Albeit slow..., things are moving

As I am in this period of waiting for the government to process my pre-approval application, I am reminded that everything is completely under God's control and within His time frame. Because God doesn't give us the whole picture, it is easy to get discontent when the process seems to be taking longer than normal.  But as I go through this waiting period, I realize that there is so much orchestration going on behind the scenes and that it will come together when the timing is right.  Just as He spoke about so clearly to me in Psalm 113 at the beginning of this adoption journey, HE is the one that settles it. I must say this is what enables me to be settled and to rest in His plan and His timing. 

Please continue to pray for Isaiah and myself as we are moving towards becoming a family.  Pray for Isaiah's transition into the fast paced life of America, for his transition into school and for good friends for him.  Pray for me as I decide where he should go to school and for our bonding process.  There is so much more that needs God's intervention.... but I just ask that you pray as God leads you to pray.

more pictures

little update

It appears that the immigration application has emerged out of the blackhole.  It is still being processed, but at least I have received confirmation that it is indeed being processed. 

Isaiah's the name

Now that you all have come to know my son as Bush....,  I have settled on the name that he will receive from me.  While many will still call him Bush and it will likely be his nickname throughout his life, his given name will be Isaiah.

The Current Hurdle....

As I mentioned in my earlier post, there has been a delay due to a processing change of pre-approvals through US Immigration. 

My application was sent in a month ago, and nobody seems to be able to provide any information regarding where I stand and when I can expect to hear something.  It somewhat feels like the application is potentially lost in the blackhole. 

My prayer request is that my application would get processed soon, so I can know when I can make my court appointment and finalize my travel arrangements.

Delayed

The applications were mailed, and the plane tickets reserved.  My plan was to fly home with Bush on my dad's birthday, December 20th.  At times it seemed 'to good to be true'.  And guess what..., it was.  :(

USCIS has made a change in the processing of the application that prospective adoptive families submit to get approval to bring home a foreign born orphan.  The change has delayed my approval, and because the process is new, no on can tell me how long it will take.  The one thing that is clear is that the application likely won't be processed and complete by Nov. 21 (the day of my scheduled flight).

Now it appears that I will fly to Africa in January and come home late January or early February.

how you can help

Dear family and friends,

As you are likely aware, the one call upon my life has been to serve vulnerable children in my community and around the world. This has been the focus of my life, and one of the biggest blessings in my life.

A couple of years ago, I started to feel the call and challenge to consider becoming a parent through adoption. As I started to consider the call, I kept being drawn to pursue the adoption of a specific boy who is now 6 years old.

Our relationship and story began that day in 2006, that I mention in my post below. That day and that moment was the beginning of a bond and journey that only God could ordain.

In my wildest dreams, I would have never dared to believe that nearly four years later we would be going before a judge to seek permission to become a family. But God’s plan is bigger than what we often dare to dream. In fall of 2007, I prayed for courage to trust Him and His leading, He answered boldly and clearly through Psalm 113:9. Later, when wondering if I was following His lead, the message and confirmation was bold and clear in Isaiah 54:1-5. Every piece of the text can be expounded upon, but one of the main things that I heard was “Do not be afraid”. The message was to confidently move forward and through the doors that were opened for me.

The journey has been long and full of both anticipation as well as heart-breaking news at times. Yet, God has continued to urge me to move forward. Even when the door was seemingly completely nailed shut, He had another plan.

The blessings and confirmations are numerous. One day I will write it all out as a story for Bush, and will share it with you as well.

Honestly, I am overwhelmed by the depth of love and support that I have received in this process. Everyone is so excited to meet him! As you can imagine, this warms my heart.

As I close I would ask you to join me in one or more ways if you can.

• Pray for favor with the judge and the embassy officials. (These two people hold the power to let us become a family.)

• Pray for my son’s transition into his new life and for me as I shepherd and parent him.

• Pray that I will be able to raise $10,000 to cover all of the expenses involved in bringing my son home.

• Contribute a donation to his adoption fund. (If you are interested, I have some information from The Shepherd’s Crook Ministries.  This organization is set up to receive and disburse funds for expenses related to the adoption of my son.)

Thank you so much for your friendship, your prayers and your support. I look forward to the day that you can meet him and he can meet you!!!!

Much love,

Tammy

berg.tam@gmail.com