Visa Update: Approval Granted!

Just a little while ago, we received a phone call from our interviewer in Atlanta. He wanted to know if he had indeed given us the form to be filled out by the Protestant Federation, and if so, why we had not returned it to him. (He had received the documents we had mailed.) Tim carefully explained why we had been unable to get the Protestant Federation to fill out the form, and how we had instead obtained the other invitations in hopes that they would serve as replacements. Tim tried to politely communicate the fact that while we are Protestant, that doesn't mean that the Protestant Federation is the only Protestant group out there. Our "friend behind the window" said that he understood that, but that this is a new measure that must be implemented, and the Federation must learn that they are going to have to work with the government in this. The end of the story is that he said he would allow us to receive an exception since we had applied so long ago, but he made it clear that we needed to understand that we are receiving an exception. We are rejoicing in the fact that the king's heart really is in the hand of the Lord, and as Johanna Hanson prayed while we were giving thanks to God, our friend could not make a decision that was out of the will of God, no matter what his personal will was.

All that said, it will still be a comfort when we actually have received the passports and visas in hand. They should be fed-exed to us, and so could arrive as early as Friday. Of course, this also makes us very aware of the fact that it could be even more difficult for the Coles to obtain their visas because of this "measure", and so we need to be carefully considering over the next months what steps we should be taking to pave the way for them.

Thank you to all who have prayed about this. We will let you know when we actually have the visas in hand!