The latest updates

4 days ago, we moved. We now live in the house which we wrote about last time. It wasn’t a day too early, as it started snowing and got much colder the day after we moved. Next week it will be -24C/-11F. We are enjoying the space and the kids enjoy the snow.

Everything is going a bit differently than we wrote last time. We were not able to collect all the required evidence in order to reapply for the visa within a few days. USCIS (the immigration service) and the IRS (the tax service) are not on the same page. In order to be able to reapply, USCIS wants to see a letter from the IRS as evidence, but the church would only be able to obtain this letter after a process of more than 6 months, with substantial expenses and hassle. We don’t know how this will be solved, but we believe that God will provide us with a visa and will do as He promised. We are in contact with someone who works in the senator’s office. This person will read about our strange situation and think about what they may be able to do for us. Senators are responsible, among other things, to verify that executive branches of the government are functioning properly. It seems that this is not the case here.

Next week, there will be a conference at church. Johanna’s sister and brother-in-law will be coming over from Canada with their kids for that. We’re really looking forward to it.