We had a tough day yesterday. It was kind of a low point for us. We had been praying for our court date for 17 weeks and it was finally here! 2:00pm Friday.

On Thursday night I started to get sick. Really sick. I was a mess but I was determined to not miss this long-awaited appointment. I dragged myself out of bed, prayed for strength, took my bucket along, and went to the court house. We sat in the waiting room for almost 2 hours. And then, we found out that all court cases scheduled for Friday were being re-scheduled for next Wednesday.

I was sick. I was tired of waiting. I was frustrated. I cried.

We came home and I went right back to bed. While I slept, my husband emailed and called several people in our agency to get some answers. And, for the first time in 17 weeks, we feel like we have some concrete facts.

The re-scheduling of court cases was outside of our agency’s control. Our new court date is next Wednesday at 2:00pm. Our agency told us that this court date is really just an opportunity for us to go before the judge and give our legal consent to adopt all four children. This will complete our end of the paperwork. However, we will not officially pass court next Wednesday. Our agency estimates that we will pass court in about 3 weeks.

This, of course, is because of that stinking document. But now, we have a plan as to how the courts are going to obtain this document. It looks like our agency is taking things into their own hands. They are flying people to Addis on Tuesday, convening a panel, and getting the needed information. They will then submit this information to the court in Harar. As soon as the court in Harar reviews the information, they will generate this document. And then, the document has to be reviewed by MOWCYA for 10 days. At that point, we will officially pass court and become a family!!! Of course, there are a lot of steps in this process and a lot of places where things can go wrong. And I have learned that in Ethiopia, not everything happens when they say it is going to happen. However, I feel encouraged to at least have a plan of action.

Someone shared this with me and it really blessed my heart.

Because when I get frustrated, when I want to blame our agency or the courts or the process, I need to remember how true this is. God has a plan for each and every one of us. I trust that His plan is better than mine. My pastor recently shared this quote…

If you could see what God sees and feel what God feels, you would orchestrate your world exactly as God has, adversities included.

God is in control! And no matter how much I want to be in charge, no matter how often I am trapped by the idea that my plan is best, if I could only see what He sees, I would ALWAYS choose His plan.

Blessings!

Natalie

PRAYER REQUESTS AND PRAISES

*So thankful that I am feeling better!

*So thankful for the peace that only God can give

*Pray for every step in the process over the next 3+ weeks

*Pray for our kids as they continue to wait in the orphanage