Prayers this Week

I read many blogs on the ol’ internet. One of them, www.aplacecalledsimplicity.blogspot.com, is mostly written by a woman named Linny. Linny is a big adoption advocate and is having a special day of prayers for adoptions that are currently underway. She’s calling it The Crazy Love Prayer Challenge and September 8 is THE day for the prayer challenge. Linny’s challenge is asking her readers to pray and fast for those adoption prayer requests listed on her blog. I’ll be joining her and I hope you will too.
As many of you know, we have had such a lengthy adoption journey for HG. So lengthy. Right now, we are waiting for 1 piece of paper. Yep, just one, to wrap up her adoption case and then finalize the paperwork to bring her home. This piece of paper is to be issued by USC*S Guatemala. We have been going round and round with them since September 2009. If you remember, we had a 30 day deadline which ended in the latter part of August 2010 to get them what they needed/wanted. We met that deadline with both a rebuttal letter and the requested paperwork. That was submitted 3 weeks ago. And we still wait. So, specifically on this day, we ask you to pray for the following:
1. Pray that those involved with this process at the US Embassy in Guatemala will have the wisdom and guidance to issue this paper.
2. Pray that the decision/paper will be in our favor. I haven’t spelled out here what it could mean for our family if it is not favorable, but it’s pretty scary, guys. We’ve not given any of the other outcomes much thought because we are remaining faithful that God’s will is for HG to join our family through this avenue. But, it will mean BIG changes for our entire family if it is not favorable.
3. Pray for the right people to be in the right place should questions need to be asked regarding HG’s case.
4. Pray for a speedy issuance of this paper. I know that everything happens in God’s perfect timing and my mind cannot always comprehend His timing.
5. Pray for angels to continue to surround HG’s mind and body. In order for one specific person to agree to obtain/issue the paperwork we needed for the Embassy, I had to agree to allow HG to return to the orphanage where she has not lived since I took custody of her in July 2009. It broke my heart to do it and it breaks my heart to have her continue to live at the orphanage when her loving foster family is willing and able to take her back in just a moment’s notice. I do not fear abuse at the hands of the caregivers of the orphanage or even from the other children there. I fear HG closing her mind to accepting and trusting humans in her life. We have, after all, “abandoned” her at this orphanage, taking her away from her sweet foster momma (or myself). This is probably one of the scariest things to me.
Thank you, sweet friends, for your prayers today (and always). Even if you aren’t up to fasting, will you commit to praying for us as often as you think of us?
Hugs and love to you all!

My silly girl, HG, "washing" her hair (or maybe she's rinsing it?) herself in August 2010 during my visit

Our daughter, HG, on the train at the zoo during my August 2010 visit

If you are new to our blog, you can go back and read about our journey to bring HG home. To give you a super short summary, we began the adoption process for her in November 2007, just 2 months short of her 3rd birthday. It was not about having another daughter. It was about following what God has asked us to do in making HG part of our family. See, HG had been living in the orphanage for almost 3 years and no one had committed to adopting her. She has extreme vision issues and is quite delayed. She is currently 5 ½ years old and is developmentally about 2 years old. She began walking at 3 ½ years of age and speaks much a like an 18 month old, one word or maybe 2 word phrases. My daughters and I made a temporary move to Guatemala last summer where we petitioned the court for custody of HG, having her live with us in a furnished apartment for the summer. When my employer said I must return to work, I petitioned the court to allow her to live with some friends of mine in Guatemala. She has lived with them since September 2009, going to ½ day preschool and learning to be part of a family. We’ve had obstacle after another during her adoption process and are so close to seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. Thank you for your prayers!