So... tomorrow morning we meet with a doctor at the hospital to fill out some paperwork and send it off to the embassy. The plot thickened later in the day however.
I received a call tonight that the airlines will not fly Katia. None of them. She is 7 yr old and by FAA law she must have her own seat and be seatbelted even though she is the equivalent of a 1 yr old in weight and development. They will not accept our harness we purchased in the US since it is not FAA approved. Also none of the airlines like us because our tickets were purchased using air miles and we are not paying customers, and no one will take responsibility for us (Air France, Delta nor Ukraine Air). Andrew, our travel agent we met at church here in Kiev says that we are in a 'catch 22', being hurt in a way by trying to inform the airlines of these conditions in advance and not just showing up at the gate. Our "worst case scenario" from yesterday just got worse.
Some options were presented to us by Andrew that we are looking into, such as flying another airline (Andrew has better relations with British Airways), or using a medical insurance company to pay for the flight (complex to explain, but feasible). The simplest option would be to find a baby car seat that would fit Katia that could be strapped into her airplane seat for takeoff and landings, but she is longer than most that are available (she is 90 cm and even though she doesn't bend in the middle we could maybe make it work by putting pillows under her back). Even if all the t's are crossed and i's dotted, the flight crew still makes the final call and could deny our boarding.
All this is good, and I want to plow ahead and fix things (like us men like to do) but I also don't want to follow the sin of Saul (1Sam13:1-15) in not waiting for God and running ahead with my own ideas. Will you pray for Gods wisdom and direction for us tomorrow? I believe he will show His faithfulness to us in the morning (Lam 3:22,23).
This I recall to my mind, Therefore I have hope. Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed, Because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness. “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul, “Therefore I hope in Him!” The Lord is good to those who wait for Him, To the soul who seeks Him. It is good that one should hope and wait quietly For the salvation of the Lord. It is good for a man to bear The yoke in his youth. Let him sit alone and keep silent, Because God has laid it on him; Let him put his mouth in the dust— There may yet be hope. Let him give his cheek to the one who strikes him, And be full of reproach. For the Lord will not cast off forever. Though He causes grief, Yet He will show compassion According to the multitude of His mercies. For He does not afflict willingly, Nor grieve the children of men. To crush under one’s feet All the prisoners of the earth, To turn aside the justice due a man Before the face of the Most High, Or subvert a man in his cause— The Lord does not approve. Who is he who speaks and it comes to pass, When the Lord has not commanded it? Is it not from the mouth of the Most High That woe and well-being proceed? (Lamentations 3:21-38 NKJV)
I also was challenged by the devotional Heather has been reading. This was today's pages and I will attach it below. It was so good for us to read and just what we needed.