Friday, January 6, 2012
Thursday, January 5, 2012
For Your Sake....So that You May Believe
Now a certain man named Lazarus was sick. He was from Bethany, the village where Mary and her sister Martha lived…the sisters sent a message to Jesus, “Lord, look, the one you love is sick.” (John 11:1,3)
Lazarus, Mary and Martha were close friends of Jesus who lived a couple of miles from Jerusalem. At the time of this event, Jesus was on the other side of the Jordan River, a full day’s journey from Bethany.
Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. Yet when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed where he was two more days. (John 11:5-6)
Now that doesn’t make any sense. In this day of quick-response rescue teams, everyone knows that when someone is seriously ill, delays can be fatal. But Jesus stayed where he was for another two days! What was going on in his mind?
Then he said to his disciples, “Let us go back to Judea.”
“But, Rabbi,” they said, “a short while ago the Jews tried to stone you, and yet you are going back there?”
So then he told them plainly, “Lazarus is dead, and for your sake I am glad I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.” On his arrival, Jesus found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days… (John 11: 7-8, 14-15, 17)
[The Stranger on the Road to Emmaus, pgs. 197-198]
As we look forward to this new adoption, I’ve found that Justice and I are having many detailed conversations about his own adoption. He has always been open with us on the details of his life in Ghana whenever we ask questions, but lately he has been bringing up the things he remembers during his adoption process on his own. We got into a heart-to-heart conversation the night of New Years Eve. He was ready to talk….and talk he did…..I enjoyed listening and asking him questions to keep our conversation going for about 45 minutes straight with no interruptions from my other little red-heads who were asleep in the back seat.
There are so many details of God-stories woven into his little life from his time in Ghana. One such memory that he shared with me involved a very dark time in his life. And yet, during that time God provided a tiny tv set that was on the church channel each day that he was around it. He told me that each time it was on he would listen to the sermons and pray and pray that God would help him. I asked him if he knew God at that point. He said no, but that he believed God could help him. And help He did. It was during this time, June 2010, that Jake and I traveled to Ghana as advised by our agency at the time to ‘pick up’ Justice’s visa and bring him home. When the Embassy wouldn’t give us his visa and we realized that we were heading back to the U.S. without our son it was pretty hard to believe. In fact, it felt like a bad joke that someone was playing on us. Why God did you bring us all the way to Ghana fully knowing that his visa wasn’t ready? What was the point of all this? This doesn’t make any sense. I had never felt as much pain and broken-heartedness and anger and confusion as I had on that trip. I just could not understand what God was doing.
In fact, from our measly perspective the whole situation looked bad. Bad. Bad. Bad. Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. I felt awful that we had given such hope to Justice that he was going home, only to have to break the news to him that he actually couldn’t board the plane with us. I felt like a fool that had been tricked by the system. Yep, from every angle things looked bad and wrong.
But what we didn’t know was that our coming was actually God answering Justice’s prayers that he had prayed each day listening to tv church. Because, through all of the events that followed, he was taken out of the dark situation, and put in a loving home in Ghana to await his visa which came months later. Had God not brought us to Ghana in June 2010, Justice would have continued to suffer for months without us ever knowing it. If you don’t know by now, evil people cover up. They hide and deceive. And sometimes they do a really good job of it. But God knows and God delivers from evil. At face value that trip made no sense to us. But through that seemingly bad situation, God was showcasing His power, and making faith personal to a little 6 year old boy. For your sake….so that you may believe….
There are situations and circumstances happening right now in our current adoption in which I am rehearsing these past times when God has so powerfully displayed His Sovereignty, even when we didn’t understand right away. Do you know what it feels like when your heart begins to fret? It’s like you hear something or get some sort of information and your entire body goes tense and pure anxiety takes over your insides. My shoulders get all tight and I start getting snappy and having a short fuse with anyone who crosses my path. I used to enjoy escaping anxiety-producing realities through a glass of wine or venting to a friend, but indulging in those options are the default of a heart that is not trusting God. Not relying on God.
Time and again my fretting heart needs to dwell on the truths that I am in a relationship with a God who has changed the minds of kings. His plans cannot be thwarted. He doesn’t say something and never do it. His words stand forever – FOREVER! He can bring rulers to naught and nations to rubble. He hardens hearts and softens hearts. He breathes spirit into a dead body and takes breath away from the living. He raises the dead to bring them new life again. He perceives our thoughts. He knows our hearts better than we know them ourselves. He appoints the times and places that we would live. And although many are the plans in a man’s heart, He alone directs a man’s course. Even this man. Me. These are just a few reasons why my fretting heart can be stilled in His power, whether it requires blind faith like June 2010 did, or trust steps out of the boat onto the stormy sea waters that are being required now.
We serve a God who is not far off. He is not distant. When my heart frets I need just run to Him. Into my closet I run – you may giggle at the thought but there I can meet with Him undistracted. I shut and lock the door where my Bible awaits. I open it and breathe in His promises. Spill my heart, my fears, my questions, my honesty in prayer. And there He meets me. In my junky closet with clothes waiting to be hung, stinky shoes on the shelf, dirty laundry in the basket. There I meet with the King of the Universe. He listens to my needs big and little, to my desires and dreams, to my worries and circling thoughts. I drop it all at His feet and he teaches my heart to say Lord, not what I want, but what You want. Not my will, but your will be done. It is only when I am at His feet that I can look up and see His Sovereignty come into focus over my life. And this is where I want to be afterall, under His ways and His promises and His power. Because His plans are much more grandeur than I could ever think up.
When Mary reached the place where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and said, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”
When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled. “Where have you laid him?” he asked.
“Come and see, Lord,” they replied.
Jesus, once more deeply moved came to the tomb. It was a cave with a stone laid across the entrance. “Take away the stone,” he said.
“But, Lord,” said Martha, the sister of the dead man, “by this time there is a bad odor, for he has been there four days.”
Then Jesus said, “Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?”
So they took away the stone….Jesus called in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!” The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face.
Jesus said to them, “Take off the grave clothes and let him go.”
(John 11: 32-34, 38-41, 43-44)
Lazarus, Mary and Martha were close friends of Jesus who lived a couple of miles from Jerusalem. At the time of this event, Jesus was on the other side of the Jordan River, a full day’s journey from Bethany.
Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. Yet when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed where he was two more days. (John 11:5-6)
Now that doesn’t make any sense. In this day of quick-response rescue teams, everyone knows that when someone is seriously ill, delays can be fatal. But Jesus stayed where he was for another two days! What was going on in his mind?
Then he said to his disciples, “Let us go back to Judea.”
“But, Rabbi,” they said, “a short while ago the Jews tried to stone you, and yet you are going back there?”
So then he told them plainly, “Lazarus is dead, and for your sake I am glad I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.” On his arrival, Jesus found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days… (John 11: 7-8, 14-15, 17)
[The Stranger on the Road to Emmaus, pgs. 197-198]
As we look forward to this new adoption, I’ve found that Justice and I are having many detailed conversations about his own adoption. He has always been open with us on the details of his life in Ghana whenever we ask questions, but lately he has been bringing up the things he remembers during his adoption process on his own. We got into a heart-to-heart conversation the night of New Years Eve. He was ready to talk….and talk he did…..I enjoyed listening and asking him questions to keep our conversation going for about 45 minutes straight with no interruptions from my other little red-heads who were asleep in the back seat.
There are so many details of God-stories woven into his little life from his time in Ghana. One such memory that he shared with me involved a very dark time in his life. And yet, during that time God provided a tiny tv set that was on the church channel each day that he was around it. He told me that each time it was on he would listen to the sermons and pray and pray that God would help him. I asked him if he knew God at that point. He said no, but that he believed God could help him. And help He did. It was during this time, June 2010, that Jake and I traveled to Ghana as advised by our agency at the time to ‘pick up’ Justice’s visa and bring him home. When the Embassy wouldn’t give us his visa and we realized that we were heading back to the U.S. without our son it was pretty hard to believe. In fact, it felt like a bad joke that someone was playing on us. Why God did you bring us all the way to Ghana fully knowing that his visa wasn’t ready? What was the point of all this? This doesn’t make any sense. I had never felt as much pain and broken-heartedness and anger and confusion as I had on that trip. I just could not understand what God was doing.
In fact, from our measly perspective the whole situation looked bad. Bad. Bad. Bad. Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. I felt awful that we had given such hope to Justice that he was going home, only to have to break the news to him that he actually couldn’t board the plane with us. I felt like a fool that had been tricked by the system. Yep, from every angle things looked bad and wrong.
But what we didn’t know was that our coming was actually God answering Justice’s prayers that he had prayed each day listening to tv church. Because, through all of the events that followed, he was taken out of the dark situation, and put in a loving home in Ghana to await his visa which came months later. Had God not brought us to Ghana in June 2010, Justice would have continued to suffer for months without us ever knowing it. If you don’t know by now, evil people cover up. They hide and deceive. And sometimes they do a really good job of it. But God knows and God delivers from evil. At face value that trip made no sense to us. But through that seemingly bad situation, God was showcasing His power, and making faith personal to a little 6 year old boy. For your sake….so that you may believe….
There are situations and circumstances happening right now in our current adoption in which I am rehearsing these past times when God has so powerfully displayed His Sovereignty, even when we didn’t understand right away. Do you know what it feels like when your heart begins to fret? It’s like you hear something or get some sort of information and your entire body goes tense and pure anxiety takes over your insides. My shoulders get all tight and I start getting snappy and having a short fuse with anyone who crosses my path. I used to enjoy escaping anxiety-producing realities through a glass of wine or venting to a friend, but indulging in those options are the default of a heart that is not trusting God. Not relying on God.
Time and again my fretting heart needs to dwell on the truths that I am in a relationship with a God who has changed the minds of kings. His plans cannot be thwarted. He doesn’t say something and never do it. His words stand forever – FOREVER! He can bring rulers to naught and nations to rubble. He hardens hearts and softens hearts. He breathes spirit into a dead body and takes breath away from the living. He raises the dead to bring them new life again. He perceives our thoughts. He knows our hearts better than we know them ourselves. He appoints the times and places that we would live. And although many are the plans in a man’s heart, He alone directs a man’s course. Even this man. Me. These are just a few reasons why my fretting heart can be stilled in His power, whether it requires blind faith like June 2010 did, or trust steps out of the boat onto the stormy sea waters that are being required now.
We serve a God who is not far off. He is not distant. When my heart frets I need just run to Him. Into my closet I run – you may giggle at the thought but there I can meet with Him undistracted. I shut and lock the door where my Bible awaits. I open it and breathe in His promises. Spill my heart, my fears, my questions, my honesty in prayer. And there He meets me. In my junky closet with clothes waiting to be hung, stinky shoes on the shelf, dirty laundry in the basket. There I meet with the King of the Universe. He listens to my needs big and little, to my desires and dreams, to my worries and circling thoughts. I drop it all at His feet and he teaches my heart to say Lord, not what I want, but what You want. Not my will, but your will be done. It is only when I am at His feet that I can look up and see His Sovereignty come into focus over my life. And this is where I want to be afterall, under His ways and His promises and His power. Because His plans are much more grandeur than I could ever think up.
When Mary reached the place where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and said, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”
When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled. “Where have you laid him?” he asked.
“Come and see, Lord,” they replied.
Jesus, once more deeply moved came to the tomb. It was a cave with a stone laid across the entrance. “Take away the stone,” he said.
“But, Lord,” said Martha, the sister of the dead man, “by this time there is a bad odor, for he has been there four days.”
Then Jesus said, “Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?”
So they took away the stone….Jesus called in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!” The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face.
Jesus said to them, “Take off the grave clothes and let him go.”
(John 11: 32-34, 38-41, 43-44)
Monday, January 2, 2012
Where We Are At in the Process
These are the next steps for our adoption process….
1) Social investigation report on girls [Will be completed anytime now]
-Collection of girl’s history (as much as can be gathered through interviews)
-Assessment of living conditions
-Collection of formal relinquishment letter
-Blood work, medical exams
2) Adoption coordinator compiles a dossier of documents for girls [Can take 1-3 months]
-Additional affidavits from biological family
-Parent death certificates
-Girl’s birth certificates
-Additional investigative report completed by Ghana social welfare
3) In the meantime, we - Jake and I - have also compiled our own dossier on us (home study, medical statements, marriage/birth certificates, photos, etc). Once the girl’s dossier is complete it will be sent with our dossier to the attorney in which he can go forward with final processes before our case can be submitted for a court date. [This final processing takes about 3-6 weeks]
4) From what I can gather, once dossiers are submitted it is taking on average about 3+ months right now to get a scheduled court date.
5) After the court date it can take anywhere from 1 day to 2 months to be granted the adoption decree. We need the adoption decree to file our I-600 form, which is the last approval needed.
6) Once we have the adoption decree we can choose to file our I-600 form either in Ghana or in the U.S. Approval typically takes around 2 months.
(With Justice’s adoption, all of the above steps were completed in 6 months, however, that was about 2 years ago now. The process has slowed since then.)
7) Once we are granted I-600 approval that means that our girls are officially approved as orphans by U.S. Immigration law. From here the process of acquiring our girl’s visas begins. If you remember (how could you forget?!?!) this was where all the junk happened in our adoption of Justice. We traveled to get him in June of 2010 thinking we were simply going to pick up his visa (which we thought had already been printed) and then bring him home. However, there were miscommunications and delays, and we ended up waiting 3 more months until his visa was printed. Current wait time for visa processing is 1-2 months.
8) After the girl’s visas are printed then we travel to bring them home.
So, we have a ways to go. This is where you just have to take a deep breath and trust everything – the timing, the paperwork, the court systems, even the mailman for goodnessakes – to the Lord. At any point in this process things could get messed up, rules can be changed, extra paperwork required, or unnecessary delays/hiccups can be thrown in. With international adoption you learn to roll with the punches.
I will be honest here. Until I received the picture of my girls with my smiling husband at 4am earlier this week I had been guarding my heart against entering into this adoption. I don’t trust this process. To be frank, I am just waiting until something goes wrong. But I took one look at that picture and I heard my Savior say trust Me. And I weeped. I felt ashamed that I was guarding my heart against attaching to them because I don’t want to get hurt. Ugh. I’m so selfish. I’ve realized that I am trying to grasp for control over my emotions because there is nothing else in this process that I can control. For days I’ve been whispering to myself hold on loosely until you can hold on tightly. Well, that motto has pretty much gone completely out the window since Jake sends me at least 10 pictures and multiple videos a day of our girls that he has spent almost 3 full days with now. In fact, I was actually beginning to tell myself that it was good that I wasn’t on this trip because it would be an awful feeling to create an even deeper bond with them and then have to leave. And then, this thought was stopped cold in its tracks. I was brought back to the week that adoption was first put onto my heart over 3 years ago. I had gone for a walk with a friend and confided all my worries and objections and reasons why we couldn’t possibly adopt to her. And she said to me gently yet boldly, “Adoption isn’t about you.”
This is what I needed to hear again. Today. 3 years after our first adoption started, and I am back at square 1, needing to remember the basics.
Other parts of this feel different. I am realizing that this process no longer requires my blind faith. I HAVE SEEN MY LORD move mountains on behalf of Justice. I HAVE EXPERIENCED HIM come through in the most desperate, hopeless looking situations. His faithfulness met us time and again in our last adoption. We no longer just hope in His character. And if we did that would be enough. But this time we have evidence of it in our lives. I am more sure of His ways than ever. His voice is clearer. His Sovereignty is stamped on my heart.
I watch a video of our girls with the dust of Africa in the distance as they play with sunglasses and Jake’s voice goes over it all “Say hi to mommy!!!” he says over and over. I smile and feel my heart break. I long to just hold them and cry. Cry over their past and cry happy tears over how our God has picked them out to give them hope and a future. Just like he did for me almost 8 years ago now when he intersected my mess of a life. Just as He promises to any who would come and bow down to His Son.
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” ~Jeremiah 29:11~
1) Social investigation report on girls [Will be completed anytime now]
-Collection of girl’s history (as much as can be gathered through interviews)
-Assessment of living conditions
-Collection of formal relinquishment letter
-Blood work, medical exams
2) Adoption coordinator compiles a dossier of documents for girls [Can take 1-3 months]
-Additional affidavits from biological family
-Parent death certificates
-Girl’s birth certificates
-Additional investigative report completed by Ghana social welfare
3) In the meantime, we - Jake and I - have also compiled our own dossier on us (home study, medical statements, marriage/birth certificates, photos, etc). Once the girl’s dossier is complete it will be sent with our dossier to the attorney in which he can go forward with final processes before our case can be submitted for a court date. [This final processing takes about 3-6 weeks]
4) From what I can gather, once dossiers are submitted it is taking on average about 3+ months right now to get a scheduled court date.
5) After the court date it can take anywhere from 1 day to 2 months to be granted the adoption decree. We need the adoption decree to file our I-600 form, which is the last approval needed.
6) Once we have the adoption decree we can choose to file our I-600 form either in Ghana or in the U.S. Approval typically takes around 2 months.
(With Justice’s adoption, all of the above steps were completed in 6 months, however, that was about 2 years ago now. The process has slowed since then.)
7) Once we are granted I-600 approval that means that our girls are officially approved as orphans by U.S. Immigration law. From here the process of acquiring our girl’s visas begins. If you remember (how could you forget?!?!) this was where all the junk happened in our adoption of Justice. We traveled to get him in June of 2010 thinking we were simply going to pick up his visa (which we thought had already been printed) and then bring him home. However, there were miscommunications and delays, and we ended up waiting 3 more months until his visa was printed. Current wait time for visa processing is 1-2 months.
8) After the girl’s visas are printed then we travel to bring them home.
So, we have a ways to go. This is where you just have to take a deep breath and trust everything – the timing, the paperwork, the court systems, even the mailman for goodnessakes – to the Lord. At any point in this process things could get messed up, rules can be changed, extra paperwork required, or unnecessary delays/hiccups can be thrown in. With international adoption you learn to roll with the punches.
I will be honest here. Until I received the picture of my girls with my smiling husband at 4am earlier this week I had been guarding my heart against entering into this adoption. I don’t trust this process. To be frank, I am just waiting until something goes wrong. But I took one look at that picture and I heard my Savior say trust Me. And I weeped. I felt ashamed that I was guarding my heart against attaching to them because I don’t want to get hurt. Ugh. I’m so selfish. I’ve realized that I am trying to grasp for control over my emotions because there is nothing else in this process that I can control. For days I’ve been whispering to myself hold on loosely until you can hold on tightly. Well, that motto has pretty much gone completely out the window since Jake sends me at least 10 pictures and multiple videos a day of our girls that he has spent almost 3 full days with now. In fact, I was actually beginning to tell myself that it was good that I wasn’t on this trip because it would be an awful feeling to create an even deeper bond with them and then have to leave. And then, this thought was stopped cold in its tracks. I was brought back to the week that adoption was first put onto my heart over 3 years ago. I had gone for a walk with a friend and confided all my worries and objections and reasons why we couldn’t possibly adopt to her. And she said to me gently yet boldly, “Adoption isn’t about you.”
This is what I needed to hear again. Today. 3 years after our first adoption started, and I am back at square 1, needing to remember the basics.
Other parts of this feel different. I am realizing that this process no longer requires my blind faith. I HAVE SEEN MY LORD move mountains on behalf of Justice. I HAVE EXPERIENCED HIM come through in the most desperate, hopeless looking situations. His faithfulness met us time and again in our last adoption. We no longer just hope in His character. And if we did that would be enough. But this time we have evidence of it in our lives. I am more sure of His ways than ever. His voice is clearer. His Sovereignty is stamped on my heart.
I watch a video of our girls with the dust of Africa in the distance as they play with sunglasses and Jake’s voice goes over it all “Say hi to mommy!!!” he says over and over. I smile and feel my heart break. I long to just hold them and cry. Cry over their past and cry happy tears over how our God has picked them out to give them hope and a future. Just like he did for me almost 8 years ago now when he intersected my mess of a life. Just as He promises to any who would come and bow down to His Son.
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” ~Jeremiah 29:11~
Friday, December 30, 2011
Situations of the Orphan in Ghana
When we were led to adopt from Ghana back in 2008 the program through our agency was considered a pilot program. We sort of got to be the pioneers for our agency as we took part in the adoption, not really knowing the ins and outs…just learning as we went. During our adoption I remember trying to educate myself on Ghana especially when it came to orphans. We had so many people asking us questions, and I wanted to be able to give factual answers. However, the information we had access to was minimal because at the time Ghana was fairly new to the idea of adoption, and our agency was new to Ghana as well. We ourselves were complete adoption novices and I found myself asking a lot of the same questions that family and friends were asking us!
This time around is already much different. We are using a different agency, and one of the first things we received in the mail was a thick educational packet all about Ghana heritage, history, education, social roles, and the process of Ghana adoption. It has been extremely informative…..I almost feel geeky over how excited I am to finally have all this information laid out for me! :)
One section that I found extremely insightful was a part entitled ~ Why do children in Ghana become available for adoption? We were asked this question a million times in roundabout ways during our adoption of Justice! Thought it would be good to share this section here on the blog in case others are interested in understanding the different situations of orphans in Ghana (these explanations are via our agency ~ Adoption Advocates International):
1) Inherited orphans: Traditionally, orphaned children are absorbed into the extended family. However, we have found that many family members only take on orphaned children out of a sense of familial obligation and in fact have no desire (or means) to provide for another child. As a result orphaned children may have extended family guardians that either treat the child as a slave/servant or provide the child with less than adequate care and love. When these guardians realize that there is another option (relinquish the child for care and adoption) they are many times very quick to make an adoption plan for the child.
2) One-parent orphans: Many children in Ghana are being raised by one parent that cannot provide adequate care due to poverty. The second parent is usually dead or has permanently deserted the family. Children who only have one parent oftentimes have no opportunity for education and are forced into child labor in order to help provide for the family. *This was Justice’s situation and why he was placed for adoption.
3) Two-parent orphans: It is outside the normal definition of “orphan” to describe an orphan as having two living parents. However, we do see this in Ghana. In these cases the parents, for whatever reason, have no desire to parent the children and abandon them permanently. The parents may be elderly and the child unplanned. The parents may abuse the child and recognize that they cannot adequately care for him/her because of their own psychological issues. The parents may be homeless and have no means to provide adequate food, shelter, or education to the child. In all cases, the parents must be living below poverty level according to local standards in order for AAI to take custody of the child. *This sort of situation reminds me a lot of children being placed into the foster care system in the United States.
4) Street children: Street children are a common sight in Ghana. These are children who have lost contact with their parents and may or may not know of any extended family. Street children can be referred to AAI by someone in the community or from social welfare. The best effort is made to find any living relatives but sometimes this is impossible. If a suitable living condition within Ghana cannot be found for a street child than a long-term care plan that includes international adoption can be put together.
I’ve also had a handful of people inquire about the age of children available for adoption in Ghana. Here is an explanation via our agency….this information is on their website as well (http://www.adoptionadvocates.org/Africa/Ghana/index.php):
Ghana Social Welfare prefers to place children through domestic adoptions, but when no Ghanaian family can be located for an adoptable child, they may be placed with an international family. Babies 0-36 months may be in need of adoption from time to time, but this is not an “infant/toddler program.” The large majority of children available for adoption are age 3 and up. Both sibling sets and single children are available. When in the best interest of the child, unrelated children may be placed in the same adoptive family. HIV+ children may be adopted from Ghana. There is a great need for families who will adopt children 6 years old and older. Most all children in Ghana have at least some English skills by the time they are adopted (many with moderate English). Children adopted through our program may reside in foster homes or children's homes in any region within Ghana.
This time around is already much different. We are using a different agency, and one of the first things we received in the mail was a thick educational packet all about Ghana heritage, history, education, social roles, and the process of Ghana adoption. It has been extremely informative…..I almost feel geeky over how excited I am to finally have all this information laid out for me! :)
One section that I found extremely insightful was a part entitled ~ Why do children in Ghana become available for adoption? We were asked this question a million times in roundabout ways during our adoption of Justice! Thought it would be good to share this section here on the blog in case others are interested in understanding the different situations of orphans in Ghana (these explanations are via our agency ~ Adoption Advocates International):
1) Inherited orphans: Traditionally, orphaned children are absorbed into the extended family. However, we have found that many family members only take on orphaned children out of a sense of familial obligation and in fact have no desire (or means) to provide for another child. As a result orphaned children may have extended family guardians that either treat the child as a slave/servant or provide the child with less than adequate care and love. When these guardians realize that there is another option (relinquish the child for care and adoption) they are many times very quick to make an adoption plan for the child.
2) One-parent orphans: Many children in Ghana are being raised by one parent that cannot provide adequate care due to poverty. The second parent is usually dead or has permanently deserted the family. Children who only have one parent oftentimes have no opportunity for education and are forced into child labor in order to help provide for the family. *This was Justice’s situation and why he was placed for adoption.
3) Two-parent orphans: It is outside the normal definition of “orphan” to describe an orphan as having two living parents. However, we do see this in Ghana. In these cases the parents, for whatever reason, have no desire to parent the children and abandon them permanently. The parents may be elderly and the child unplanned. The parents may abuse the child and recognize that they cannot adequately care for him/her because of their own psychological issues. The parents may be homeless and have no means to provide adequate food, shelter, or education to the child. In all cases, the parents must be living below poverty level according to local standards in order for AAI to take custody of the child. *This sort of situation reminds me a lot of children being placed into the foster care system in the United States.
4) Street children: Street children are a common sight in Ghana. These are children who have lost contact with their parents and may or may not know of any extended family. Street children can be referred to AAI by someone in the community or from social welfare. The best effort is made to find any living relatives but sometimes this is impossible. If a suitable living condition within Ghana cannot be found for a street child than a long-term care plan that includes international adoption can be put together.
I’ve also had a handful of people inquire about the age of children available for adoption in Ghana. Here is an explanation via our agency….this information is on their website as well (http://www.adoptionadvocates.org/Africa/Ghana/index.php):
Ghana Social Welfare prefers to place children through domestic adoptions, but when no Ghanaian family can be located for an adoptable child, they may be placed with an international family. Babies 0-36 months may be in need of adoption from time to time, but this is not an “infant/toddler program.” The large majority of children available for adoption are age 3 and up. Both sibling sets and single children are available. When in the best interest of the child, unrelated children may be placed in the same adoptive family. HIV+ children may be adopted from Ghana. There is a great need for families who will adopt children 6 years old and older. Most all children in Ghana have at least some English skills by the time they are adopted (many with moderate English). Children adopted through our program may reside in foster homes or children's homes in any region within Ghana.
Thursday, December 29, 2011
Trip Details
Got a text message from Jake yesterday morning letting me know that they made it safely to Ghana! Right after they got into the airport they hopped on a bus and headed out to Asikuma. They arrived in the evening, but they couldn’t wait to go and check on how the medical clinic was running! Jake will have more updates and blog posts when he gets back, but he did tell me a few details when I talked with him on the phone yesterday. He said they were absolutely blown away by the amount of progress that was completed on the medical clinic since we left in August. It was about 90% done, but seeing it yesterday Jake said they (the workers in Asikuma) had completed all the projects we left them with including putting in a sidewalk, landscaping, and a few other tasks on the inside. He said it looks awesome, but also that it is running and thriving. The clinic staff told Jake that they have seen 459 patients since it opened at the end of August – WOWZA!!!! We brought 3 construction guys on our team this trip and they will be finishing out the cabinetry in the medical clinic and also building more patient beds. In addition, Mercy Medical Center (of Des Moines) donated a load of medical supplies which filled 10 suitcases (!) and so Jake and the team will be stocking the clinic on this trip as well.
This trip was originally intended to begin the remodel of the structures that we planned on turning into a children’s haven like I had blogged about here and here. However, back in October we received an email from Chief Nana that delayed this project:
Hope you are all fine. I have some disappointing news regarding our children’s haven in Asikuma. The government of Ghana has approached us with an urgent request to give the place out to a construction company who are to reconstruct the road from Asikuma to the north. They are to rehabilitate all the buildings to use for a road camp and residential accommodation for their senior staff.
The contract period is between 18 month - 24 months. The condition is that all the rehabilitated buildings will be handed over back to us after the construction period. It is very unfortunate that all our landable plans will have to be reviewed.
Here are my thoughts:
1. We could shelve the children’s haven project until after the construction period and redirect our efforts at other areas. In this case we will benefit from improved infrastructure which we could use for the haven at no cost.
2. Alternatively, I could provide a piece of land measuring one acre. In this case we will have to plan to construct the building at our own pace.
This is food for thought. I know that the good Lord will give us bright ideas to fulfill our mission of supporting these helpless children.
So, this was quite an unexpected road block - literally. However, we are reassured in knowing that God already knew this was going to happen. Perhaps this is Him steering our children’s haven to a different location or just orchestrating the timing. We don’t have the answers yet, but are waiting expectantly as there are many options of how to move forward from here.
Since the children’s haven remodel has been delayed for now, we were able to use this trip to also finish up the library project that we started on our August trip - if you remember we only got it about 50% built (to read posts from our August trip go to my blog archive on my sidebar and click the month of August 2011 and all my posts will be listed out). This trip Jake and the team will also be visiting an orphanage in the Eastern region called Kwahu Orphanage. This orphanage was started by the in-country social worker (named Kofi) that handled our adoption of Justice. Jake will also be hosting a basketball tournament in Accra with the Kingdom Hoops Ghana team….currently there are 18 teams signed up for the tournament!
You never know how God will fill in the itinerary from there, and I am excited to hear the many stories that will come out of this trip. There are 3 tripsters on the team who have never been to Africa before, and I just love the excitement of wondering how God will change them through this experience!
Early this morning I received a text message picture from Jake of him with our two daughters and the little lions he brought for them. His text said: ‘A’ came right up to me to have me pick her up. My heart practically melted in my chest after taking this in at 4am and I could not get back to sleep (which is why some of you also got to enjoy that picture at 4am because I just had to share it)!!!! I just laid there for 2 hours thinking about our girls and adoption and praying and telling God that I trust Him with every aspect of this process. It’s so hard to see their little faces and know that Jake will be leaving them in a few days. My heart wonders how long this adoption will take and how smooth or rough it will be. I am so thankful that I can trust God with every detail. In my devotional this morning I was led to these verses in perfect timing ~
When I am afraid,
I will trust in you.
In God, whose word I praise,
In God I trust; I will not be afraid.
(Psalm 56:3-4)
I know from our adoption of Justice that this process is unpredictable, and will be full of opportunities for me to get nervous and fret about the details. I am setting my heart on God's Sovereignty today and choosing not to worry.
Trust Me with every fiber of your being! What I can accomplish in and through you is proportional to how much you depend on Me. One aspect of this is the degree to which you trust Me in a crisis or major decision. Some people fail miserably here, while others are at their best in rough times. Another aspect is even more telling: the constancy of your trust in Me. People who rely on Me in the midst of adversity may forget about Me when life is flowing smoothly. Difficult times can jolt you into awareness of your need for Me, whereas smooth sailing can lull you into the stupor of self-sufficiency.
I care as much about your tiny trust-steps through daily life as about your dramatic leaps of faith. You may think that no one notices, but the One who is always beside you sees everything - and rejoices. Consistently trusting in Me is vital to flourishing in My Presence.
~Jesus Calling~
This trip was originally intended to begin the remodel of the structures that we planned on turning into a children’s haven like I had blogged about here and here. However, back in October we received an email from Chief Nana that delayed this project:
Hope you are all fine. I have some disappointing news regarding our children’s haven in Asikuma. The government of Ghana has approached us with an urgent request to give the place out to a construction company who are to reconstruct the road from Asikuma to the north. They are to rehabilitate all the buildings to use for a road camp and residential accommodation for their senior staff.
The contract period is between 18 month - 24 months. The condition is that all the rehabilitated buildings will be handed over back to us after the construction period. It is very unfortunate that all our landable plans will have to be reviewed.
Here are my thoughts:
1. We could shelve the children’s haven project until after the construction period and redirect our efforts at other areas. In this case we will benefit from improved infrastructure which we could use for the haven at no cost.
2. Alternatively, I could provide a piece of land measuring one acre. In this case we will have to plan to construct the building at our own pace.
This is food for thought. I know that the good Lord will give us bright ideas to fulfill our mission of supporting these helpless children.
So, this was quite an unexpected road block - literally. However, we are reassured in knowing that God already knew this was going to happen. Perhaps this is Him steering our children’s haven to a different location or just orchestrating the timing. We don’t have the answers yet, but are waiting expectantly as there are many options of how to move forward from here.
Since the children’s haven remodel has been delayed for now, we were able to use this trip to also finish up the library project that we started on our August trip - if you remember we only got it about 50% built (to read posts from our August trip go to my blog archive on my sidebar and click the month of August 2011 and all my posts will be listed out). This trip Jake and the team will also be visiting an orphanage in the Eastern region called Kwahu Orphanage. This orphanage was started by the in-country social worker (named Kofi) that handled our adoption of Justice. Jake will also be hosting a basketball tournament in Accra with the Kingdom Hoops Ghana team….currently there are 18 teams signed up for the tournament!
You never know how God will fill in the itinerary from there, and I am excited to hear the many stories that will come out of this trip. There are 3 tripsters on the team who have never been to Africa before, and I just love the excitement of wondering how God will change them through this experience!
Early this morning I received a text message picture from Jake of him with our two daughters and the little lions he brought for them. His text said: ‘A’ came right up to me to have me pick her up. My heart practically melted in my chest after taking this in at 4am and I could not get back to sleep (which is why some of you also got to enjoy that picture at 4am because I just had to share it)!!!! I just laid there for 2 hours thinking about our girls and adoption and praying and telling God that I trust Him with every aspect of this process. It’s so hard to see their little faces and know that Jake will be leaving them in a few days. My heart wonders how long this adoption will take and how smooth or rough it will be. I am so thankful that I can trust God with every detail. In my devotional this morning I was led to these verses in perfect timing ~
When I am afraid,
I will trust in you.
In God, whose word I praise,
In God I trust; I will not be afraid.
(Psalm 56:3-4)
I know from our adoption of Justice that this process is unpredictable, and will be full of opportunities for me to get nervous and fret about the details. I am setting my heart on God's Sovereignty today and choosing not to worry.
Trust Me with every fiber of your being! What I can accomplish in and through you is proportional to how much you depend on Me. One aspect of this is the degree to which you trust Me in a crisis or major decision. Some people fail miserably here, while others are at their best in rough times. Another aspect is even more telling: the constancy of your trust in Me. People who rely on Me in the midst of adversity may forget about Me when life is flowing smoothly. Difficult times can jolt you into awareness of your need for Me, whereas smooth sailing can lull you into the stupor of self-sufficiency.
I care as much about your tiny trust-steps through daily life as about your dramatic leaps of faith. You may think that no one notices, but the One who is always beside you sees everything - and rejoices. Consistently trusting in Me is vital to flourishing in My Presence.
~Jesus Calling~
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