Way too long!

Yes, it has been way too long and there is almost too much to say. A lot has happened in the last 3 months and things- much to my amazement, are going well.

As you can see from the pictures, I went back to Ghana and had the time of my life enjoying every second with my man. God was so evident in so much of what happened while I was there and we feel confident and at peace about the path we are taking.

Coming back has been a whirlwind and I have been very, very busy- which helps to distract me a bit, but can be hard to juggle. I must admit that at times I still feel like a visitor in my own life and would much rather be in Ghana. I know though, that being here is working towards George and my future and that in light of the rest of our lives, this time won't be long at all.

So that's it- as condensed as I can make it. Our resolve is strong and our God is with us.

What the?!?

I'm not sure if anyone even reads this anymore because of my lack of updating and the turn our story has taken from amazing, uplifting and entertaining....to heartbreaking, hopeless and not quite so entertaining (thus, the lack of updates).

So, we've just been truckin' along trying to keep the faith and figure out what to do next. We're waiting on the Lord and seeking Him for guidance and hope.

George and I were both feeling pretty sad and upset today and then we got a glimmer of hope. It turns out that George has a cousin that lives basically down the road from me! How crazy is that? So I spoke to her on the phone (wonderful and hilarious all at the same time) and tomorrow I'm going to have lunch with her. It was so encouraging to talk to her and it doesn't feel like George is so dreadfully far away since I have one of his family members near by. So that's cool, I've been praying for some sort of encouragement and I was not expecting this, but it's great nonetheless and I'll take what I can get. Until later....

I waited patiently for the Lord: and He inclined to me and heard my cry. He brought me up out of the pit of destruction, out of the miry clay, and He set my feet upon a rock making my footsteps firm. He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God; Many will see and fear and will trust in the Lord. Psalm 40:1-3

We're still here!

We're still here and we're still in love.

There have been many mixed reactions from people about George not getting the visa. Some people think that because it's not easy, we should just quit; some people think the visa thing was some sort of a fleece or test as to whether or not we should be together; some people think we should blow off everyone and run away together, among other things...

So this is what I think. Just because things aren't easy doesn't mean they're not meant to be- if that were the case where would any of us be? Besides that, that thought process is definitely NOT modeled in scripture and I am SO NOT a quitter. Also, the visa was not a fleece or a test in any way. We know we are meant to be together, we're pretty sure that means getting married sooner, rather than later and we hoped that my family and friends would get to meet George here before we were married- the only thing that has changed is the last. And as completely appealing as running away sounds, it's pretty juvenile....can we say "Disney"?

So then, what's next? I still haven't got a clue (well, maybe a clue, but only a tiny one). I've been thinking a lot about the story of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead and it's been encouraging... and frustrating. When Lazarus' sisters sent word to Jesus about his illness Jesus said he wouldn't die, but he did-!- to human eyes anyway. And then look what happened, Jesus brought him back! I'm not implying that the visa is our Lazarus and that God's going to turn it around, what I am saying is that things happen that we don't get and God uses bad things and turns them around to the good of those who love Him and to His glory. I look at the story of Lazarus and even knowing the outcome can still think of half a dozen ways that God could have been obviously glorified without Lazarus' friends and family going through all that heartache. It's a good thing I'm not in charge though, huh?

So we keep praying. Praying for direction, praying for finances, praying for greater faith, praying for miracles, praying for peace and wisdom, and just praying. This is all a tremendous walk of faith, one that sometimes lends way to tears and anxiety, but mostly, a walk of faith.

'I waited patiently for the Lord.....'

Visa news...

"This changes nothing, I am still George and you are still Bethany, my wife [to be]."

George sweetly reminded me of that fact today after he was denied a visa.

We have had time to cry, we have had time to be really mad at my government and we have had a little bit of time to chill out. At the end of the day, God is still God and He is still in control, even though it looks like this totally sucks.

We're not sure what steps to take from here and are thinking about several possibilities. Please continue to pray for us as we walk through this disappointment and move forward...

Gye Nyame

This is my favorite West African Adinkra symbol "Gye Nyame" which means "Except for God", a symbol of the supremacy of God. You can find it plastered all across Ghana as a constant reminder of the need for God and His supremacy in ALL things. It's particularly fitting right now, because that's where we are. We have exhausted all of our resources and are beyond being able to do things ourselves or with the help of any man.....Except for God.

More bumps in the road!

Things as of this moment aren't exactly going smoothly, we really need your prayers.

George tried to get the paper from the UNHCR and he did, only it's not really from the UNHCR. Even though he went to the UNHCR building everyday, rode in their vehicles, answered to their bosses and was "hired" by a UNHCR person, technically, his internship was with WISE (Women Initiative for Self Empowerment). The two organizations were working with one another and for some reason his internship fell under WISE. The problem here is that the whole point of the letter is to confirm the truth of what I said about George, and now it won't. Ahhhh! Also, the man George worked for is now in Iraq and can't be reached, so we can't get him to write a personal letter either.

As for the transcript, the school is saying that will take a month, which judging by their track record, it really means 6-8 weeks. We aren't sure what to do at this point, but we're praying and trying to be resourceful.

Didn't see that one coming!

Today was the day....and we don't have an answer.

I'll try not to be too cynical here, but there really aren't words to express my disgust with this whole process or the people we have been dealing with. On the flip side, there also aren't words to express how amazing George is, he's handling all of this so well while maintaining excellent grades and a good attitude. Yay George!

George went to the consulate compound in Accra today and had a very long interview. However, his passport size photos weren't quite what they wanted so he had to fix that first. He was taken to a specific passport picture place by a consulate security guard and payed through the nose to get pictures that looked VERY similar to what he already had (this is not the first time this has happened and is quite suspicious to me!).

Once that was finished he actually had his interview. To quote George, the woman who interviewed him was "younger than you [Bethany]", she was "disturbing me [George]" and "made me [George] very hot [irritated]". George had to convince her to read my letter-which she didn't, and basically argued with her the whole time about who he was and who I am. In the end, she didn't say yes and she didn't say no. She wants a school transcript and a letter from the UNHCR about his past internship with them. So he will return next week on Monday, Tuesday or Thursday. Hopefully she'll actually see him.

George has already spoken to the UNHCR and they will get him his letter quickly. The University of Cape Coast however, is quite another issue! They have been nothing but difficult and S-L-O-W!! So my prayer is that they would be nice for once and have a sense of urgency (I know, obviously the prayers of a Westerner, but the consulate's not going to wait!) So please be in prayer with me. Lord willing, next week we will have some real news!

One week...

George's interview with the consulate is a week from today at 1:30pm Ghana time. It hardly seems real that in just one week there will be an end to all of this waiting and anxiety. So PLEASE PRAY!!

Pray that the interview will not be rescheduled.

Pray that the heart of the interviewer would be turned towards George to grant him a visa.

Pray that George would be at peace and have confidence and know exactly how to answer the questions.

Pray for peace for me waiting over here for the news.

Pray that God would be glorified in our lives and in the lives of the people George interacts with.

Not long now...

Nothing new on the visa front, just waiting for the interview....

In other news, my mom and I registered for gifts this week and it was so much fun! I got to dream about all the wonderful aspects of our life when we're married. It was difficult at times to figure what to register for to take with and use in Ghana (meaning light weight, not expensive, and something we may or may not bring home) and what do I register for to use for years and years and years! But it was a blast and made me very optimistic for our future. I enjoyed telling George about it, but he won't truly understand until he comes. He told me, "This is NOT something we do in Ghana!"

Also, I am losing my mind and memory! My mind is so encompassed with immigration/visa stuff, planning a wedding, and figuring out how to move 6,000 miles away that I'm forgetting other things. Such as, but not limited to, not sending George two very important papers about his interview with the consulate- I just forgot to scan them and send them to him! That is totally not like me! George was extremely understanding and reminded me about it before it was too late, so at least I haven;t done too much damage. Hopefully as soon as we have a visa that will free up space in my brain and I can function like I used to! I guess we'll just have to wait on that one too....

Anxious for nothing...

Yeah, I'm working on that! Sometimes I feel like I'm anxious for everything.

I was thinking today about my favorite verse and the one I keep remembering through all of my worry about immigration and at times the uncertainty of our future and my desire to make everything work out, all on my own.

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice! Let your gentle spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:4-7

Through God's providence, this verse stood out to me in a different way about the time I met George and has helped to guide me through the travails and triumphs of dealing with immigration, navigating cultures and a bi-continental relationship and everything in between. It reminds me how big God is and how much He cares. It also reminds me that I should chill out and be thankful for all things, even when they don't go my way. :) The 3am post may have seemed a bit whiney and I was not very happy. However, I am so thankful and I need to bring that back to the forefront. I'm thankful for George and our future, thankful for wonderful and supportive family and friends, thankful for a good Internet connection in the middle of the night, thankful that we finally have an interview date and are moving forward in the visa process and so much more! God is so good and I am very fortunate.

The things you do for love.

It's 3am which is when normal employed people should be sleeping, but I've been up for more than an hour trying to get an interview time for George. The consulate told him the website typically works between about 7 and 8 in the morning...Ghana time. Well, we all know how reliable Ghana Internet has been, so my alarm went off at 2, so I could give it a shot! The first 50 minutes or so are a frustrating daze of trying to stay awake and pressing refresh a zillion times, but all of the sudden, it worked! So after trying to contact George to figure out which date was best (his preferences weren't available) and losing all the close dates while waiting for a response (I only waited for about 15 minutes!) we ended up on April 15th. I'm not exactly ecstatic with how late the date is, but at least we have one....maybe some sleep will make this seem like a bigger victory, right now I'm kind of bummed.

One more step in the right direction!

We still don't have an appointment, but George was able to print the much needed papers and contact the consulate today. Hopefully more news soon!

A mini victory dance and a squeak!

We have a completed application!!

After trying and trying and trying some more, we decided to ditch the whole Ghana Internet thing. I was a little concerned that it wouldn't work to fill out the application here, because we have to print it so George can take it to his interview (I wasn't sure if he would be able to open that type of scanned attachment or if I could get it scanned in properly). So we did it anyway- we'll see tomorrow if it worked and if I have to spend a small fortune overnighting (is that a word?) the papers to Ghana, then so be it. It took me from the time I got home from church to the time I had to go back to church and included the Internet phone complete with headset, not one, but two computers, a mad dash to Walgreen's by my sister to get ink for the printer and help from dad and others to get the silly application scanned into Word. We were not able to get an interview time though, that part of the website didn't seem to be working, so G will call tomorrow, but all in all, it was a productive day and we are actually moving forward. It was also really cool to fill this form out together. :)

And on a random note, let me just point out that all of the visa process absolutely MUST be done in English without exceptions (not even foreign characters for names). However, in the U.S. people can vote in foreign languages and most of our other important government documents come in several different languages. And you know what, that kind of makes me mad-not that we needed anything in a different language, but it's the principal of the matter! Ridiculous.

Try, try, try again.

George tried to complete the online application and get an interview today (yet again) and still no progress. He'll try again on Monday and needs to study on Tuesday for 4 quizzes on Wednesday, so if Monday doesn't work, Thursday will be our next try....I guess we won't know anything by the end of this month after all.

In case you haven't noticed, the whole hope deferred thing royally sucks.....and, it's making me sick.

6 HOURS!!

....and not a step closer! George spent 6, yes s-i-x, 6 hours at the Internet cafe trying to do the application and get an interview time, but everything was so slow and wouldn't work correctly, so the poor guy has nothing to show for all that time. :( I also just found out that the wait time for an interview has doubled since we started this process, I'd like to be optimistic, but it all just seems to get worse, doesn't it?

Nothing.

No change.

Light out.

So I couldn't handle another title with something along the lines of "Tomorrow" or "Still waiting"- it's too dismal, but that's basically where we stand. There were lights out on Campoose today....translation: the power was out on George's Campus. That means, no computers, which means, no Internet connection, which means, no application being filled, which means no interview date, which means we are not really moving forward. So I continue to wait, I don't know when it will happen and dare not even suggest that it may be....tomorrow.

Tomorrow, again.

Yep, the answer is tomorrow...again. George missed school yesterday to go to Accra so today was catch-up because he has a presentation tomorrow. So, tomorrow he should fill out the application and get an interview. We shall see....

Tomorrow and a half.

Yesterday's tomorrow is today and is partially fulfilled, so I'm happy.

George did indeed go Accra and paid the application fee. However, he was not able to get online and fill out the application and get an interview (it's fairly involved and not something you can really pause in the middle of). So it's tomorrow yet again, that we should really have some concrete information-that is, if the power works, the net works, the computers work (and all those things continue to work), there isn't a huge line at the net and George doesn't get caught up studying or in class. Simple enough, right? It still looks like the end of the month before we'll know, but we are moving in the right direction and at a fairly nice pace, maybe we have finally found our perfect Ghamerican time. :)

Tomorrow.

That would be a reoccurring theme in this process, the answer is always tomorrow...and then tomorrow again...and, well you get the picture. I'm praying for only one tomorrow this time.

So, tomorrow (we hope) George is going to Accra very early in the morning to pay the fee and will hopefully return to Cape Coast and go to his Internet Cafe to do all the online stuff and get an appointment. So, tomorrow, we could actually have a date for the big interview!

Nothing new...

Has anyone else noticed how much this process seems to resemble a roller coaster? Nah, maybe that's just me!

I do want to mention though that all the stress and trouble of getting a visa, all the worry, all the tears (that would mostly be me), all the sleepless nights, all the phone throwing (that would totally be me) is SO worth it and has brought out only wonderful things in our relationship. As stressful and frustrating as this is, George and I are not stressed or frustrated with one another. Immigration is going to be something we have to deal with for a long time, so we just have to figure out the system (and hopefully make a lot of money so we can have an attorney who figures it out for us!). It's really been a wonderful challenge so far and as much as I just want to have a visa and move on to bigger and better things, life doesn't work that way, and who would we be if everything went smoothly? We are learning so much and our faith is growing more and more everyday. I think God seems bigger to me as this moves on and the more discouraged we get, the more we lean on him and the more we grow together. I'm so thankful for George, he is a rock...and me, I put on a rock face when I need to, that, and try not to cry on the phone!

Let's watch the phone fly.

I must admit.....out of frustration, I threw my phone, again. I know, it's not exactly the most mature thing to do, but I come by it honest.

I talked to George today and it's quite possible that all of central TX heard me screaming something along the lines of "My country SUCKS!!". Now mind you, I don't feel this way everyday, but I do right now and that's my American right, so I'm going to take advantage of it. The reason for this? Nothing is moving on the visa right now because of that incredible thing called bureaucracy. You see, in order to pay for the privilege of an interview with the consulate, George has to pay the fee at a specific bank in the capital city. Yes, this bank has branches, but you can only pay in Accra. This means George has to take an entire day to go to Accra and deal with this, because paying at a branch would be far to convenient, "easy" if you will, and that's just not the American way! After G pays, he'll get a code as a receipt and will need to then go to an Internet cafe and log onto a Consulate website and input the code. Once he does that, he'll need to fill out an online application, print a bunch of junk and THEN he can schedule an interview. The wait times are at least a week which is right around the time that George has 4 massively important quizzes that he CANNOT miss or be distracted from. So we're looking at the end of the month here before we get an interview. Did I mention that after all this George can clear his schedule, travel all the way to Accra, show up on his interview date and be turned away and rescheduled because the consulate is busy? 'Tis true. And am I the only person who seems to think there is something wrong with this?!

We got it...

...for real. George has the letter in hand, right now, as I type, for certain.

My friends think this is great, it is. But it means nothing except that now we get to fully enjoy the complicated, annoying, painful, nauseating, inconvenient workings of the world of US Immigration. I can't wait! I just love every second I spend writing e-mails that will never be read to agents and agencies created to "assist me", researching for hours on end and never getting any closer to a simple answer, and reading the copious State Department visa "how-to" pages that are impossible to understand. Only someone as completely incredible and perfect for me as George is worth even considering dealing with the big headed monster known as Immigration. Here we go!

I'd like to vomit now...

Some trust in chariots....

What an encouragement today at church. Daniel prayed about us not putting our hopes in governments, jobs, finances or other "chariots" but in the name of the Lord our God. AMEN!

Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God. Psalm 20:7

Still waiting....

Nothing new, phone still works.

Say what?!

George "got" his letter today and can pick it up next Tuesday. One would think this means he didn't actually get his letter today, and there in lies the problem, the thinking part.

I've often wanted to throw my phone while trying to navigate the bureaucracy of each of our countries and have refrained. Self control is overrated....I threw it, it felt good, my phone survived.

Yay!

So George woke me up at 6:00 this morning with wonderful news! I he went back to the registrar (again!) and was told to come back TOMORROW for the letter! I am so happy!

P.S. Happy Birthday lil' bro!

Some hope?

I got some good encouragement from church folks today and talked to George (which is always wonderful!). He's going to go back to the registrar tomorrow and appeal. If that doesn't work, well, I don't know.

And it continues.....

The registrar said maybe in two weeks he'll give George the letter, maybe in March. We're both frustrated, trying to figure out what to do next.

Patience, right?

My patience is wearing very, very thin. I thought I did well with the whole Ghana-time thing, I was totally chill about this, I knew things would move soon enough, and I prided myself on that.....I was wrong.

We have one thing holding up the visa process and it's about to eat my lunch- a letter from the University of Cape Coast. We need this letter to confirm that George does actually go there and will actually return to Ghana (that is a very important thing to prove to the United States!). However, the registrar is on a power trip and won't give George the letter, he keeps putting it off for some reason. George has done all he can do and we still have nothing. I'm starting to think we should play this game their way and resort to bribery, but how wrong would that be? I did track down the man's e-mail address though and I'll see if George is okay with my dad or me sending him a note. Why we think our western influence will do anything, I don't know, but I guess it's worth a try. KEEP ON PRAYING!!

He's baaaack....

George is back from the field and it's so wonderful to know that I can talk to him whenever I want (though I can't afford it, it's nice to know). I've done a ton of research about getting a visa and we've learned a bit from the last attempt. We have almost everything together to get started because the earlier the better! One thing we still need is a letter from George's school, they wouldn't give him one before his trip because classes hadn't officially started (him being on a school research trip didn't count....I'm rolling my eyes). So hopefully we will get that fairly quickly, Ghana time quickly that is, I don't mean tomorrow. :)

The waiting game.

George is "in the field" now doing research and won't return to Cape Coast to really get the ball rolling on the visa for two weeks. So at the moment, it's just a waiting game. I feel very anxious right now and must remind myself of my earlier optimism and faith. Those things are still true and I know that they are, but waiting like this is hard to do. So for now, we keep praying and dreaming of what we hope is to come.

One thing that has been such a blessing recently is a class at church based on the book When Sinners Say "I Do". George is taking it with me, only long distance. It's very thought provoking and we feel so blessed and encouraged to be able to learn so much even before we are married. Another big blessing and encouragement is my friend Meredith who has been praying with us all along and sharing meaningful scripture, I am so thankful for her.

Many, O LORD my God, are the wonders you have done. The things you planned for us no one can recount to you; were I to speak and tell of them, they would be too many to declare.

Psalm 40:5

THE dress!

What an interesting weekend this was! God showed up for us in our everyday life yet again.

As you can imagine, getting married fully a year before originally planned added to another wedding (or two) happening with my brother(s) this summer can be a bit of a financial stretch. So my mom and I sat down and did a budget, balancing the reality of how expensive weddings are but cutting down on how extravagant they have become. So even as inexpensively as we figured we could pull off this beautiful event, it's not cheap and many, many times more than what my parents spent on theirs! So I started praying, not that money would fall from the sky or anything like that, but that the Lord would provide amazing resources to have this celebration in an affordable and non debt inducing manner! Immediately I started to see the Lord move and I think the dress is only the beginning!

So earlier this week my mom had mentioned going wedding dress shopping and even though I am a huge fan of shopping and love all things fashion, I didn't exactly want to because we still don't have a visa. I feel torn sometimes between being so happy and excited that George and I are getting married that I could wet myself to trying not to be excited because we still don't have a visa! It's usually the first though. :) Anyway, I decided that I did really want to go dress shopping, but just to look. When we got to the dress shop we made sure our consultant knew about the situation so she didn't get her hopes up for a sale and she said it was no problem at all. So I tried on about a million and a half dresses and had a blast with my mom. But there was this one dress that I loved, I tried it on first and last. It was the only one they had and I felt marvelous and comfortable in it and it fit like a dream! We had the consultant check the price and it was on sale for WAY less than our budget. At about that moment my dad called to see what we were up to and he was shocked when my mom told him the news "It's a fingerprint of God." he said, "Buy it!". So we did, and I am very excited!! I can't wait to see what God has next for us.

We still need a visa, so obviously that is on the top of my prayer list, but right now, I have a LOT of faith and I am just so excited about our future.