Update! Our God is Awesome! ...in case you didn't know. :-)

So I began a blog post outlining all the difficulties we've faced in the last few weeks, but then got exhausted...just thinking about it... SO here's the reader's digest version. If you want more details, ask. I'll be happy to fill you in. :)

So in the past few weeks:

-Due to some unforseen circumstances and well...life...our Home Study Update wasn't completed in time; we had to request that Customs and Immigration give us an extension...they typically don't do this, but much to my surprise, they did!
-Home Study Update still wasn't done in time. The precious lady who runs the Agency that did our Home Study (they are awesome!!! Let me know if you need an adoption agency or simply to do your home study) finally got in touch with DSS on Monday (of this week) to find that they LOST it (if you aren't familiar with a Home Study, it's your entire life basically summed up in about 80 pages and stuffed in an envelope...maybe not your entire life, but the critical bits). God bless her! She scanned and emailed another copy just so DSS could get something to Customs and Immigration, albeit late and not yet properly submitted.
-Birth Parent Interview on Monday went great for birthmother...birthfather flopped. Typically this would bring the adoption to a screeching hault, but praise God our birthmother begged them to talk to the Orphanage Director, who just so happened to have the foresight to bring her orphanage license (otherwise they wouldn't have talked to her at all). God bless her! Again, she's having to go from the island of La Gonave back to Port-au-Prince a day later (mind you, this is not an easy journey to make...certainly not back and forth twice in one week). Praying that after this visit, all will be well.
-DSS found our Home Study Update in their mailroom Tuesday (after much persistence from the adoption agency, I'm sure) and forwarded it on to Customs and Immigration. We are mailing them a letter of explanation (and apology) to more or less beg them to accept it.

-Still nothing from IBESR, though we know several friends who exited. Don't get me wrong, we couldn't be happier for our friends that have exited! The concerning part is that dispensation is supposed to be the final step in IBESR and we received that months before these other families and yet they have now exited IBESR. I fully understand and recognize that no two cases are the same, but in light of this, the worries I had been suppressing that something must be wrong for our file to be stuck simply came bubbling to the surface. Praising God that I found out today that our lawyer has a meeting with IBESR on Friday to discuss our file. Praying for a good report and progress!

Honestly, in the past few weeks I saw myself slipping into a bad place. Overwhelmed by despair about the whole process and life in general, I was becoming negative and having doubts about whether or not we should really be doing this. You know, maybe I made the voice of God thing up...right...that's likely. I'm SO happy to report that God has renewed my strength! You may recall that one of the verses that spoke to me on my last trip to Haiti was Isaiah 40:31:

...but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.

It took me a few weeks, but I finally got it! Last night as I was trying to process everything that's going on, God gave me the realization that I should not be focused on all He is allowing us to go through...but that this is really all about our girl! I feel like God must have something incredible in store for this child, as we have had complications every step of the way, yet rather than focus on how slowly our adoption process is crawling along, I should focus on the fact that it hasn't stopped! There have been many opportunities for our adoption to stop altogether, yet it never has. Yes, the enemy is adamantly fighting us every step of the way, but:

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. ~Psalm 23:4

I found my spirit quietly repeating this verse yesterday. We were given a devotion at Bible Study last night...guess what verse was included on it? Oh and this morning, when I started my quiet time with God, want to take a guess what verse was next for me to study? Yup! Psalm 23:4! So there is more stuff going on with our adoption than most of us can ever even comprehend. Lots to pray for (and please do!), but praise God, He has shifted my focus! As vehemently as the enemy wants to fight us, I want to praise God! (Check out one of our recent favorite praise songs and praise Him with us!) Because He is awesome and He is worthy and He is all we will ever need, we will praise Him. And as for our adoption:

I would have lost heart, unless I had believed That I would see the goodness of the Lord In the land of the living. Wait on the Lord; Be of good courage, And He shall strengthen your heart; Wait, I say, on the Lord! ~ Psalm 27:13-14