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Thankful

"Praise the LORD. Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever. Who can proclaim the mighty acts of the LORD or fully declare his praise?"

This week we got notice that my permanent residence visa is ready to be issued! I know many of you don't understand how remarkable (and seemingly impossible) this is, so let me explain. My application began to be processed on July 3, so that means that in only 2 months and 8 days it was processed! I was told to expect 2 years by a friend who went through the same process. I remember taking a walk with Lydia one day and hearing how her Canadian colleague's husband was still (after about 2 years) waiting for his visa. At that time, my heart dropped in discouragement, but that began the process of looking to the Lord and not human reason or effort. "We walk by faith, not by sight" the Apostle Paul tells us. Even the more optimistic Canadian immigration website says only 30% of applications get processed in 3-4 months, 50% in 5-6 months, and 80% in 9-11 months.

Not being a permanent resident or citizen has made my job search very challenging, as employers don't want to bother with the time-consuming and tedious process that goes with hiring a foreign worker. Although I've sent out dozens and dozens of resumes and applications, I've only had 3 interviews this summer. With the exception of 1 of these three and an offer to apply for a part-time job by one of Shawn's relatives, my phone hadn't rang for an interview in probably over a month. Suddenly, withing less than an hour from receiving the permanent visa news, my phone rings for an interview. The next day (yesterday), my phone rings again for another interview!

Having a job wouldn't be an urgent issue if it wasn't for the fact that Shawn has started school full-time this past week, which means he is not able to keep his full-time work schedule (Don't you love the timing of it all!) This is why our prayer has been that I would be able to have work soon. We have to give thanks and glory to God who is attentive to our needs and is mighty to work on our behalf when we call to Him.