Home!

One last post for anyone who hadn't heard through other channels. We made it out of Colombia and home yesterday (Thursday) afternoon. We are very appreciative for everyone who helped us. There were many who made sacrifices and worked very hard to get us home. We especially thank all of you who prayed for us these past days. It's good to be back!
The Clelands and the Weesners

Jason has arrived

Just a quick update to let you know that Jason has arrived. We fly out at midnight tonight.

The doctor said Kay is doing much better and sees no reason she cannot travel.

We are very thankful for answered prayers! Keep us in your prayers as we work our way through immigration.

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

On the good front, Jason is on his way to Chicago. He will arrive here around 5 AM. This is our best option for getting out. Please pray for his safety, smooth sailing through Chicago, and that there would be no delays or cancellations in the flights. Nasko is doing much better and seems back to normal.

On the bad front, Kay is still sick and there is the concern of dehydration. The doctor is coming by at 4 to follow up. As for the papers we spent all day yesterday working on, the Colombian consulate has refused to send them to immigration because they were authenticated (apostilled) in the US. The best we can do is to get them here by FedEx on Thursday which is after our flight. So we very much need Jason to get here.

On the ugly front, we heard that another family has been delayed for much the same reasons. It seems that the Colombian immigration is very strict about the children of US adoptive families who return to Colombia. We learned yesterday from a US missionary friend here at the house that the US embassy in Colombia has a hands off policy for Americans if they have any kind of legal trouble. Basically they have been told that they are on their own. In our experience so far, we have had some good help in the way of advice from the embassy, but it seems that at a certain point, they back off. Our congressional state representative has contacted the Colombia Country Desk Officer at the State Department who is contacting the Colombian embassy. We’re not sure that will accomplish much at this point.

Keep the kids in your prayers as well. They are very frustrated and lacking sufficient attention as we work to get out of here. It is difficult to go anywhere as Kay and Nasko are restricted. This is a small house with nothing to do and you can’t just send them outside to play. I am sitting outside now writing this so some of them can play in a park next to the house. I will drag myself out to take them to get ice cream later.

This is all very unfortunate as our troubles are not representative of the Colombian people. We run into extremely few who are not kind, caring and always wanting to and looking for ways to help you. This is a bureaucratic issue that seems to be aggravated by the bad blood between our two governments. I would love to find a way to change that so that we can have better relations between our countries.

There’s no place like home…There’s no place like home…

We have spent the morning trying to cover every possible avenue available to us to make sure we can leave Wednesday night. There are many in Colombia and in America with the courage to help us. People are driving all over to get the paperwork to Colombia. Our embassy friend is working and has been available 24 hours a day. The doctor just left and only charged 200,000 pesos (a little over $100) for seeing both Kay and Nasko. She is returning tomorrow to follow up, no extra charge. And yes, you heard right, it’s a house call. Rep Tim Walberg’s office is following up with the embassy to make sure they are doing everything possible. We were denied an embassy person to accompany us through immigration, but his office will also make the request. The guest house is allowing us to stay for free which saves about $450.

Jason is flying back here Tuesday night. As a backup, the documents are being transmitted to the embassy. Another backup would be for war to break out between the US and Colombia and then the embassy would have to get us out. Keep Jason in your prayers as he has had very little sleep or food and will be working again tonight before flying Tuesday night to Colombia.

Kay and Nasko are on medication now. Nasko does not have chicken pox. They are on bed rest until tomorrow. We just need them past the vomiting and diarrhea phases so they can get on the plane.

Now that the paperwork is completed things have settled down a little here. Sara is doing better as well.  We appreciate all your prayers and your many offers to help. You have said you felt helpless, but trust us, we know that feeling. It’s just really good to know that God is in control. Our theme last week at CRAN was “strong and courageous” and we’ve been leaning on God a lot for strength and courage. Next year though, let’s make the theme a little easier. Something like “fun and games.”

Nightmare on Calle 116

We have some prayer requests for you. One is for Nasko. He is throwing up. We have also noticed that he has a few bumps on his stomach. The concern is that he has chicken pox. We are trying to get into a doctor tomorrow. Kay had some stomach issues this week, but was free of it for 36 hours. However, the symptoms have returned. No one else has any serious concerns except for the stress Sara is under.

This morning we went to church. It was nice to get into a routine. We made a dinner of scrambled eggs, toast, sausage, and potatoes of course. Not our usual Sunday dinner, but good. We’ve spent the rest of the day working on details to cover all of our bases to get home. Even though Jason is going to fly here Tuesday evening, we still want to try to get the proper forms from him sent down in case his flight is cancelled for some strange reason (like that never happens). We also talked to our friend at the American embassy. She found a form on the Colombia Immigration web site, but it’s very ambiguous in its questions so she is going to call immigration in the morning. We will have Jason fill it out, have it notarized and apostilled (a trip to Grand Rapids), and see if we can overnight it to the Bethany social worker here. A lot has to work out for that to be successful.

So, there are some prayer concerns for you. Please pass this blog address on to others who want to keep updated and pray.

Update !

Here’s what happened and what the status is…

Jason had to return home a day early because he has a new job and could not take too much time off. He and Sara had checked with Bethany (our adoption agency) as to what Sara would need in order to take the children out of Colombia without Jason. They did what they were told, but the information was not complete. A Colombian child who is adopted in the US maintains dual citizenship. The Colombian government is very concerned for the rights of the child even though the child is also a US citizen. Because we are in Colombia we are under their laws primarily. The problem is that the power of attorney that Jason signed and notarized was in English and that it had not been apostilled (sealed). Other governments do not recognize our notaries without the apostille. The mistake was that even though our government would have accepted such a document, Colombia does not, and would not accept it. The rest of us were already through immigration and security. Sara was able to bring me back to be with her and the children and to try to help her. During this time they kept saying they were working on a solution, but all they were actually doing was making sure they were accurately following their laws. Sara was obviously very distressed and we were trying to find out what we should do. Unfortunately the people in immigration were not cooperative and refused to allow us to contact our embassy or to give us any further information. Sara’s only solution was to remain in country and contact people who could help us. We have many friends here and they are working to help us. I decided to remain in country so as not to leave Sara here alone with four children. The problem with just me staying was that Kay could not travel out of the country with Jenny because I was not with them. It’s the same predicament Sara was in. So all three of us stayed and we all returned to the guest house. It was good to hear that the rest of the team made it back okay.

Now we are trying to figure out what is the best avenue to take. Jason can redo the paperwork for the power of attorney, but there is the risk it would not be sufficient. He could not do anything until Monday and then it would take a couple of days to get the papers down here. We currently have flights for Wednesday night. The next available would be July 6. Because that solution is so tentative, we are trying to get Jason back down here so they can travel back together. That seems to be the only sure way of getting out of country by Wednesday. There are other issues with our Jenny that we are concerned about. We were asked for proof of her Colombian birth which is the passport, but they were requesting her Colombian birth certificate which we did not have with us. We got through without it, but we might not the next time. It is totally up to the agent you happen to get. We are hoping Jason can locate it for us to bring with him. He is working this weekend at night and is exhausted and concerned.

It was a wonderful trip and the others on the team can testify as to God’s hand in the lives of the children we ministered to as well as the adults who were watching us. It was our intent this morning to share our experiences with you, but that will have to wait. When we started the work here last weekend, we talked about how we wanted God to be glorified in our lives and in the work He did through us. We do not want Satan to rob us of the blessings and the victory in the lives of the children. Jenny asked me last night if this was God testing us. I believe it is Satan’s attempt to steal God’s glory and that God is revealing His faithfulness. Trials like this can be used to bring more glory to God if we allow it.

The Colombian people are great and we do not want you to think poorly of them…immigration, not so much.

We appreciate your prayers and look forward to sharing with you in church next Sunday.

Pastor Rick

Friday!

Wow! What a day! After our classes at CRAN they had a ceremony to thank us. It was very difficult saying goodbye to the children and to the adults. It was a great week!

After CRAN we took taxis to Plaza de Bolivar. We walked around the square to the president’s house. We were supposed to have a tour but it was cancelled because the president of South Korea was visiting. Never being one to accept “No” for an answer, we asked at every guard station if our friend in the president’s security team, Jairo Cortes, was there. He’s the one who originally set up the tour. No one knew where he was, but we ran into him on the street. He took us on a tour of the Police Museum. It was really cool! We met his children on the way back from the museum.

We went shopping a little and then took the trans-milenio. It’s their mass transit. It was standing room only and VERY crowded. Not everyone did so well, but we all survived.

We have an early day tomorrow and a long flight. Keep us in your prayers.

Thursday!

Today at CRAN was a little different. Kay has been sick so she stayed “home.” We had to shift responsibilities to cover for her, but it all worked out. She’s feeling better tonight, so we’re hoping she will be able to go tomorrow.

After CRAN we went on our visit to La Mazorca. It’s a restaurant up in the mountains not too far from where we live. It’s the place where you sit on tree stumps. We got there and they had just closed. They recommended another place down the road so we went there. This place was called El Mazorcon. It was a much nicer place and unfortunately for La Mazorca, it’s our new favorite place to go. The food was great and the restaurant was much cleaner. It was right across the street from a mountain lake. Everybody enjoyed the food and ate too much. Some did try the delicacy of the area – grilled stuffed cow intestine (or as Jason calls it – cow booty).

We had an appointment to visit the Colombian president’s house, but apparently some other president is visiting and so our visit was cancelled. It better not be President Obama! It’s probably Hugo Chavez. So we are going to go downtown to the city square. Hopefully we will at least see a changing of the guard at the president’s house.

We realized that no one has been able to leave comments on our blog because of the way the site was set up. You can now if you want.

Please keep Jason in your prayers tomorrow. He flies home earlier than the rest of us. We will miss him and we’re sure the kids will, too!

Wednesday!

It was another day at CRAN. Our story was about Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. They were the three friends of Daniel who ended up in the fiery furnace because they were faithful to God. God honored their faithfulness and delivered them through the flames. The children listened well to the story. Besides the story time we also have a craft room, a music room, and an activity room. Each of the areas reinforces the lesson of the Bible story. We were told by the workers at CRAN that we are their favorite group that comes to minister to the children. They say that we have the best control over the children. There are some Christians who work at CRAN, but they are not allowed to share their faith openly. They are surprised that we are allowed to teach the Bible as their own churches in Colombia are not permitted to do so. It’s truly a God thing!

On the way home we stopped at Maku which is like a gift shop. We had a lot of leftovers from throughout the week so we decided to add a few things to it and have a leftovers dinner. We ended up with more food than when we started. So Sara and Jason boxed some up and took a taxi out to find people to give it to. They found a street vendor and he told them there was a family down the road so they came back and got more food for them. Another God thing!

The best part of church is when it affects our attitude and actions. Finding other Christians in our midst, serving and being served, and ministering in places that are otherwise closed to the church have showed us the importance of what we are doing. We cannot change the entire world, but we have changed the world for a few people. That’s what church is all about.

Tuesday!

Today we visited CRAN to conduct our camp for the children. As always, the beginning was a little rough, but it went well through the day. Our theme for the week is Strong and Courageous from Joshua 1:9 – “Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.” Today we told them the story of David and Goliath and how David trusted God and stood up to the giant.

It was great to see old friends and make new friends. We were given four volunteers to work with us and to translate for us. They were young college students that just happened to be passing through Bogotá. At least one of them is a Christian and they were all very excited about being here with us (and the children of course). From the children to the adults, everyone is happy we are here and they find ways to serve us. One little girl asked if we were thirsty after camp. She then ran down to her room to get a glass of water for us. Of course we cannot drink the water unless it is treated, but her servant spirit was very inspiring.

We had lunch at CRAN and then enjoyed a taxi ride back to the house. It was an early morning and so we spent the afternoon resting and preparing for tomorrow. We return to CRAN for camp and then will go to an artisan store to purchase gifts and souvenirs.

The team is working exceptionally well together. Everyone is contributing and we are all getting along great. It’s a blessing to be part of such a dedicated team who love the Lord and want to serve Him.

Monday!

Today we went to the Prado community. That’s where the recyclers live. It’s a very humbling experience, but it’s encouraging to know the impact the local church has had in that community. It’s also encouraging and exciting to be a small part of God’s work in that community. We played games with the kids and told them the story of David and Goliath.

After Prado we went back to the church to work with the children that were given school scholarships by Project Hope. They make jewelry that we bring back to sell in the United States. They made enough jewelry to cover most of the cost of their scholarships next year. It was fun to work with the children. There were some who took it very seriously and worked hard. There is one little girl who plans to be a doctor when she grows up. We are sure that with the help of God she will accomplish her goals.

We walked to a local mall and had ice cream at Crepes & Waffles. It’s awesome ice cream! Then some walked the rest of the way home while others took a taxi.

There are always people God brings to us who are special to us that day. One of those persons was Dago. He spent the day with us and became part of the team. He helped us in so many ways and gave up his holiday to be with us. (Today was a holiday, but nobody knows why.) We have learned to appreciate the church universal and the ways God brings us together.

Tomorrow we go to CRAN. In our devotions tonight we learned that it takes only a moment to make an eternal difference in the life of someone. Pray for us that we would have many of those moments this week.

Sunday!

Hi everyone! We are sorry we didn’t write anything yesterday. It was a very busy day and traffic in Bogotá was very heavy. We started with church. We rode a city bus there. It was very crowded and Nasko had to stand. Then an elderly lady offered her seat, but we said no. Then she brought Nasko over to sit on her lap. She was very nice. At church it was great to see old friends, although many of them were back in the States or Canada.  We shared communion with them.

Then we went on a long bus ride to downtown. Some went to the Gold Museum and others went shopping. We went up to Monserrate. It was a little cloudy but the view was still great. Then it was back down the mountain for supper. It was a good thing we had Maria with us. She was told that the last cable car down was at 6 PM. If we would had missed it we would have had to walk down the mountain. Whew!

When we went into the restaurant to eat a little old man followed us. He helped us get our tables together and then just sat nearby. The group decided to give him some of our food. Then the waitress came up to us and said that he told them he was with us and that we would buy him some food. We all got a chuckle out of it.

Then it was back to the hotel and preparations for today. Today we go to Prado and have a Bible story for the kids. We look forward to seeing lots of friends there.  We will also be making jewelry with the kids who received education scholarships through Project Hope.  The jewelry will be sold at home to help them pay for their education.