My new mantra must become “Less of self and more of you Lord!”.
God seems to delight (for our own good I must admit) in placing us in a position where we have exhausted all human possibilities; and therefore divine intervention is all that is left; take for example, my day today.
We received our completed dossier from our lawyer and friend Clifford Knaggs, however, USPS is like a turtle, and it took 3 days for it to be shipped to us.
Clifford is going to Haiti next week; and if we wanted to get our paperwork submitted to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs with the rest of his current clients, we had to have our paperwork sealed by the Haitian Consulate before he left, giving him ample time to review the documents one last time.
So this morning we got up and waited to call the Consulate when they opened up. They informed us that if we could be there by noon they could get our paperwork done for us today.
Boston is almost a 3.5 hour trip for us; and by the time I wrapped up what I was working on at work, and the kids were ready it was already almost 10. We were now scheduled to arrive a little after 1 – but calling the consulate they said 1 was ok.
We got in the car and raced away. On the way though we realized that we needed to get money out of our bank TD Bank north; so we had stop and find a bank to get a money order.
Back in the car, we now realized that our Tom Tom said that we wouldn’t arrive in Boston until 2 o’clock. The Consulate closes at three. We knew that if we didn’t get the paperwork sealed today, and overnight shipped back to Clifford, there was very little chance that we would get into MOFA within the next month or two.
We were hungry, thirsty and already tired and very much stressed, and this extra revelation that we were probably not going to make it was so very frustrating and overwhelming.
You see, we have been doing absolutely everything we can in regards to time and money and effort to make our paperwork go as quickly as possible. As an example; we took our 2 week Christmas vacation to complete our home study – what usually takes people a couple months to complete. We’ve made numerous trips to Portland, and Boston and Connecticut and even Haiti just to try and get a few papers signed in person as quickly as possible. We’ve paid for the best possible resources to help us work through this whole process (and it’s come at a high cost). We’ve spent almost every ounce of vacation this year working on processing our adoption as quickly as possible, because we ache to have our children come home. And yet, even with all of that; it is going on 8 months that we started our paperwork – we want our children home with us… it’s heartbreaking. 🙁
So, as we drove down the road today, realizing that there was a high possibility that we had another few months to go before we could get into the legal system in Haiti, Amanda began to weep; and I was choking back tears of my own.
And at that moment, I said to God; “God, I feel assured that this is your plan for us, that you have asked us to do this, that you are with us. Therefore, I know that everything that happens, happens for a reason. I’m asking you, please, let this fall together, so we can continue to move ahead, but I accept your will.”
Little did I know, that through her tears, Amanda was saying the same thing.
And then, I noticed this little car that we had already passed once, that we began passing again (because it had a cross hanging in the rear view mirror). And this time, for whatever reason, I took a closer look at this car; and on the back bumper there was a sticker that read: “DO NOT WORRY; GOD IS IN CONTROL”. It’s like I wasn’t paying attention enough the first time, I hadn’t gotten the point; so God was giving me another chance.
Amanda and I both saw this; like a clear voice out of heaven, he wiped away our anxieties.
In Boston we were stuck in stupid ridiculous traffic; and got to the Consulate at about 2:15, and yet, they still agreed to do our paperwork for us!!
Also, we had been fretting about finding our TD Banknorth bank, and a FedEx to ship out the paperwork; and lo-and-behold; there was a TD Banknorth right next to the consulate and a FedEx right next to that (even though TD Bank told us there was no TD Bank in Boston… go figure). It was like God was reminding us that He doesn’t send his workers out unprepared; that when He asks of us, He will provide. I’ve read many books about people with the faith to know and accept this, people that would have drove right into Boston knowing that God would provide. I don’t have that faith yet – Lord, increase my faith!
So, after dropping Amanda off and driving around for almost an hour; I found a parking space; and took the children into the Consulate. They wouldn’t let me in at the front door, because it was 3:05. However, after a call to Amanda, the Vice Consulate called and asked the front door to let us up. I got to meet and talk with the Vice Consulate General of Haiti Mr. Jean Joseph Leandre, what a nice fellow, and what an honor.
As we were leaving though, I decided to review our paperwork and found there was one piece of paper the Consulate office wouldn’t stamp because it was sealed in Florida, and convention said that we should have the Miami Consulate stamp that paper; although the Miami Consulate told Clifford that we could have it done in Boston, the Boston Consulate was not willing to do it – stating that it just wouldn’t be proper to step on Miami’s toes.
I called Clifford; who asked to speak to the ladies in the office; after some time of chatting, they handed the phone back to me and Clifford said they had agreed to do it. Clifford is awesome! Thank you ladies!
So we ran over to FedEx and got the papers in the mail for a 10am delivery (that’s about 9 hours from now).
It seems like God continues to do this to us – perhaps if we learned our lesson, He wouldn’t have to. He keeps putting us in these impossible situations, I think to make us realize that He is in control, not us; that if we do what He asks of us, but rely on Him to complete what He has started, that we wouldn’t have to feel like it all rests on our shoulder’s – that He would show that He is God, and will glorify His name.
Thank you Lord for once again reminding me. Don’t worry, You are in control!
You’re blessed when you’re at the end of your rope. With less of you there is more of God (Mat 5:3, TM).
Benediksyon pou moun ki konnen se pòv yo ye devan Bondye, paske peyi Wa ki nan syèl la, se pou yo li ye. (Mat 5:3, BibLa)