I know, the very title seems like a strange association! You may be thinking, “Well, I’ve seen the devil in it, but not the Lord!” True. But our recent experience has revealed the ridges of God’s fingerprint - even in government bureaucracy. Let me explain.
In order for us to work best in Mexico we must attain a “Residency Visa.” This is not “dual citizenship,” it’s a bureaucratic stamp that allows us to come and go freely without having to exit the country every 'so many' days. The process to acquire one is a bit confusing and arduous. You must go “back” to your “country of origin” (and a Mexican Consulate there), get an appointment with an immigration officer (which took 6 months!), provide ample documented proof of your marriage, financial solvency for the last 12 months, etc., and then hope (and I mean hope) they approve it and provide you with a vital stamp in your passport (in the picture below). This is only step 1, and the process in Mexico (after “miracle 1”) is similar, only you have NO English assistance availed to you. Again, this will
be dependent upon the right information and their mood at the time of your appointment.
Reading discussion boards and chats about this process left us with a bit of uncertainty. We planned this trip back according to the experiences of most recipients of said visas, giving ourselves about 10 days after our appointment thinking we might need it to await their decision. Our prayer has ALWAYS been, “God we never want to knock down doors in following You, please open them to make it clear how and where we can serve You.” Instead of ten days, it took . . . 2 hours. That’s right, TWO HOURS! Thus, we tried to get an earlier flight back, but the Lord detained us again through the recent cancelation of all the flights in America. Just then, a member of our family had a difficult situation come up and the Lord allowed us to be there to help and minister to them. If we had left earlier as planned, we would have missed this window of opportunity to flood them with His light and truth and bless them with needed assistance. Our presence here was orchestrated by Almighty God to be exactly where He wanted us. The entire process revealed that God is indeed over all, even government bureaucracy.
Solomon wrote, “A man’s heart plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps” (Prov. 16:9). This truth has been lived out again in our recent “plans.” We have witnessed the Lord "directing our steps" with His unseen hands. As we return to Mexico, we can’t wait to see another of God’s fingerprints through this bureaucratic process.
Comments