The Tailor Shop for Sherri's New Clothes!

GLORY TO GOD!

Last night Nadeem prayed for three things: a good night's sleep, good dreams, and a sign of hope from God. We had the best night's sleep we've had here since getting Kalina, we both had wonderful dreams, and we have a HUGE SIGN OF HOPE! Suddenly today our attorney's paralegal who is assigned to our case reached a man named John at the USCIS in Atlanta. The original lady we've been trying to reach has been too busy to answer us, so this man is now helping. He said that he doesn't have the authority to approve our fingerprints being taken here, but he will present our case to the decision making body. Meanwhile, the paralegal contacted our wonderful advocate at Senator Chambliss' office, Jennifer Hayes, who told her that she has already secured approval from Atlanta for us to have our fingerprints taken here in Bangladesh! We're now trying to get this in writing to make sure that the US Embassy here knows that they can take our fingerprints. They're closed for the Eid holiday but will reopen on Sunday.
"Not one of all the promises the Lord your God gave you has failed. Every promise has been fulfilled." -Joshua 23:14
What God has already done:
*called us to go to Bangladesh to adopt a child even though there are no adoption agencies that work in Bangladesh
*enabled us to adopt here in a country where you must be a citizen....we learned that Nadeem in fact has dual citizenship as a result of being a citizen through his grandfather the former ambassador from Bangladesh
*gave us "no Visa required" to Bangladesh on our passports-free entry for life
*sent Hasan's mom into our lives-she found the orphanage run by nuns and the magistrate
*told us to get a baby girl
*confirmed Kalina's name
*gave us her middle name, Moriah
*enabled us to live on one paycheck to save for the adoption
*gave us victory at the court with me dressed in the burka and Nadeem speaking Bangla
*gave us Kalina
What God is going to do:
*BRING US HOME!

Celebrations in Bangladesh

Since we didn't plan to stay in Bangladesh this long, we are running low on supplies for Kalina. My mom shipped us more formula, diapers, and such. She paid hundreds of dollars to get the package here quickly. The supplies in Bangladesh are not good quality, so we needed more from America. In addition to this, we had to pay $80 in taxes to customs here in order to receive the package. We had no idea this would cost so much. I prayed for God to bring the package on time before we ran out of supplies. I reminded Him of the fish and the loaves and told Him that He could easily handle Kalina's needs. Well, the package didn't come in time due to a holiday here. That meant that we had to feed Kalina the formula she received in the orphanage which was really upsetting to me. It looks very watery and she wouldn't drink much. It was one of those moments when I doubted God. It was so easy for Him to get her supplies here on time. Already she is stuck here when she could receive proper nutrition, medical care, and a comfortable home in the US. If God didn't even get her supplies here, how can we trust Him to deliver us and send us home? I don't know why God didn't send the supplies or why we're stuck here or why we had to pay so much money when already we're having financial strains from the adoption. That money could have been put to much better use.
I have a choice. I can either question God and doubt Him or I can trust Him even when I don't understand. I think of Mary and Martha grieving when their brother Lazarus died when they had asked Jesus to come heal him. They totally trusted that Jesus would heal him, but Jesus purposefully didn't go to help because there was a bigger picture. Jesus did something more incredible than healing him; he raised him from the dead so that all would believe.
Probably the hardest part of being here is walking in total faith with no idea of how or when God will deliver us. Nadeem said last night that if we knew the time frame we could plan better and deal with it. Every day we wake up and wonder if we'll be delivered and how many more days will pass before we can come home. Now again we're facing total silence from the attorney's office, Senator's office, and the USCIS. We call and email, and nobody responds.
While we are in turmoil, there is a lot of happiness around us. On Sunday Kalina turned 3 months old. Hasan's family wanted to celebrate, so we all went out to eat. Hasan's mom gave Kalina a dress to wear when she's older. I believe that a cause to celebrate is that at the age of three months she's with loving parents receiving care instead of in an orphanage. Some have told us that we should have stayed in the US and waited a few weeks to have our fingerprints taken before coming here. We still believe that God called us to go and to trust Him. I look at Kalina and think that if we had stayed at home, she wouldn't be with us right now. In fact, another family wanted her. Maybe she would have never been with us.
Also, everyone here is celebrating because the holiday Eid is this week. It's a time to end the month of fasting, wear new clothes, visit family and friends, eat special foods, and give gifts. We had to get some new clothes, too, since it's part of the custom here. I'll post photos to show you all. For me, I had to go to the mall and select fabric to take to the tailor to have my clothes made. Men buy ready to wear clothes. Last night Hasan's younger sister, Someira, painted my left hand with henna dye. They also shopped in the Bangladesh market and purchased bangles for me that match my outfit. On festive occasions, you wear about 12 on each arm. They come in different sizes. You have to really push them over your hand. I have to use lotion to get mine on. Everyone is in a shopping frenzy here. The malls are open until 12:30 a.m., and you can sit in traffic for 2 hours just to try to get there. Everyone is very excited and happy about the upcoming holiday. Tonight people will shoot fireworks from their homes.
It's kind of hard to celebrate in a strange country when we just want to be at home. However, we know that God calls us to be a light wherever we are. We want to rejoice with these people. They are excited to share their culture and traditions with us.
Now is their time of rejoicing and celebrating. Soon it will be ours. Thanks again so much for your prayers, faith, and love. Please continue to post messages on our blog. We look forward to hearing from home each day. You may not realize just how much your words mean to us.
"Rejoice with those who rejoice and weep with those who weep." -Romans 12:15
"For the vision is yet for an appointed time; but at the end it will speak, and it will not lie. Though it tarries wait for it, because it will surely come, it will not tarry." -Habakkuk 2:3
The vision of our homecoming will surely come at just the right time!

Happy Kalina....

God's deliverance

Hi, Friends and Family! Today's thanks goes to Ms. Pamela Ewing, Nadeem's boss at SunTrust, who so kindly helped Nadeem get FMLA to extend our stay here for up to 30 more days. (Now, don't panic. That's not necessarily God's timing; that's the adoption allowance for leave from work.) We also appreciate all of Nadeem's co-workers who are supporting our adoption journey. We also got our plane tickets worked out. We have open tickets for whenever we're ready to schedule our return trip. In spite of this good news to report, we've faced some troubling news. Before we can get approval to have our fingerprints taken here, we must have a complete application at home. We assumed that we did since we hired an attorney to help us with this and followed the directions we were given. We learned about a week ago that Nadeem's birth certificate was lost in the process. Nadeem faxed a new copy a week ago from Bangladesh. We just heard on Friday that the lawyer's office has still not submitted it. It's in Swedish, and they wanted it translated first. Then they said they couldn't see his birthday on it, even thought it's in the top right hand corner. In other countries they write the day first and then the month. Of course we were very frustrated to hear this news. In addition, the lawyer's office told us the earliest the USCIS will meet with them to hear about our problems in October 9. We've contacted the USCIS and have received no response. The Senator's office also has received no response. I'm feeling like the Israelites after Moses appeared to Pharaoh and asked him to let the people go. In response, Pharaoh increased their workload and therefore their difficulties. Moses asked God why He had brought trouble on His people. God responded in Exodus 6:5,6 "I have also heard the groaning of the children of Israel whom the Egyptians keep in bondage, and I have remembered My covenant. Therefore say to the children of Israel 'I am the Lord; I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, I will rescue you from their bondage, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great judgments." I believe this is God's message to us. He hears our groanings. He has not forgotten us. God is saving us and delivering us. We are His children.
The other night Nadeem had troubles with his SunTrust email, so he called the 24/7 help line. Even in the middle of the night in Atlanta, they helped him. I thought that I wished that we had an adoption help line. We DO! God IS out help line. Even though it feels like we're getting a busy signal or an automated response, God is working on our behalf!
We have a precious prayer team of 9 ladies who pray for us around the clock. This past week God gave many of them the exact same message when they prayed for guidance on how to pray for us. He told them to sing and praise His name. Every night here around 3 a.m. a large group of people walk through the streets oustide this apartment chanting some sort of Muslim prayers in the foreign language. A leader seems to use a megaphone or loudspeaker, and then all the people echo him. It's a very eerie, disturbing sound. I'm usually up with Kalina when it happens. If all those people can walk through the streets yelling out their prayers, I KNOW that we can all join together in singing and praising God! We're not doing this to manipulate God or to push the magic button to set us free. We're doing it to proclaim that our God is the most awesome God whose will is perfect. We love Him and trust Him. We know that He already has a plan for our deliverance and homecoming, and we're thanking Him for it. Psalm 27:6 "I will sing, yes, I will sing praises to the Lord."

A quiet day

Just a brief update today....our thanks goes to Ms. Jennifer Hayes of Senator Saxby Chambliss' office. She has been incredibly kind and helpful in trying to get us home. She contacted the US Embassy here who then gave us a nice welcome after ignoring us for days. They've also sent her a letter saying that they are glad to take our fingerprints and help in any way they can. Also, they said that they will process their part very quickly. Now the big hold up is with Atlanta. This is where we need the prayers. All we need is for them to say we can have our fingerprints taken here. That's it. Right now they're ingoring phone calls from our attorney's office. We've heard that many of you are sharing our story with your church or friends. We have many people praying and waiting expectantly for God. He won't disappoint us! Right now we need wisdom in making decisions about Nadeem's work, rescheduling our flight, and what other action to take, if any, while waiting for God to work on our behalf. We so greatly appreciate your love and prayers! I want to also give my mom a special thanks for taking such good care of our home and especially our cats while we're gone. We're one day closer to getting home!

Dark before the dawn

We're having a hard time right now. Our departure date is rapidly approaching, yet we have no US approval. We feel we're surrounded by darkness. We have no idea when or how we can return home with Kalina. We're faced with silence when we're asking for help. Our minds are racing with questions: What about Nadeem's job? What about our responsibilites at home? What do we do to get home?
Tonight Kalina had a stomachache. For about an hour I carried her around, bounced her, and rocked her with her against my chest. Most of the time she wailed. I was drenched with sweat and exhausted by the time she settled down. It was a frustrating and somewhat scary experience. Normally she's such a sweet little girl. In the middle of her crying spell, the police officer from the passport office arrived to ensure that she is legitimately our child and that we're not trying to obtain a passport for her to smuggle her out of the country to sell her on the black market. The whole time she cried we prayed over her. When I heard that the officer had arrived and wanted to see her, I nearly cried along with her! When we took her to see the officer she was a perfect angel. He quickly viewed us and waved us away. During her crying spell, it felt like it would never end, that I would be stuck like that forever not able to comfort her. This is what our life feels like right now, like we'll be here forever and this trial will never end. However, God sees the big picture. One day we'll look back and know that this was temporary, just like Kalina's crying spell. We're all standing in faith that God will bring us home. What's difficult is to surrender the plan to Him. We don't know the timing; He does. God brought me to this passage in the book Streams in the Desert: "You may have to experience the very worst before you are delivered, but you will be delivered! God may keep you waiting, but He will always remember His promise and will appear in time to fulfill His sacred Word that cannot be broken. It is always safe to trust God's methods and to live by His clock. Difficulty is actually the atmosphere surrounding a miracle, or a miracle in its inital stage. Yet if it is to be a great miracle, the surrounding condition will not simply be a difficulty but an utter impossibility. And it is the clinging hand of His child that makes a desperate situation a delight to God."

Passport and American Friends

We had a really busy day yesterday, so I was unable to update the blog. Thanks to all of you who are following our story and praying for us! Today I want to start by sending thanks to the children who are praying for us. Our friend Anne who introduced Nadeem and me shared that her young son Luke tells her each day that God is able to do much more than all we can ask for or imagine (Eph. 3:20). I love this verse which hangs in our bedroom at home. Luke knows God's power because he has experienced God's healing hand upon him. My friend Kathy's second grade students pray for us each day at Hebron Christian Academy. My former students are praying. My friend Angela (who posts our photos-thanks!) sent me a verse a while back that God laid on her heart to share. "Jesus said, 'Let the little children come to me and do not forbid them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to them.'" -Matthew 19:14I believe it's so critical to have faith like a child. I'm so grateful for the kids God has placed in our lives to pray in total faith. May we adults have the same measure of faith!
Yesterday I experienced God's care and love. We had to go to the passport office at 9:00 a.m. To get there, we had to drive through the traffic in the heat (again with no car seat). We had to move through crowds and guards and up stairs with me holding Kalina in my arms. Don't picture a nice air conditioned building like in the US. We had to take a crowded elevator up 6 floors, go to two "offices", and then travel outside and through a courtyard filled with crowds of people, construction trash, and large water filled potholes. Then I had to squeeze Kalina through a tiny opening in a metal fence to get into the final "VIP" open air area to get our passport for her. Keep in mind that we could understand nothing being said. When I learned of this trip, I had many concerns. Her sleeping schedule for night has been 1am-9am, including night time feedings. If we had to leave at 9 am I didn't know how we'd be ready and how I'd cope with even less sleep. I didn't know how she'd drink her bottle in the morning. God knew everything concerning me and took care of it all. This night Kalina changed her schedule. She slept during the night and woke at 7 a.m. We were all dressed, fed, and ready to go at 9 a.m. I brought her whole diaper bag. Can you believe that she slept through the whole visit? She never sleeps at this time of day! When we were in the VIP area, she began to cry. I panicked because her diaper bag had to be left on the 6th floor of the other building. Our sweet little angel becomes a she-devil, as Nadeem says, when she needs to eat. Already we were being scrutinized because we're foreigners. Amazingly she stopped crying. We went to the car, and Nadeem went to get her bottle/diaper bag. Guess when she woke up crying? Right when Nadeem arrived with the bottle! All you moms out there know that God was watching over her!
The passport should be ready today. This is not the end of the road as some of you had hoped. We're still waiting for our US approval to return. We still need permission to have fingerprints taken here. Our lawyer and Senator Chambliss' office are working with the government immigration department at home. Right now the department is upset that we left without our fingerprints. I was thinking about Pharaoh and Moses. Pharaoh never liked Moses or planned to let him go, but he wasn't in charge, God was.
After the passport trip, we spent a lovely afternoon with Carol Smith and her four children. Carol and her husband are missionaries here from America. In fact, they used to attend our former church, Greater Gwinnett/Sugarlaof Community Church. Our friend Ken Rucker helped us get in contact wth them. The visit was delightful! Finally some blonde haired, English speaking, friendly Americans! The four year old was even eating peanut butter! I almost grabbed the spoon out of his hand! They have been here for three years. One time they tried to distribute food to the needy, but it turned into a mob scene. They shared that it's hard to help because everyone swarms and you can't possibly help them all. I found it so neat to meet some of the people who our giving supports. Their primary funding is from the Lottie Moon offering in the Baptist churches. It's so neat to see what the money is doing.
The kids loved Kalina, although she napped most of the visit. While she slept they piled their toys all around her hoping she might wake up and play with them. Four year old Stephen even shared his Hershey candy that we had brought them with Kalina (for when she's older).
Kalina is doing well. She's eating constantly, to our delight! Right now she's napping. We can't wait to bring her home so you all can see her! I told her today how much everyone loves her already.
Thanks again for praying and standing strong in the faith with us!

Kalina's Celebration

When You are Weary and Tired Rest in God's Arms

In God's arms

Being in Bangladesh has been extrememly challenging since we first arrived, but now that Kalina is here, there is a whole new level of challenge. First of all, we are brand new parents of a tiny baby in a foreign third world country. Forget the conveniences of home-nice nursery, car seats, baby toys, washers, dryers, dishwashers, reliable electricity, air conditioning-I could go on! It's one thing for Nadeem and me to adjust to a new land. Trying to take care of Kalina here is hard. Not only do we not have our luxuries, we do not have our friends and family here. We rely on God so much for love, wisdom, guidance, and comfort. When Kalina first arrived last week, truthfully I felt nothing in my heart. I've never really liked babies. I adore kids, but babies-well, they're scary to me! My first couple of days were rather dutiful, trying to take care of the baby God called us to come and get. In addition, Nadeem and I have been really nervous as new parents. In my mind I knew Kalina was ours, but I couldn't totally grasp that truth or feel it in my heart.
Last night we went to have dinner with some of Nadeem's extended family. In order to get there, we all (5 adults, baby, and driver) piled into a small Toyota. There are no car seats here. Even if we had one, there is no room for it. We were packed in like sardines with me holding Kalina. Driving here is so scary anyhow, and I had a tiny baby in the car! Again, you must trust God for protection and peace. When we arrived for dinner, the evening was very stressful. Remember that we don't speak the language. I don't understand all of the customs. For me, it's hard enough. With Kalina, it's really difficult. Some ladies immediately snatched her out of my arms and took her to another room so that I could eat. At home I might appreciate that, but here it felt scary. Who were these people with my baby? Here adoption is seen as a lack of God's blessing. Later on the women tried to tell me how to parent Kalina. One lady even grabbed her while she was lying on her back, put her on her stomach, and made her cry. All of a sudden I felt an anger rise up in me. I'm sorry to say that I was ready to rip the lady's head off! How dare her mess with my baby! This is my little girl! I knew at that moment that she was mine and that I loved her with all my heart. I knew this baby. I didn't need others to tell me about her. I'm the one who has been with her, and I know her routines and moods and needs. She wouldn't sleep the whole night there because she was so nervous. Her daddy says she is like me, hiding her true feelings. She appeared to be the perfect baby, so cute and alert, but really she couldn't relax. They kept saying she needed food, but she didn't. As soon as I took her back in my arms, she looked in my eyes, held my fingers, and fell asleep. All night whenever I was with her, she'd look in my eyes and smile.
These past few days have been extra hard. It's one thing to wait on God just the two of us. Waiting on God when we're concerned about Kalina is hard. Our minds race with questions: How will we get home? When will we get home? Should we fly home for fingerprints and leave our daughter behind? Who will take care of her? How can we possibly leave her when she's already been abandoned once in her young life? We have prayed and feel that God has clearly said to us "Do not leave your child. Stay and wait." We don't know the plan, though. I find myself questioning God's faithfulness and goodness. Where are you, God? Why have you abandoned us here? The enemy's trick is to get us to doubt God and see Him in the wrong light. As I think about the love I have for Kalina is such a short time, I remember that this love comes from God. My human love can never match God's love for us. If I fel a fierce protection over my child, God feels that same way over us. Maybe last night Kalina felt that we had abandoned her. That wasn't the truth. We were there all along. God is here with us, too. Just like Kalina in my arms, I have to rest in God's arms and trust Him.
"Do not fear...let not your hands be weak. The Lord your God is in your midst. The mighty one will save. He will rejoice over you with gladness. He will quiet you with His love. He will rejoice over you with singing." -Zephaniah 3:17

Mountain is moving!

Hello Friends and Family! We have good news to report. Both the US Consulate here and our lawyer and Senator Saxby Chambliss' team at home are working to get US approval for us. Our lawyer hopes to know by the end of the day today if the USCIS will approve our fingerprints to be taken here in Bangladesh. They've told us not to get our hopes up, that even if we have them taken here that it could take a really long time for processing. Then they also said that one case was finished in a day. For others, maybe they won't get their hopes up, but our hopes are in GOD! So yes we'll get our hopes up! It's time for some major prayer to complete the last part of this particular journey. We HOPE and BELIEVE that God will provide the way for us to ALL come home SOON!
Romans 5:5 And hope does not disappoint us because God has poured out His love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit whom He has given us.

Sweet Baby Kalina & Dad!

Parenthood and Praises!

Thanks for rejoicing with us! Hasan's dad ordered a special cake from the Sheraton Hotel to celebrate Kalina's arrival! We're going to rejoice tonight in Bangladesh, but we're rejoicing with all of you at home through the Internet for now. Nadeem and I have completed our first full 24 hours of parenthood. What an adventure! Yesterday Kalina arrived at 11:30 a.m. From that time until 1:00 she slept a total of one 45 minute nap and about 3 five minute naps. Whoa! Hasan's younger sister said, "Dang! She likes to party like a rock star!" Today our little rock star eats, plays, needs a diaper change, and then sleeps-much more like we were expecting from a 2 1/2 month old! She slept well last night after one fit at 1 am. She slept for 5 1/2 hours straight, had a bottle, and then went back to sleep for 2 more hours. She has a slight cold and a touch of diaper rash but seems to be in good health otherwise. She is a tiny. She wears newborn "onesies." You would have all laughed at Nadeem, Hasan, and me trying to figure out how to use the Dr. Brown's bottles. They have all these special inserts to lessen gas. The three of us were pouring over the direction sheet. They don't have anything like this in Bangladesh. We've learned that in the orphanage Kalina's mom stayed and fed her for 15 days. Then Kalina had one-one-one care around the clock. (God's provision-:)) Today Kalina has been much more mellow-probably wiped out from lack of sleep yesterday! She seems to know what she likes already. She likes to look at this 3-D flower picture on the wall in the eating area. She also likes looking at the china display. She liked being wrapped like a kangaroo against my body, and then she didn't! She is fascinated by people's faces. Already she has a whole range of expressions.
Today Nadeem and I visited the US Consulate. We're pleased to report that after visiting two other times, calling, and emailing since April with no help, today they called us and emailed us to give us an appointment. When we arrived, they were expecting us and recognized our names as soon as they checked our passports. The man who helped us was a little gruff but kind. We received some good news. The part here will be quick and easy. This part will be the final part to gain approval on this end to leave. He said that our paperwork is perfect, and that they'll approve us in 2-3 days. They always rush adoptions. The mountain to be moved is with the US. If they will grant permission for us to have our fingerprints taken here, the man told us today that they'll be glad to take them here. If the US won't approve that, we'll have to return home without Kalina and return for her later. We don't know where she will stay if we have to leave, and apparently that's not a concern of the government agencies. The US Consulate here can't give us their final approval until we have the fingerprints taken. We need everyone to join in prayer that the US will approve this and that we'll find immediate favor. We had an expedited process here in Bangladesh, and we need help from the US now! We have seen God work over and over again on our behalf and in response to prayers. Once again, thanks again for all of love, support, and prayers!
"If you have faith as a mustand seed, you will say to this mountain "Move from here to there" and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you." -Matthew 17:20

Kalina's here!!!!!

Kalina arrived from the orphanage at 11:30 a.m. today! Hasan's mom went to get her. So far she has had two bottles, two diaper changes, and one nap. She started on a 2nd nap but seems to find it much more fun to look at us. She'll rest for 5 minutes and then want to stare at us for a while. She's a very sweet and happy little baby! We'll send many photos soon. In the meanwhile, thanks so much for all of your prayers! We'd like to thank my mom, our family, our prayer team, my students, our friends from SCC, my teacher buddies, and everyone out there who is praying for us and following our story! Now we need prayers for US approval. By the way, our little princess is already a daddy's girl! I think it only took one smile!
"If you believe you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer." -Matthew 21:22

Waiting on God

Yesterday we lost power for the first time. We had been told that this happens here a lot, especially during storms. Every family with money owns a generator, so at least you have some lights and fans.
Right now we're in a waiting mode. It's very hard. If you've ever prayed and waited for God to act, you know what I mean. We still don't have Kalina. Yesterday Nadeem and Hasan's mom went to request her birth certificate. We also need her passport. Communication is poor, and we're often in the dark. We do not know at this point how or when we'll get US approval.
In the Bible, nearly everyone waited on God. There are so many verses about waiting. I had read some good advice. When you are waiting, go back and remember what God has said and done before regarding this situation. Today I want to talk about Kalina's name. When I was a little girl, I selected the name Kalina for my daughter. When Nadeem and I were dating, he also loved the name. When God called us to adopt, we had no idea how many kids or which kids He wanted us to bring home. This spring, God revealed that we were to adopt one little girl, a baby. Since this wasn't "my plan" but God's, I assumed that He already had a name for the child. We also thought that maybe the child would already have a name. We learned that the names the orphans have do not have any meaning or love attached, so you should give a new name. Kalina only had a first name originally. One night in May, Nadeem and I were talking about the name. He asked if I still wanted Kalina. I was in a bad frame of mind because it was the last week of school and I was giving up the job I loved to follow a path I had never chosen. I told Nadem I didn't care about the name. Later I went upstairs and felt a strong urge to find the meaning of the name. I didn't want to, but I looked it up on the computer. At first it meant nothing to me, but suddenly I understood. You see, for a week we had this beautiful rosebush blooming in our backyard. Nadeem and I do not like to be in the yard, so to see this was simply amazing. Surrounded by tall weeds, this bush produced these vibrant hot pink roses. Every day we were astounded by the beauty. Kalina's name means "beautiful flower to love." I cried as I realized that God had already designed a perfect plan to "give me the desires of my heart". He hadn't called me to this difficult path to result in agony, but in great joy.
Next Nadeem and I began to pray about Kalina's middle name. After some time, Nadeem told me that he felt God say that her middle name should start with M and mean miracle. Well, all of the names I found like that sounded pretty bad! We continued to pray. One afternoon I listened on-line to a sermon about God as your provider. I really needed to hear it that day. In the middle of it, I suddenly knew Kalina's middle name! The sermon told about Abraham offering Isaac as a sacrifice. God showed up and provided for him. The place was Moriah. I looked this up. Some scholars feel it means "chosen by God." It shows God as your provider.
Lastly, one day as I was driving the name "Kalina Joy" came into my head. I had no idea why. Much later, I discovered that joy means victory in Bangla. This week I learned that all Bangladesh children have a special nickname that just their immediate family uses. I know that God looks at Kalina and calls her chosen, victorious, and beautiful flower to love!
For me, I know that God has said that I wuold know Him as my provider and my victory.
Isaiah 40:31 "But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength. They shall mount up with wings like eagles. They shall run and not grow weary. They shall walk and not faint."

God's Timing

Nadeem has something to say: Okay, You have to realize Bangladesh is hostile territory for someone who was raised in Atlanta, Georgia. I am referring to Sherri, though I am not far off:-) Even Hasan (my adopted brother - Bhiaya for short) has been worried sick about Sherri. Add to the scariness of a third world country with an adoption dealing with Bangladesh Court, an unfriendly US Embassy, an orphan baby with no official home yet, and of course the battle within to run away and hide does not make this a vacation. Yes, there is also a lot of good. The love poured out by Hasan's family can only come from God. They have a very nice place and you would not even realize the chaos outside until you step outside. The pollution in this country is horrific along with the traffic and the crowds. Some very good home cooking though - always have to look at the good.

There is a lot of uncertainty about this adoption and honestly we don't have a clue what is going to happen next. We thought we would be picking up Kalina tomorrow, but we are still waiting on the paper work to come through. This part I am not too worried about; it is more with the US Embassy. We are supposed to leave on the 28th with Kalina, but nothing has been confirmed or even started. Of course, all this starts building up a lot of fear and tension that something is going to go wrong.

I have not been able to sleep at night. Usually, I get out of bed, go into the bathroom, sit on the nice tile floor and start with my quiet time until the sun comes up. Last night God gave me a message from John 7:6 "Then Jesus said to them, 'My time has not yet come, but your time is always ready.'" Of course, I knew what this meant for me right away. We have been on a mission to get Kalina adopted and then obtain a visa to come to the States on our time and not God's time. Just then at 4am in the morning sitting on the bathroom floor I noticed the drip, drip of the toilet bowl - funny I didn't notice this the last several nights on the floor. After 30 minutes of this drip, drip I started going crazy. Surely, God does not want me so distracted while I try to be with Him? "God in Heaven, I don't know if I have enough faith to move a mountain, but I think I have enough where you could stop this drip for me so I can focus on you." Okay, so, nothing happened; in fact, I think it started getting worse. I tried to look at the toilet bowl, but heck, what do I know about plumbing? So, I laid my hands on the toilet and prayed over it. Nothing!!! "Okay God, I still love you and believe in you even though you did not help me with this little drip problem." I start reading in John again and five minutes later the drip, drip stopped. God's timing! Of course, every five minutes later I am looking for the drip to come back. Thirty minutes later still no drip. One hour later I can start to hear a drip coming back. Matthew 14:30-31 I guess I am worse than Peter. At least he got scared when the wind got stirred up. I am waiting on the wind looking to drown. "Lord, save me!" God only gives you the plan one day at a time. You just have to be patient. You might find yourself in the darkness, but the light of Christ is just around the corner, all you have to do is hold on.

Link to Orphanage

Here is a link to the Mother Teresa Orphanage. The entries are old, but is interesting to see the way it is set up.

Sorry, you'll have to paste it into your browser....

http://banglabackchat.blogspot.com/2005/05/mother-teresa-orphanage-in-dhaka.html

Mall in Dhaka & Street Outside

Praises to share

I'm going to write a quick entry today because Nadeem may add more later. I tried to send this news via email, but I'm not sure that everyone following our blog knows this great praise. We are very close to having Kalina in our arms as our daughter. Hasan's mom has spent the whole afternoon in the hot courthouse waiting for the magistrate to give her the paperwork so we can go to the orphanage to get Kalina. We're still waiting for her, but this part is nearly done! The next hurdle is to gain US approval to bring Kalina home. Usually you get approval before leaving the US. However, our lawyer left the country to go on vacation for a few weeks leaving behind a paralegal who gave us wrong advice. Plus, the adoption agency in the US who oversees the approval process also gave wrong advice. The immigration department of the government refused to help us before we left. We felt that God was telling us to trust Him and go, even though it made no sense. Keep in mind that NOTHING God has asked us to do has made sense so far. So far He has provided and showed His glory EVERY TIME. We left, a bit fearfully, not knowing the outcome. When we visited the US Consulate here, we were treated in a very unwelcoming manner. We had to be searched and pass through heavy security. Much to my surprise, I saw no Americans working here. The ladies inside were kind but said they could do nothing for us. We kept sending emails and calls to the lawyer's office with no response. It turns out that not only is the lawyer out of the country; our paralegal left on maternity leave. The office said not to expect any response or help until Monday. The lawyer came back early on Wednesday night! Yes, we are now in touch with her! She's talking to Washington, DC to help us get the clearance we need. It's only a small item. We just need our fingerprints taken here. We're also receiving help from Senator Saxby Chambliss' extremely kind staff. More importantly, we're receiving our help from God. We're just waiting to see what channels He chooses. In addition, Hasan told us today that it's a miracle that we got Kalina. He said that usually you wait months to get a baby here, and it's nearly unheard of to get a 2 month old baby girl. At the magistrate's office we bumped into a couple who tried to adopt Kalina! Hasan's mom had to give money to the nuns to hold her for us so that nobody else would adopt her. She's the only baby girl among all boys in the orphanage.
Psalm 121:1,2 "I will lift up my eyes to the hills-from whence comes my help? My help comes from the Lord who made heaven and earth."

Experiencing Bangladesh

Today, Saturday, is the last day of the weekend here. We didn't have any adoption work to do, so Hasan's family took us to the mall. I thought I'd use today to talk about Bangladesh. First of all, the mall experience is totally different from back home! We had to ride on a rickshaw ("rickety-shaw" in my opinion) to get there. I held on for dear life, although the people here ride along casually. We took the back roads primarily which meant just rickshaws, motorized scooters, and pedestrians. Whenever the rickshaw driver turned, I thought I would go flying off the bike! The drivers ring their bells constantly, and vehicles beep their horns constantly, so it's a noisy journey! The mall is very crowded year round. There are several malls in Dhaka; this was the largest. This mall has about 6 levels, each with one type of item such as shoes, clothing, etc. It's like an outdoor bazaar except you're inside. It's hot inside. Most "stalls" have fans, and in some stores you sit down while the workers bring you shoes and clothes to examine. The stores are very tiny, maybe the size of a dry cleaner's front area at home. In the shoe store, there was a storage area above the store. The worker would yell through a hole in the ceiling, and the worker above would drop the shoes down! Most stores allow you to bargain. Very few take credit cards. American money is totally useless here.
The women all wear traditional clothing. I'm actually wearing it in the pictures, but you may not be able to see it clearly. By the way, very few women dress like I did in court. Sometimes the women wrap their long scarves around and over their heads, but they don't have to. The men wear whatever they want. Nadeem has worn shorts, blue jeans, and shirts. Small children dress like American kids. Around 12years old, the girls start dressing like their mothers. There are many stores that just sell fabric so you can have a tailor make your clothes. A tailor is supposed to make me an outfit soon. No woman wears American clothes. Finally today I saw some teen girls in blue jeans. Some women wear the dots on their foreheads for fashion. They either paint them on with nail polish or purchase stick-on dots in many colors and styles. Bracelets (bangles) are very popular. Usually women wear many.
This is a third world country. Electricity and running water are unreliable, even in nice places. We have lost running water here several times, and the orphanage lost power while we were there. Praise God that we've had Internet access, although it's unbelievably slow-worse than dial up at home. We've heard that in storms there is no Internet.
So far the weather has been sunny or gray and hazy. Our first night here we experienced a huge thunderstorm. Nadeem and I practically shot out of the bed! It is hot here. It wouldn't be too bad except there is little air conditioning. Because of the situation here, the government has to ration use of it. The malls now have to close 2 hours earlier so that others can have some AC. Most places just use AC room units with fans. Even that is limited. You don't just keep a room cool all day. Most homes seem to have one fancy living room for entertaining guests. The floors are tile. When guests come, you turn on the air and serve tea and sweeets. Guests tend to visit around 9 p.m.! In Hasan's family's flat, there are also AC room units in the bedrooms which we use at night. Each home has servants. Hasan's family has 2 ladies who cook and clean and one driver. One of the servants, a young girl, lives here. She sleeps on the floor of the living room.
Nobody has pets here. For the first time today, I saw some adorable cats and one dog on the streets.
Tonight we ate dinner at the Pizza Hut. Can you believe it? There's a Pizza Hut here! The pizza to me tastes just like at home. I haven't had pizza in 10 years, so my memory might be bad! They told us that it's fresher here. (Fresh pizza?? Maybe an oxymoron!) They import ingredients but still can't get the same sauce and spices. I had very hot wings (no such thing as mild here) and the salad bar which is sort of like at home but with mint yogurt and some more Bangladeshi type items. It felt weird to look around and see all Bangladeshi people. At home there's usually more of a blend.
Right now it's Ramadan, a religious holiday that lasts 30 days. We have been eating out at night, when families are allowed to eat. Mainly we've had buffets with Bangladeshi food. We arrive at the restaurant around 5:30 and get a plate of food and some water and lemonade (standard drink). Then we wait for the signal that it's time to eat-usually around 6:10. It depends on when the sun sets. It's not dark then, just not as light. The traditional meal that people eat at that time is not pizza! It's called "iftar" which means "fast break." It consists of many special foods that they only eat at this time of the year. One is sort of like an onion ring. One is sweet sort of like a honey bun only curled like a small pretzel. After eating this meal, they usually eat again much later in the evening. People like to stay up late here.
I, however, go to bed earlier! In fact, I'll sign off now since it's getting late (for me) here. Thanks again so much for following our blog, praying, and sending words of encrouagement. Nadeem and I read everything you write, and we feel your prayers. Good night (or for you, good morning!).

Following God

Today is the weekend here in Bangladesh and a much needed time of rest for Nadeem and me. We'd like to thank Angela for posting all of our pictures for us. Thanks to God for allowing us to communciate with all of you back home. Thanks to all of you for continuing to pray! It is amazing to hear from you and to discover how God is working "behind the scenes" to give us the support we need. He has given scriptures to people, prompted people to pray in the middle of the night, given ways to pray, and brought us to your minds over and over. We hope that you, too, are amazed by God. This story is much larger than us and Kalina. We've received comments about how easy this has been and how God is working miracles. That made me want to share with you some background on how big and strong God is and how weak and small we are. By nature, I'm a homebody. I don't like to travel, and I like the comforts of my home. When I was sick with mercury poisoning for 12 years, I developed a fear of traveling because I always felt so bad and trips usually resulted in problems for me. I can't stand to camp, and I only stay in hotels when I'm away from home. I'm an introvert and like time to myself. I can't bear the heat and stay inside in the summer. I've always felt uncomfortable in Nadeem's culture. Also, I've always been really bothered by the treatment of women in other parts of the world. I like my life to be predictable and under my control. I'm sharing this to say that when you follow God, He'll call you to do things you would never pick on your own and then He'll give you the strength to be able to do it so there will be no doubt who strengthened you. I never in a million years would have thought that I would ever go to Bangladesh, much less to adopt a child, much much less without a plan! When God put this in our hearts last fall, to be honest, our response was NO WAY! You've got to be kidding! God wasn't. He continued to prompt us to follow Him. We've found that sometimes that means battle, like in court yesterday. Sometimes it means waiting without seeing a hint of God's plan and simply trusting. This does not come easily or naturally. For both of us, we began praying a couple of years ago to know God better and to have more faith and to experience God's power, not our so called power. We read about God in the Bible and how you should love Him most and how He's powerful. That wasn't our reality. God has been answering our prayers but not in the easy way we desired. We wanted to wake up and be filled with faith and intimacy with God the next day! God had another path in mind. First He cleared out all the things we loved: our church home, my small group for Bible study, my exercise class that I love, my summer job, certain relationships that we treasure, and this year for me my teaching job. We love to be busy and to feel good about ourselves because of what we do and from what people say about us. God gave both of us time when we were forced to seek Him and spend a lot of time with Him. It was agonizing, really. We would ask to go back to our fun activities and relationships because sitting still felt really scary. Through this, though, God helped us know Him better! I believe that we had to get to a point where we could trust Him and know Him so that when He said go to Bangladesh with no plan that we would do it. I had to quit my teaching job that I love with no idea at all of how or when this adoption would work out. Why? Because God spoke to our hearts that I was to let go of that job. We sat in darkness and confusion for about 4 months before God showed us how to adopt from Bangladesh. Every step of the way has been led by God. We have had no control. Sometimes I pray for God to show me the big picture. How will all this turn out? If I had known about court up front, I think I'd still be at home hanging out with my cats! I think that faith usually means that you take one step at a time, knowing that God is going ahead of you, working all things together for your good (Romans 8:28). Just like when you're a little child on the edge of the pool, and your dad says "jump", you have to trust God to catch you. Is it easy to trust and to follow God? NO! This does not come naturally. The bottom line is that it's all about love. When you start to understand that you're deeply loved by God, you begin to trust more and to be willing to follow Him and go love others....even a baby across the globe.

Nadeem & Sherri in Rickshaw

Sherri in Burka

Victory at Court!!

The judge signed our papers today! The weekend here is Fri/Sat, so we'll hopefully get Kalina on Sunday after papers are filed. We want to thank all of you for posting comments, emailing, and PRAYING!!!! You are sustaining us. Today was really tough. We found out that in order to adopt here you can't just be a citizen. You must belong. Nadeem and I don't speak the language, I don't look like I belong, and we don't live here in this culture. The magistrate gave Nadeem a crash course in the language so he'd be ready for court. For me, I couldn't show white skin, so I was dressed head to toe in a black outfit with no skin showing at all. It's at least 90 degrees here with no AC in the courthouse, just fans.The magistrate laughed at me and said I looked like a ghost. He kept making fun of us behind our backs. He only spoke Bangla, so we didn't even know what he was saying or the judge was saying. We had to sign papers for the adoption without reading them. Early this morning God gave me some verses. Isaiah 41:12 "Those who contend with you, those who war with you shall be as nothing as a nonexistent thing. For I the Lord your God will hold your right hand saying to you "Fear not, I will help you." In addition to dressing like this, I could not speak or even know what was happening. I could not see out of the black veil clearly. It felt like waking up at night and seeing dim shadows in your room. Hasan's mom had to lead me or else I would fall. I couldn't touch Nadeem, talk to him, or sit next to him in order to show submission as a devout wife. I will tell you without a doubt that GOD sustained me. There is no way I could have done this. I've never been so hot or fearful. If I moved or spoke at all or if Nadeem messed up the language, the judge would have thrown the case out of court. We had no doubt that God would help us, but the battle was fierce. We know that God has a plan for Kalina, and Satan wants to stop it. I'll try to post a picture of me in the outfit. Plesae know that when you pray for us, we feel it. God is taking care of us. This has always been His plan. Our next prayer need is for US approval to bring Kalina home. God is mightier than anything happening here. We know that we'll see His hand at work.

Court on Thursday!

We just received news from the magistrate that we have court at 9:00 a.m. on Thursday (for you at home, 11:00 p.m. on Wednesday). Please pray that all goes well! The judge might see us at 9 or any time after that. We should have Kalina in our arms as our daughter tomorrow!!!! We'll be able to bring her back to Hasan's family's apartment. Hooray! We're watching God move in miraculous ways. When we met the magistrate on Monday, he told us it could take 4 weeks to get a court date.
Isaiah 42:16 "And I will lead the blind by a way they did not know. I will lead them in paths they have not known. I will make darkness light before them, and crooked places straight. These things I will do for them and not forsake them."

Sherri & Kalina

Meeting Kalina

On Monday we held Kalina! She's two months old. Her birthday is actually June 28. She has beautiful deep brown eyes. She stared very intently at us. The nuns are really nice at the orphanage. It's a Mother Teresa orphanage in Dhaka called Missionaries of Charity. One nun told me that even though Kalina can't talk yet, she understands love and can feel that I love her. She's very delicate and feminine. We could just visit for a short time because we had to meet the magistrate about the adoption. Today we go to the American Embassy to get approval to bring Kalina home. Please continue to pray for us.
Bangladesh is very different from the US. Traffic even scares Nadeem! There are rickshaws, scooters, buses, and cars all over the road. Nobody stays in their lanes or follows traffic rules. There are beggars everywhere. Even small children have come to me and refused to leave. They'll even follow you down the road knocking on your car window. It is a bit hot here, not much hotter than home, but there is often no air conditioning. Hasan's apartment ("flat") is nice and has air. This is a religious holiday month (Ramadan), so the people fast from sun-up to sun-down. We often hear the call to prayer outside. We eat as usual. For breakfast we eat eggs and fruit like at home. For other meals we eat the Bangladesh food. It's sort of like Indian food. Nadeem and I both like it. Hasan's family is very kind and hospitable. They've helped us enormously with the adoption. We have recovered from some mild jet lag and are glad to have more energy. Unlike the US, you don't go places quite as freely. Traffic is so bad that it takes 1 hour to travel 10 miles. There is a lot of poverty. So far we've only had time to focus on the adoption process, so I can't share much else about the places in the city. Hasan says that Dhaka is about the size of Suwanee.
I'm eager to share more good news about Kalina and the adoption soon! We do have photos. If technology cooperates, I'll try to post some. Thanks again for your love and prayers.
"And we know that all things work together for the good of those who love Him and who are called according to His purpose." -Romans 8:28

Our trip has begun!

Nadeem and I are in Paris now, halfway to Bangladesh. We'll arrive in Dhaka at 8 pm on Sunday-that's 10 am our time. So far our trip has been smooth. Today we had dinner in Paris. Our flight leaves in an hour. Hasan will travel with us for the remainder of the trip. We should meet Kalina on Monday! Thanks for praying for us! As of now we plan to return on September 29. We can't wait to introduce you to Kalina!

Leaving Today!

Our flight leaves around 8:00 p.m. tonight. We'll arrive in Paris on Saturday and in Dhaka, Bangladesh on Sunday. As of now we still do not have full US approval to return with Kalina, but we're walking forward in faith knowing that this has been God's plan from the beginning. We hope to update again soon with much joyful news!

Growing in Faith

Nadeem's thoughts: Okay, I know I am 40, but I am about to quote the Pussy Cat Dolls, "Be careful for what you wish for because you might just get". Yes, this all started out with a simple prayer, "Lord, I just want to grow closer to you, grow in Faith, and desire you above all else". That's when my happy little earthly life changed. James 1:2-4 Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. I don't know about pure joy, maybe hell. I was always too prideful to even think about adoption. I guess that is probably the biggest obstacle between man and God, pride. The first thing God told me to do is be the leader of my family. Sounds easy, but it is incredible hard to do and be selfish all at the same time. A selfish man cannot be a good leader. To be the leader of your family or at your job you have to humble yourself to the people you are trying to lead. We men tend to put ourselves first and we can't do that if we are to love our wives like Jesus loves the church. A very tough battle! The second thing God told me to do is adopt a child from Bangladesh; the ultimate battle of humility. Men take a lot of credit for their children, even though the credit belongs to God. I guess in this case all the glory goes to the Father. What's the third thing? I don't know but neither did Abraham.

A faith journey

At this point, we still do not have US approval to bring Kalina home with us. The reports from "man" are discouraging. Yesterday we were told that it might be impossible to complete the US requirements and get clearance before our plane leaves on Friday. Today we learned that we will most likely be able to leave for Bangladesh on Friday, but the final approval to return to the US may not come for a long period of time. We're on a challenging path. When God first put in our hearts to adopt from Bangladesh last fall, it appeared to be impossible. There are no adoption agencies that work there, and you must be a citizen of Bangladesh in order to adopt one of their children. Later in the fall, we learned that Nadeem has dual citizenship with the US and Bangladesh-at least in the eyes of Bangladesh-since Nadeem's grandfather used to be the ambassador there. Nadeem has never lived in Bangladesh, so we had no idea that this was the case! God started to open doors for us and show us the way. We know that this is God's plan, and we know that He'll complete it. Please continue to pray for us and for Kalina!
"With man this is inpossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God." -Mark 10:27

Leaving soon!

Thank you so much for all of your prayers and words of encouragement! We are so grateful for all of the friends and family that God has blessed us with. We're leaving on Friday to start our incredible journey.