Read it here.

More info here.

I am hearing a trickle of information about orphanages being told to bring the children that they had in process with American families to the US Embassy to receive documentation to leave the country. I’m literally interrupting my writing every fifth word to respond to emails between an agency and a group with an airplane, hoping to get 40 children out of Haiti today. These are all children who have adoptive families – they were in process already and will go directly to their new parents.

This is a victory…and yet it’s bittersweet.

It would appear that the real efforts on behalf of Haiti’s orphans are being spent on orphans who have or are close to having legal American parents. I am overjoyed for those people – I’ve talked with them on the phone for days and heard the terror in their voice as they’ve asked “Can you help get my daughter out of Haiti…”. It’s a good day….for some.

It’s not a good day for any child who had not yet been matched with a US parent, because it would appear that there is still no provision for Humanitarian Parole for them. Yes, the government is loosening regulations for those who have been spoken for but not for those who have no US citizen here in the to call a mother or father. In other words, we are taking care….of our own kids.

Minutes ago, I snapped this photo of a massive painting that hangs in Lou’s office. It’s about 4×4 feet and dominates the tiny 8×7 foot cubby Lou works in. It also serves as a stark reminder that there are real hands in Haiti reaching for help even as we scoop up our own children and leave.

We wouldn’t do this in a Walmart parking lot…if we saw five children in danger, we would never grab our own and run for the car. Why is it okay in Haiti? Perhaps it’s because we’ve grown accustom to ignoring Haiti for so long. I celebrate the fact that it appears some kids are coming home, but I refuse to call this a victory or give the US government the thumbs up for a valiant effort. If this is the answer, it’s woefully inadequate.

We are asking for wholesale Humanitarian Parole for any orphan who was in an orphanage when the quake hit. They should not be punished, left behind, or ignored simply because American parents had not yet chosen their picture over the others.

It’s Martin Luther King Day. Let’s not pretend to honor a man and yet disregard his message - “Justice delayed is justice denied.”

What can you do?

Pray

I know that sounds trite to some but it’s still our most powerful weapon. There is a King that all other kings answer to and we can go directly to Him.

Call

Call your Senators and Congressional Representatives. If you’ve never called them, call them now. Be polite, but ask the pointed question: “Does my Senator/Representative support extending Humanitarian Parole to the orphans of Haiti who have not yet been matched with families?”. Be polite but be persistent. If the person answering doesn’t know, ask for someone to call you back. Most of you will be surprised – these office are more responsive than you’d imagine.

You can find your Senator’s phone number here.

You can find your Congressional Representative’s phone number here.

Give

The Zoe Foundation is partnering with Crisis Response International to get aid in to Haiti. Your support go either of two directions:

To Crisis Response International to help them purchase supplies for the orphanages immediately.

Connect with CRI here.

To The Zoe Foundation to help us continue this fight to get these children out.

Connect with The Zoe Foundation here.

Thanks to everyone who has continued to track with us through this weekend. It’s going to be an intense fight – we covet your prayers. Don’t lose heart if we loose a battle here or there – the greater war is still being fought, and it’s actually fought in the realm where we have the most equity…before the King of heaven and earth.

The Zoe Foundation is helping to produce this large display and needs your help to finance it.   You can paypal a donation by clicking here.

Also, email me at rbohlender (at) gmail . com to indicate that the donation was for this project.

All funds raised in excess of the cost of the display will go to the Loux family.

The Great Reversal

Tickets are $10. Don’t miss it!  All the details can be found here.

It was an amazing weekend with the IHOP-ATL family. The seminar on Saturday morning was full of smart people asking great questions. The banquet Saturday night had a coffee-house feel, far more intimate that some of the others we’ve done, which allowed us to dial down and connect with people in a way we haven’t gotten to in the past.

After the banquet I was able to connect with a number of people who’ve only been known to me via email or the blog. I heard a cool testimony from someone who was waiting for adoption funds to come in and suddenly found a buyer for their house. I also got some great feedback from a very smart adoption professional who was excited about the Zoe Foundation and gave me several tips on how to take it to the next level.

Today, though, was off the charts…

I spoke this morning at the IHOP-ATL Sunday morning Encounter service and was blown away what God is doing in Atlanta. Billy and Marybeth Humphrey have long been some of our favorites, so to see the fruits of their labors up close was heartwarming to me.

The IHOP-ATL community is leaning hard into the call to adoption. At the close of the service, Billy made some strong statements about where they’re going with this…I’ll let him reveal them to the greater populace at such a time as he deems proper, but suffice it to say they are planning big things and I can’t wait to watch.

Thanks so much, Atlanta. It was a blast. I look forward to hearing the stories to come from the past few days’ events.

We’re in process here at IHOP-ATL with a good room full of couples who are ready to open their hearts and homes to adoption!

If you didn’t make it, we hope to see you at the Fundraiser tonight at the Marriott at Gwinnett Place.