Hi Friends!
We have just received great news from our social worker. It seems that the Haitian government has relented on their stringent rule changes for now, and we have been accepted by them! Below is a quote from an email sent to our social worker by the director of the orphanage we will be working with.
“We are telling families that at least one parent must be 28 years old, married at least 5 years and no more than 3 biological children for now. Exceptions, if they have 4 boys by birth and they want to adopt a girl or two, a situation like this, Haiti would probably let them.” -Dixie
This is truly the work of God. You see, there are some people in the Haitian government who believe that adoption is human trafficking. They, of course, have not had contact with any adoptees or the families who have adopted them, so they do not understand the blessed miracle of adoption. However, the orphanage director and her attorney worked hard to meet with the director of Haitian social services (IBESR) to discuss with her the reality that these new rules were not in the best interest of the many little ones who need forever families, and that many eligible families had to be turned away to other countries.
Apparently, the heart of the director of IBESR was changed as a result of that meeting. Our agency is now contacting some of the families that had to consider other countries. As for us – we forge ahead! We didn’t expect any news from Haiti until the end of this month, or possibly the end of February. Hopefully our next update will include news of a referral for a little son or daughter.
The most wonderful thing about this is that it’s so much bigger than we are. This isn’t about us. This isn’t about God giving us a child. This is about God Himself being a Father to the fatherless, caring for the orphan by ensuring that many will be welcomed into forever families. We simply have the privilege of watching Him work before our very eyes. So tonight we leave you with the beauty of the scriptures. In Psalm 10:14, the Psalmist says of God, “…You have been the helper of the orphan.” Isn’t it great that He still is, these many hundreds of years later?
Matthew and Valerie Garrett
