Never Ending Journey Part 8

Well today I had my first meeting with Mi Familia (DSS). Their ways of thinking and mine are no where near  on the same page. I agree with many things they say yet I totally disagree with MOST.

First I praise God for the opportunity to fight for Karen. I could easily take another child and move on but for what ever reason for this time I am to fight for her.

They decided to reopen my case. They closed it in March and considered it done. This is a far occurrence.  They made it clear to me this does not happen often but do to the circumstances and due to the fact I am persistent in adopting her they feel it is necessary to reopen this case.

They feel that at this time she has been completely brain washed and needs time to heal. She needs counseling to ensure that she is mentally capable of making the best decision. They have decided to have a physiologist examine her over a course of a undetermined amount of times and after that evaluation then and only then will they talk to her about being adopted.

They have ask me to not talk or see her during this time. I understand why but this is hard because she thinks I will be back to see her soon and if I can't tell her what is going on what will she think of me. Pray I can communicate with her another way to let her know what is going on. I don't want her to think I got mad at her and just left her without saying anything.

Once the evaluation is over then the DSS folks will go and visit her and ask her about the adoption. They have told me they will explain everything to her and give her a chance to decide. I still disagree with this because again as I have stated she has not spent any time with me and needs that time to decide but they don't think that matters.

They have told me that if she decides not to be adopted that they will offer the woman that has her to adopt her and if she says no they will remove her from the home immediately. The Director was furious with my case worker that she had not been removed already. She told her she should have never been placed in the home to begin with. That's exactly what I told them 2 years ago.

The Director told me it will take a month but the case worker told me at least 6 months. I can't live here 6 months waiting and then another 3 to 4 to foster. It's just not realistic so I will be coming home soon without her for now. My lawyer told me to come back in December like I normally do and by then I should get better news.

I said I was not leaving her without her thinking I would get a "NO" but instead I got neither a "NO" or a "YES" so now it is hard to know exactly what to do at this point. Wait for the month and hope it is a month or come home without her and wait for the 6 months. Hopefully God will show me what direction to go soon.

Please pray for wisdom.

Tonight the person who got me the connection to the minister is coming to talk to me. She was suppose to meet with the minister today so I am hoping he has some behind the scenes news for me that will help me know what to do.

I am grateful the case has been re-opened. This is a huge start but the rest I was told stinks.. :)

My faith is in the Lord and the Lord only. His timing is perfect and I know thatI will bring Karen home, when is the million dollar question.

Please continue to pray as this is not even close to being over yet.

Thanks for your support.

Angie

Never Ending Journey Part 7

I was able to go on Saturday to see Karen. I also lived in the community of Ceibita. This was an experience all by itself. I arrived in the community around 4 and found myself in the middle of a horrible storm. The thunder and lightening and rain was unlike I had ever seen.

After the rain we decided to drop in on Karen. The woman Ana who she lives with can be difficult so I thought it would be easier to ask for forgiveness than permission. We were only like 5 minutes from her house so I figured we could use that as an excuse.

We arrived and I could not believe my eyes. My little girl was no longer a little girl. She had grown a ton, gain a lot of weight and developed in every area. I am still amazed at how she changed in just months.

Within 5 minutes of me arriving Karen and I started talking about how things had been going and I asked about her "mom" Ubana. That's the lady that found her when she was little and the same lady that told her not to leave her or she would die.

Well guess what? She did die. Yep.. she died 10 days ago. They think it was from her sugar diabetes.

I have to say it was a really hard emotion for me. Part of me was sad for her death and the other part was jumping for joy. That was a huge obstacle in Karen's life. A negative one at that and was the only reason in March Karen did not agree to the adoption.

Now what you ask?  Well I don't know exactly.

We talked with Karen for a long time and was allowed to go back on Sunday morning for many hours. Karen is struggling with what to do. She is loves us but she is afraid of the unknown and with Ubana's death it is just too much right now to handle in her little head.

We agreed that it would be best to have some time to get to know each other and she agreed she would love to do that.

I am meeting with a lawyer to discuss how to proceed today at 4 your time. Please pray for wisdom.

Karen loves us and is excited to be around us but is scared of the unknown. She is just a kid and like any other child is unsure of the unknown. She had so much traumatic loses in her life, please pray for her heart. She seemed fine but that is just her way of dealing with things. She needs professional help but it may be impossible to get it.

I am not sure if this opens a huge door for me or makes it harder. Time will tell.

Please pray today that I have wisdom on the next steps to pursue. I was suppose to have a meeting with the Minister last week and that has yet to happen. Pray that it will soon.

I had an amazing experience in Ciebita. I lived like they do, got up at 4 every morning, took a bath like they do and hung out with the bugs like they do. I'm glad I did it but not sure I'll do it again.

I have not had a chance to post my pictures on the website but I did on Facebook. You should be able to see them without a Facebook account.

Click here to see photos of Karen and I playing.

Click here to see photos of me in Ceibita.

Thanks so much for praying. Please don't stop. Especially now. I need to get Karen help and I am hoping the DSS folks will allow me to get her a counselor as soon as possible.

I am also a little sick. I didn't sleep for two days and eating food that is not the best to have has made my body scream.. I should be fine once I get back to a normal routine.

I'll update more when I have more to tell.

Angie

Never Ending Journey Part 6

It's my 5th day in Nicaragua already. Really hard to believe that 5 days has past. Typically when I am on the mission field time goes really slow but this week has gone by so fast I am not even sure I was in it. Let me share with you how it began.

Prior to Tuesday I had called the airlines to discuss their new baggage rules 3 times. Things change all the time so always call first.. (Not sure that will help but call). I got to fly first class for this trip because I used my miles and that was the only seat I could get. Flying First Class got me 3 luggage bags at 70 lb each. I was so happy when I got that news because 2 bags is just not enough usually and especially not at 50 lbs instead of 70lbs.

So on that morning at 4:00 am I off to the airport with my bags. Terry drops me off at the curb and I push them into First Class line. I felt so special... Never got that opportunity before.. :) I hand my passport to the guy behind the counter and he welcomes me with a frown and simply says how many bags... I smiled and said 3 and he frown worse and said, "Sorry you are only allowed 2 bags". I immediately got defensive and said but wait I called 3 times and they said 3 bags, I'm flying first class you know...

He proceeds to put a sign in front of my face that says "EMBARGO" on it which means only 2 bags are allowed to Managua until August 15th. I began to pour the tears... I told him why then did the people I spoke to not tell me this. I even asked and they said Managua was not included. I then realized Terry had left already and didn't have his cell phone with him, how was I going to send a bag back home and which one.. My heart was racing.. I cried more and just thought I was going to have to take someone's head off because I was not leaving a bag behind..

The line was starting to build up and I was asking the man what can I do, I can't leave one behind. I started praying God these are you bags.. you want them there then you get them there. Immediately the man who has be frowning the entire time is now smiling and instructs me to put the bag on the scale. I refused and said, but I can't, he then repeated it loudly and I put it on the scale.. The next thing I knew he was joking with me that off I went. Still crying of course but this time because of the favor God gave me.

So that was my first scare.. and a good one but God send me an angel in the way of an American Airlines employee.

Once I got on the plane I was still crying but this time of joy... It was just a reminder of what may come by way and I needed to get my emotions in tack..

Arriving in Managua I was met by a friend who laughs all the time. Funny how God sends you medicine in the form of laughter.. he took me to my new home and within hours I was crying again.

My tears were of just being completely overwhelmed..You see I can live here only if I work while I am here. I don't work I won't be able to afford this trip or the adoption. My part time job requires me to have internet and my new home won't allow it to work there for some reason. Needless to say by Tuesday night I was a mess. What was I going to do? I had to have internet and every option we tried was not working.

Finally the internet started working but was very intermittent. I had high hopes but found myself with a new problem.

When it rains in Nicaragua there are these little bugs that come out. They don't bite you just annoy you but there are hundreds of them around. My bed was covered with them that night so sleeping was not an option for me. All I could think of was them crawling in my noise...

Morning came and still no sleep BUT... I had internet now. I worked great all day and since I work at night I just knew my problem was solved. WRONG.. as soon as 4:30 came I lost internet and it didn't come back. So the thoughts of moving to another home was now a reality. Praise God he has given me good friends here and I have blessed many so they are willing to bless me and by 6 when I was to start work I had moved to my friend Antonio's house and was working.

This was a huge issue for me because I had never met his family yet they are willing to let me live with them for months. Why? Why would any Nicaraguan take on my burden? Because they are children of God and they want to bless me as I have blessed them. The seed I have sown in their son's life is now being sowed into Karen's.

I have been here since Wednesday and I am completely submerged in Spanish. Antonio is gone all day and night so I am having to survive on what I know and I am excited to say that I am holding my own which has confirmed to me that I will be ok with Karen when I get her. I'm learning how to live Nicaraguan style, eat Nicaraguan and bath out of a bucket but I am having the best experience ever because I am loved here..

This morning I am leaving soon to go to Somotillo (3 1/2 hours away) to hopefully see my girl. Please pray with me that the lady will allow me to visit with her at least one day.

I was told I could have my meeting with the Minster of Mi Familia (DSS) by Friday but Friday has come and gone. The office is closed Monday and Tuesday so it will be Wednesday before I can even go and request one myself.

Please pray for safety as I travel to Somotillo today and will live in my community for 2 days. Pray we don't get sick and my new translator and I will work well together. When I am here I don't travel with a male translator so I had to hire a new girl that I have never used and do not know. New Beginnings... New Opportunities...

Thank you for all the prayers and support you have shown. Please continue to pray for this to be resolved quickly.

Pray the ears of the Minister will only hear what God wants her to hear and she will respond to it.

Pray for my kids and my wonderful husband as he plays the "mommy" role. I miss them a bunch.

Pray for Karen's heart. She needs to see how much we love her.

I am doing so much better emotionally today. God has given me many encouraging things and I know I am doing the right thing.

God Bless and thanks for the prayers.

Rejoice in the Lord with me and Praise Him for all He has done.

Angie

Getting Ready to Go...

Time is flying by...I am one week away from leaving. How does one pack for an undetermined amount of time? You know us women.. I'll probably pack everything but the kitchen sink..

I was so blessed this weekend when speaking at Zion's Hills Baptist Church in Bluefield. They were a wonderful group of people I can now call family. They took up a collection of games for the orphanage and now I have enough to bless them abundantly and be able to bless a school or two. Thanks so much guys/gals..

That evening I was also able to speak at a church in Terry's home town and was blessed also by the church and their members. God just showed up and showed off this weekend in my life....

I am still in need of Rated G or Rated PG DVD's.  I need them to be in Spanish so take a look on the back of them and it will tell you if they come in English and Spanish. No Spanish Subtitles please because the kids can't read that fast.

I need them by Friday or Saturday at the latest if possible. Please let me know if you have any I could bless them with.

They have mostly girls at the orphanage but there are several teen boys. So if you have something that would interest boys I would love to have them also.

Please continue to pray as I prepare to leave my family. It is a bittersweet moment for us. I trust God to work out all the details and know that I am doing the Will of the Father..

Continue to pray for our support. So far there has been none. I know this is a busy time for people and money is tight but God has a plan and His plan is the best of them all. I trust in it completely.

Blessings to all of you..

Angie

Just a reminder:

Any donations for the adoption need to go to (put my name on the subject line:

Harvest Church 7429 Tuckaseegee Rd. Charlotte, NC  28214

Any ministry support can come to me:

The Power of One Ministry 198 Mellwood Drive Charlotte, NC 28214

Never Ending Journey Part 5

This week has been a ruff week for me emotionally. I am not sure why it is any harder than other weeks but it has been more than I want to endure going forward. I was able to contact Homeland Security this week to ask about a time frame of when I could expect to hear something about my appointment for my fingerprints and I SHOULD HAVE NEVER CALLED...

When I have called in the past I have spoken to people who act like they are robots. They read scripts to me like they have no emotions but this time I got a really nice lady who actually cared about what I was saying.

She was not able to tell me why there was a delay in getting anything from them but was able to tell me that when I do it won't be pretty.

Apparently they are very behind in appointments in the Charlotte office and as of this past Monday there were no open appointments until July 15th... So even if they wanted to expedite my appointment time for me they can't unless they get a cancellation. She said she heard something had happen to the Charlotte office (power was out for two days this month..) and they had to reschedule several hundred people.

With that news needless to say I was not happy. Extremely frustrated is an understatement.

I have prayed and prayed trying to understand why there are more delays in this process only to come back to the point that God is in control and His timing is perfect. At this point there is not much else I can do, right?

So as of today it looks like I will not be leaving until the end of July now. This poses many many problems for us in September and October but I'll let God deal with that if those problems arise.

Please pray that I will find peace in this delay and find the purpose for it. I don't like it at all but I do trust God and I know He is in control of this. I can't say I have felt this way all week but through lots of prayers I am coming to that  peace God wants me to be at.

How can you pray now?

Pray that I will get as much work as I can before I leave. Through out new photography studio, my teaching  job, the computer work I am doing and any other avenue God sends my way. It will cost a lot to do this and we need all the money we can get.

Pray I won't allow these distractions to toss me to and fro.. I have been very strong until now and I can be honest and say I am wore out. I am walking by faith with one foot sinking if you know what I mean. Right now the only thing holding me up is the prayers of others. Keep praying.

Pray for Karen. She has not been allowed to talk to me since April. I have no idea what she is thinking. Her birthday is Tuesday and I am sending someone to her school with a cake and drinks and of course a letter from me explaining why she has not heard from me. She is being manipulated by the people she lives with and only God knows what they are telling her. She could decide that she does not want to be adopted by us and all this will be over with as soon as I get there. Pray for her protection She will be 12 on Tuesday and there are several young adult men living in her house.I only want God's will for her life, pray He shows puts that desire in her heart, even if that is not to be with us.

Pray Homeland Security gives me the appointment in God's timing and no weapon formed against it shall prosper. Nothing else will stop or delay this process. All will happen in God's timing. His perfect Will be done..

Thanks to everyone who has shown your support to me. I need it. I am tired, emotionally, physically and spiritually but I now that my strength is renewed daily and I hold onto the fact that there is nothing I can do except walk in His peace.  Much easier said than done.

No matter what... there is a rainbow after this storm. God's light will shine in our lives no matter what will happen.

I'll let you know what happens next when I know.

Angie