It was in May 2011, we returned to Malaysia to replace our passport. We thought it was the usual process of filling up a form, wait a few hours and then voila - passport. We woke up a bit late on Friday because of the jet lag, went to the Kajang immigration office around 10+am and handed in our application. Surprise, we were told to submit a translated copy of the police report we made in the Netherlands in BM as we are dealing with official matters, and it will take a month to investigate our lost passport case and then decide if we will be allowed to be issued new passports. Panic! To top it all, we were told we need the translation to be certified by proper authorities like a Court Translator or the National Translation Agency. Wow! 2 setbacks, but that's when we kept on praying furiously. Words can't describe our anxiety.
Quickly I thought of the courts in Putrajaya so we rushed there arriving around 12pm. There was a helpful guy at the court translator office but unfortunately they don't translate documents from Dutch. Searched the web, found 2 agencies which can do it, but they wanted RM1200, and it takes a few business day. Called the Dutch embassy in Malaysia, was told by a lady they don't do translation,and she sounds like she has entertained this kind of request many times before.
At lost at what to do or go, we stumbled on the Putrajaya Immigration Dept few blocks away. An officer listened to our plight, took our temporary travel documents and asked us to come back after lunch and prayer. So we went to have lunch at Alamanda and Janet was craving laksa which we had, but it wasn't satisfying to her and you'll find out why later. More prayer and declaring the promises of God ensued during our trip back to the Immigration office around 2pm. A new officer explained the process for investigation of lost passport has now been reduced to 5 working days in the recently ammended customer charter, and we should file a police report in Malaysia about our lost passport which can be used as a supporting document during our application. But you should know that the Immigration HQ at Precinct 2 does not handle passport application and we had to go to another building kilometers away at Precinct 15. But first it was a trip to the nearby police station at Precinct 2 to file a police report. Not many people goes to this police station, it is located in a serene surrounding and you can feel the peace there. We felt much calmer at this stage. Filed our report and was out of there in no time, the police officers were friendly, helpful and courteous. I paid RM2 for the report which I felt sorry that was what the government thought 20mins of their time was worth. But I guess it stretched our tax ringgit so I'm not complaining.
It was 3pm+ and we needed to get our forms and documents endorsed by a commissioner of oaths, which we failed to locate any in Putrajaya after much searching, so back to Kajang to get one, and I made a mistake by calling her "makcik" who obviously wasn't too pleased with me. Still she endorsed our documents and we rushed back to Putrajaya Precinct 15 hoping to send in the application before they close by 5pm but alas we were too late.
Oh well, it had been a mad rush day, going up and down Kajang and Putrajaya. We were anxious about the whole saga, but more of how God will show up in this. Because of this incident, we couldn't think of much, so we kept on praying in committing the outcome to God.
Saturday, we returned back to the Immigration office at Precinct 15, but they don't process lost passport cases on Saturday because it involves some interviewing work. So we left our documents and application there and returned Monday morning for the interview about how we lost our passport. During the weekend, it was hanging out with some of my old classmates at a wedding dinner, and my classmate shared how her stewardess friend lost her passport and had to be grounded for a month because the immigration department took that long to investigate her case, and we should be looking at the same duration. Oh no! We're supposed to fly off in a week's time next Sunday so will we make it? During the interview with the officer on Monday, they told us it will take 5 working days to know the results which means Friday, so we explained our situation to the officer and gave a copy of our flight itenary as "proof". The rest of the week was an agonizing wait, but we prayed a lot, and we claimed that God will seal the deal for us, which is what I felt strongly in my heart as this phrase kept coming at me.
Janet's mom asked us to inquire about the outcome on Tuesday, but I did not, believing God will seal the deal for us. We didn't talk much for the next few days because I guess we were trying to be strong and calm, and I guess we did that pretty well considering the circumstances. On Thursday morning we decided to pop in to the Immigration office, and surprise surprise! The investigation was complete and we are cleared to renew our passport, praise the Lord! We had to wait a while for higher ranking officer to sign the clearance letter but incredibly, our passport was ready for us within an hour of us reaching that office. We were just so happy and filled with joy. With the new passport, we felt like we've been given a passport of freedom, and never have we treasured our passport so much. God does come through for us, and beyond our expectations as well.
When God seals the deal for us, no one can take it away from us. People can say otherwise, that they experience 30 days of waiting time to get a new passport, but as children of God, we hold on to His promises that He will provide for us, and just as the bird of the air and the flowers in the field do not worry about what to eat or what to wear, the same with us that we need not worry. We were anxious yes, but it was more anxious of how God will come through for us, and it was mind blowing! We were stressed at first, but soon after, we were filled with the peace of God! All glory to God!
Oh, the reason why Janet didn't enjoy her laksa was because she was pregnant and it messed up not only her appetite but made it difficult for her during the many travelling up and down. Poor baby, had to be subjected to so much stress and anxiety, but we didn't know Janet was pregnant until we were back in Oslo. Also, we've tested the Malaysian civil service, from the police to the immigration department and the court translator and found them to be professional and efficient during our dealings with them - 2 thumbs up for them and the system we have.
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