VISA IN HAND... the saga!

*The week before Christmas I applied for my visa to Ghana.

*The Consulate in New York rejected my application because I wrote my address and phone number on DIFFERENT lines (when they should have been on the same line).

*They mailed my passport back and I re-applied just after New Year.

*Again, the Consulate refused my visa because, apparently, my letter of invitation from a Ghanaian govt. official was perceived as "tampered with".

*I re-submitted my letter two weeks before my departure date... cutting it close, but still plenty of time since they were already familiar with my documents.

*The Consulate decided to put my passport aside and simply NOT deal with it; I was waiting for the visa to arrive in the mail while it sat in their office.

*The week of my flight I contacted the Consulate to learn that they were not intending to even look at my application for another week, (unless of course I sent $100 to expedite the process). I have a very firm standard of not giving in to bribes, so I told them I would call back the following day with my decision.

*I decided to expedite the process, but the Consulate refused to answer my calls or return my messages-- for three days. And no courier service would take on the job of picking up my passport from the Consulate unless I supplied a formal release form (which, apparently, needed to come from the Consulate that wasn't answering my calls).

*I cancelled my flight. If the Consulate was true to their word to not even consider my application for another week, I would miss the trip altogether!

*So, FINALLY, yesterday I humbled myself and fasted and prayed about this situation. There is plenty of work to be done if I stay home, but I felt helpless to fulfill my role on the team in Ghana.

*This morning, with no explanation, my visa arrived with a knock at the door. And so, I booked my flight for tomorrow morning (saving $50 in the process because the flight happens to be cheaper than my original AND United decided to waive my cancellation fee!) My flight is scheduled to depart at 7:56am to Accra Ghana via Washington D.C. MISSING NOT ONE DAY OF THE EVENT!

That is a miracle!