of funding per child regardless of the level of staff, food, education, medical care given.

With flash. 

Many creches are hurting financially because of the lack of matches in the last year. IBESR set the fees without input from the creches about services provided or current budgets. Some creches are already talking about closing to adoptions. 

"Please keep all of the creches and children in your prayers.  We will see less and less children adopted out of Haiti and there will be some that die waiting for a family.  I agree with all of the articles about economical orphans but unfortunately I've seen severely malnourished "economical" orphans on the point of death whose parents just could not care for the child even with a little help!  To save the life of those children, yes, I believe adoption is a better option than long term orphanage care in Haiti!  I agree there are some children that need to go back home with their parents and thankfully, the new IBESR process will weed some of these children out of the creche and return them back to the parents." - See more: here [same link as above]

Please continue to pray for Haitian families. Please continue to pray for our adoption and our family. Pray for the children of Haiti. 

New month....New Hope.

Although there are 1,426 current members in the 'Adopting from Haiti' Facebook group not everyone
in the group is active in the adoption process.

Likely many folks adopting do not belong to the group... but some good news from September's 'catch up' time at IBESR.

Five new referrals-all I believe had already seen charts on their children but were not guarantied to be allowed by IBESR to match with those children under the new process.

At least one family finally exited IBESR after a wait of more than 1.5 years.

At one of the other steps after IBESR, both lawyers were gone for September...so October brings new hope.

A member posted this today on the Facebook group "my program director is on the Joint Council and she told me yesterday on the phone that IBESR was (as of yesterday) planning to reopen today for dossier submissions, again, yes.

They have been frying big fish: standardizing matching practices, crèche fees, partnerships, etc (many things) so that's likely why things have still not APPEARED like a flood gate but rather just lots of behind-the-scenes items to be overhauled. Still." 

Praying that IBESR made good progress in September as we continue to wait for our referral. 

Praying for the bottle-neck areas to widen, the chaos to become calm, no more distractions or inefficiency, reduced errors, for truth to overcome any deceptions, the blocked paths to open with all Praise and Honor to our heavenly Father.

Praying for our children to thrive where they are, for healing to begin, that they will not fall back every month they remain in the orphanage but will advance.

Praying for the cases before the Children's Court judges. That the mayors and family members will make their court dates and that the paperwork can be completed. 

Praying that we can wait well. Wait in joy, patience and hope knowing that the Lord continues to work His plan and in His timing. 

September Prayers Update

Very small wild flowers

Just passed the middle of September this week...keep praying.

In the Facebook group for Haiti adoptions the celebration for four new referrals continues as do the prayers that many more will follow in rapid sucession.

A new update from God's Littlest Angels can be seen here.
     -yesterday they received 17 dossiers for abandoned children in their care to take to children's courts for the mayor to sign, joining the 4 from earlier. [after this step families will receive referrals for these children]
     -other creches have also received dossiers.
     -no more lists of possible matches will be accepted by IBESR from the creches
     -no new dossiers accepted this month.

Praises:

• A few referrals made
• Children's dossiers released for the Children's Court Step
•  Visiting churches with our guests allow us to remind them to pray for Haiti's families and children in orphanages as well as for our children specifically.
• An update from our new international adoption coordinator in the USA. Nothing new to report but happy that it looks like we will be getting timely updates.

Prayer:

• Continued referrals
• Children's Courts to work in a timely fashion
• families and mayors to make their court dates
• Bonding trip dates-need to be coordinated with IBESR
• Release from IBESR of families already completed their bonding trip
• release of old law/ procedure families
• Improvement of efficiency, accuracy, organization of IBESR
• Progress for folks in the other steps that follow IBESR-courts, visas, passports
• All USA adoption agencies need renewed permission to work in Haiti.
• Working out of new fees for the new process and for the families needing to cover the increased costs
• Orphanages and creches taking care of the children
• Waiting families
• Transition to families

Thank you!

September prayers.

Tiny flowers on a weed in the yard. 

IBESR closed their doors to new dossiers for the month of September to have a chance to 'catch up on all the current cases'.  Praying they get a miraculous amount of work done!!

A Haitian lawyer commented on a Facebook group that the new procedure is so complicated 'a web' that IBESR would likely not be giving referrals for months yet.

But we serve a big, all-powerful God and pray for His compassion, pity, grace and mercy for the orphans knowing He can bring order and efficiency out of chaos.

We rejoice this morning with a women who after 18 months in IBESR waiting for a referral for a girl received it yesterday!!

Praying for families now in the process for 4-7 years. Praying for the truth to be known if they will not be able to complete the process or if they can for rapid movement. 

While we would love to pray specifically for our children by name, their families by name, know ages and location, look at pictures, we're honored to be praying for the Lord's will and His timing.

Praying for the USA adoption agencies working in Haiti. They had to resubmit their paperwork for licenses in August and may learn in October which agencies licenses were renewed. 

Blogged some specific requests in more detail on our family blog: September Challenge

Pick Me!!

Dragon Fruit blossom, they bloom at night. 

Remember the classmate who always wanted to be picked for a team or to give the answer in class.

That's how I feel when I think about our chart sitting in a room with hundreds of other charts. Pick me!!! Pick our family! Arms waving. Body wiggling. Voice loud. 

Then I think of the folks who passed the 1 1/2  or three-year wait mark…pick them and us!!  

Start making referrals. Pick someone!

When I read blogs or web pages encouraging folks to consider adopting because thousands of children continue to wait for a family I pray for those, like us who already agreed.

     We made that important discussion.

     We found the time and effort to fill out hundreds of pages of paperwork.

     We cleaned and organized and nervously invited the social worker into our home and lives to
           inspect and question for that all important home study. 

     We asked and reminded friends about reference letters.

     We sat in offices for appointments: medical doctor, the psychologist, finger printing, notary.

     We waited in post office lines, for phone calls, for e-mails and for the mailman.

     We cleaned and organized for home studies.

     We made lots and lots of copies.

     We wrote checks.

Now we wait. And wait.

We pray. We hope. We get depressed. We sigh…a lot. We check E-mails and then check again. 

Lord, give us hope and patience.

Thank You for working for our kids and our family.
Thank you for being with these precious children while they wait for families.
Lord, we praise You even when we do not see progress.
When we do not get news, we thank You. 

A blog from Dixie from God's Littlest Angels about IBESR now making all the matches, New Match Procedure. Don't know if this would be better or not for us. No one knows what this will mean for families with a 'soft match.' Know we need to pray that the children get to the families that fit well with their needs.

This just posted on the Facebook group by someone who's agency told them-IBESR will not be taking any new cases in September to 'catch up on all their current cases'. Now we've heard they have more than 1,000 'current' cases, some going on 3 years. Praying for a miraculously productive month! 

IBESR Update / Prayer Requests

Very thankful to Dixie at God's Littlest Angels for sharing information she learns from IBESR.

Link to her full blog about last week's visit found here.

Points in the blog that I found to pray specifically about:

• Felyne is the IBESR representative putting together matches. Praying for wisdom, health, resources, protection, and efficiency for Felyne.

• Proposals in small batches going to the Children's Judge.  Praying for wisdom and efficiency!! Praying for the judge and staff not to be overwhelmed but motivated!

• Praying that even doing small batches that the batches are big enough to start catching up on the backlog of charts now sitting in IBESR, some for years waiting for a match. 

• Rather confusing, still being changed and multi-step procedure for the birth families. Praying this gets worked out to be as simply, with the least amount of hassle and expense. 

• Praying that the families who already signed off do not need to repeat the 30-day wait and can be exceptions to the new change. 

• Praying that the steps one and two can and will take place in the same visit. 

• Praying for the organization of the visits to the judge and that the families can make their appointments without problems.

• Praying for the Mayors who need to sign for the abandoned children to make the effort. That IBESR will get the lists together so the Mayors can sign in a timely manor all the children from their area.

• Praying for the process to get the trouble spots worked out so the system can stabilize and stop changing. This will also start a timeline which would help folks get an idea of the time frame.

• Praying for patience for all involved.

• Praying for the children and families waiting like us.

Thank you for supporting us on this journey and for your prayers. 

Hope in strange places.

Sometimes hope comes from strange places. 

I expect to find hope in the Bible, in my devotions or when chatting with my Mom who encourages me to look to the Lord. 

I did not expect to find it yesterday in a school book. 

As I read to Anna from The Landing of the Pilgrims by James Daugherty, this passage referring to those on the Mayflower voyage struck me from page 39-40. 

"Among the passengers there was a sense of excitement and anticipation. This was not an ordinary landing after a long voyage. There was a deep and strong feeling among them of something immense and heroic and biblical, beyond the personal happenings of their individual lives. They did not know what the ordeal might be ahead, only that they would never turn back. Something was being left behind forever. Something new and bright and glorious was beginning. They were ready to face untold hardship. They were confident of wide new freedom. Vague, deep thoughts that could find no words drew them together in purpose and high resolve."  

 

It made me long for the day when our children come home. I think we will share some of these feelings at that time. I post it here so I remember. 

 

As the days march on without information of any new referrals I often remind myself of some advice from a friend. She said later it will be like when they hand you your newborn, the pain that just moments before encompassed your life rapidly fades into a vague memory. That same type of thing will happen when you match with your children and the wait ends.   

Waiting to find out if she's right. 

Wondering

I wonder what happened to the lady and the baby she offered us two years ago July 27th, opening the door for our adoption journey.

I wonder if the Facebook comment that IBESR asked agencies to hold off on charts for a while, so they can deal with the 900+ already occupying desk space is true.

I wonder where our chart spent the last six months in IBESR...and pray it's not lost behind a file cabinet somewhere. 

I wonder when we'll get our referral notice… next month, next year? Praying not more than three years like one family as that would bring us dangerously close to the age limit. 

Mostly, I wonder about our children...

I wonder so much about you. Names. Ages. Personalities. Health. History.

What do you think about? What do you remember? What do you need?

What are your days like? Who do you care about? Where are you living?


Are you little enough to only focus on eating and having fun?

Do you long for things you do not understand and cannot name?

Do you wonder if you'll be kept together as a family, or if you'll loose your last blood ties?

Do you wonder when the other children leave with a new family if it will ever happen to you?

Do you want to go back home? Return to the life that once was yours?

Do you go to school? Do you long to see the world or just to have a place to call your own?

Do you have friends? Or hang out at the edge of a crowd wanting to belong?

Does someone dry your tears or do they drop unnoticed? Or have you given up on tears instead relying on an inner strength to bury the pain.

Do you go to bed at night tired after a good day of playing or lay awake at night hungry and in pain?

Do you know Jesus loves you? Do you learn to praise Him in song and to bring Him your needs in prayer?

Do you pray for a new family? Do you pray for us?

Courage.

IBESR News.

Dragon fruit flower bud

My dad once called me an opportunist and I guess I am.

With the conferences on campus this summer with representatives from all 25 northern churches and a few additional churches outside the district we could not pass on the opportunity.

The opportunity to let them know about the lack of referrals the last 7 months delaying providing needy children with families.

We reminded them that while we pray that families can stay together there will always be some children who need a new family and right now many creches are full and needing to turn away children.

We asked them to join us in praying for the children of Haiti. Praying for the adoption process to improve and move forward. Praying for our children. Praying to defeat the devil's delays and blocks.

Together we join in prayer for progress to be made at every step for hundreds of waiting children and families.

Some folks report that over 900+ dossiers currently wait in IBESR.

Our chart joined the numbers 6 months ago and no word since then about our referral.

Some news this week from a meeting held by IBESR.

The short version boils down to some encouraging news:

• Biological families are being helped to understand their options of keeping their children and getting help with schooling and jobs.
• If IBESR feels that a couple over the age of 50 would be a good fit they will make exceptions to the age limit of 50 years. 
• The lawyer in charge of adoptions hopes to see matches starting by the end of July.
• If a foreigner holds a residential visa and lived in Haiti more than 5 years they will qualify for a National adoption. 

GLA full blog The blog also notes that many of the creches are struggling financially to feed their children as the delay in referrals means that adoption funds cannot be used.

After reading this we contacted our USA agency to remind them that we qualify for a national adoption and to ask them to ask about this when their representative next inquires about our dossier.

We resent the copies of our residential visas when it was expressed that the previous copy was too faint to read easily. National adoptions would be prioritized over international.

Encouraging to hear that referrals will start soon but not so on hearing that one family is at the 3 year mark waiting for a referral.

Keep praying.

Help Us Move Mountains!

Matthew 17:20 b "If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you."

Matthew 18:20 "For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them."

Many families pray for us and other's when in small groups or churches. And the Lord hears us when we pray solo too.

Sometimes I wonder how much faith I have?

I know that together our faith adds up to more.

This week a couple blogs encouraged me. Both from large families who moved outside their comfort zones and adopted lots of children including those with special needs.

One reminded me that the Lord continues to work on our behalf even when we cannot see movement or progress.

He remains faithful. He is moving.

Praying earnestly for the mountains blocking the referral process and other steps in the Haiti adoption process to crumble into the sea so that children can be placed in loving families.

Praying that the delays mean that once the process starts up again it will move faster and smoother than in the past.

Even if we still wait for our referral would be hopeful to see other families getting referrals and moving though the system.

Prayer Requests

• Movement in referrals and other steps in the process
• IBESR staff to work hard, stay healthy, be careful/efficient  and have all the resources they need to complete their work well
• That our chart and the kid's charts do not get lost or have mistakes in them
• That our US agency finds the perfect person to be the International Adoption Coordinator
• That the creche our children are at will allow Eli and Anna to come on the bonding trip
• That the creche has all the staff and resources needed to take care of the children well so that they can thrive during the wait. 
• That the trip would work with our ministry schedule without delays
• For the Lord's will and timing.
• To defeat any of the Devil's plans for delays or derailments
• Patience, hope, faith and gratitude during the process.

Dispensation cases and need for new coordinator.

Lalow seed pod. 

Heads Up Old Law Families Without Dispensation Prior to New Law Taking Effect:

From IBESR:

"Gives notice, furthermore, that the Act of August 29, 2013 repealing the decree of April 4, 1974 puts an end to the presidential waiver authorizing adoption for prospective adoptive parents who already have biological children. Cases for which the presidential waiver was not solicited or granted as of November 15, 2013, are exempt from this formality, but will be processed in accordance with section 37, 36, 76, 78 of the Act of august 29, 2013;"

This sounds like the families who needed presidential dispensation when the office closed will be able to move out of IBESR soon. Keep praying as they wait for a letter and files to move to courts.

New law folks like us no longer need dispensation.

For our case we learned from our USA agency that our International Adoption Coordinator left her job and the position will now need to be filled. We pray that the Lord will put the perfect person in that job.

If we were looking to hire this person we'd be looking for someone with the following:

• A passion to help families unite in a timely fashion through international adoption.
• Willing to go a second mile to help families living overseas find the answers to unique questions due to their locations.
• Willing to occasionally work on weekends or nights when occasion warrants so that situations can be dealt with in a timely fashion.
• Willing to touch base once a month on families during the waiting process even if there's no new news or to update on Country adoption news.
• A praying person.

Today we talked to someone in the home office as requested by phone. A visit from staff to Haiti in April did not find out any new news. Our file remains fine. Nothing much for us to do until late January when our fingerprints will need renewal for the US government to update our I-600a.

Praying for movement across all the different levels of this process. Looking forward to getting our referral and learning names, faces, facts. Praying for patience, hope and peace.

Prayers for progress.

We passed the 5 month wait in IBESR with no news this week. Please continue to pray for Haiti's adoption process as delays cause hundreds of children to live without parents and siblings to love them.

For a full report from God's Littlest Angels founder Dixie go here. Dixie recently returned to Haiti after a trip and visited IBESR, June 13.

Condensed points:

1. No official referrals have been given since December.
2. Lots of indecision at IBESR in her opinion. Working on the families stuck because of the change of status for dispensation cases under old law. When the President closed the office after the new law passed, the charts under old law there could not officially be finished.
3. Secretary was working on getting dossiers ready for biological families to release their children for adoption. Families being told their children would be adopted soon.
4. Lawyer in charge of adoption unit has a 'history of indecision or accepts changes slowly' and is busy with other duties. Hague representative been working for 2 months now.
5. GLA has a long list of pre-matched suggestions. Hoping to get quicker matches.
6. Fee increase. "Everyone says this will not affect dossiers already in IBESR before they raise the fees.'

She also noted staff out sick with Chikungunya fever which is sweeping the country right now. She remarks how all the checks and agencies will remain in limbo until decisions are made and then acted on.

Prayer Requests:

• Madame Arielle Villedroin as the director of IBESR. Health. Wisdom to improve the system and make needed changes to get adoptions moving again.
• Lawyers will find a way to finish up the old dispensation cases.
• Parents giving up their children. That many will find ways to remain a family.
• Creches waiting for movement. Having to turn away new children because of limited space, staff, and resources.
• That the devil's delays and distractions will be overcome and progress can be made on getting children home to loving, Christian families.
• That those suffering from Chikungunya fever will recover rapidly without lingering effects. Protection on those not yet infected by this new mosquito transmitted virus.
• Patience, hope, and preparation for the waiting families like ours. 

Please let your praying friends and prayer chains know of this important prayer need. We feel this is a spiritual battle and every prayer counts. Please fight with us for these precious children. Thank you. 

P.S. Maybe as a reminder to pray you can pray when you wait…. When you wait to pick up your children at an event pray for this of us waiting to pick up our children at an orphanage. Waiting at a stop light, in a line or on the phone just send out a quick prayer for the process and those involved at each level.