Financial Aid

As helpful as Financial Aid is and can be, right now, it is literally chafing my nerves and patience. Going into now my 4th semester at Liberty as a Residential Student in the Fall, i can say with certainty that EVERY semester, multiple times, there has been an issue with some aspect of my financial aid, as well as Jennifer's. Whether it be a loan being released onto my account that i did not request, or the money the school gives to me and Jen for her working on campus not arriving in a timely fashion, there has been a myriad of issues and I am just so tired of it. How is it possible that a school can be so disorganized to the point that when it comes to a simple matter like getting the free money that the school offers to staff members and their spouses literally takes, by the completion of everything, FOUR DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS to get the money onto your account ? Even today, as i go to the Campus Bookstore to try and get my books for the Fall Semester, i had to go through 3 different departments to get the money allocated to the Bookstore Account so that i can buy the books. Top it off, there is a completely separate issue that i am dealing with in regards to my student account, that even though unrelated, might have an impact on the aid that has been sent and is supposedly available at the Bookstore effective today.

You know how you talk with people who have a particular testimony, like an area of struggle that they went through for awhile, and now, they are able to encourage others who are going through the same struggle ? I am firmly convinced that God has some sort of plan for Jen and I when it comes to dealing with all the Financial Aid issues that we have dealt with. That's the only plausible reasoning that i can play in my mind, especially considering how many different issues there has been since we started attending Liberty last year. I guess the old adage is true, when you pray with the Lord for patience and ability to understand Him more clearly, He really does put you in positions to earn that patience.

The other thing that was interesting this morning that i think directly impacts this struggle is something i heard from a Christian writer/speaker named John Bevere. He was on a Christian Talk Show talking about forgiveness and bitterness. One of the things that he shared that was really convicting was how we really hold ourselves back from the life God has for us when we hold onto bitterness and frustration towards others, especially those you believe to have offended you in the past. Looking at it, i could get bitter and frustrated against some of the people in the various departments at Liberty that have created issues related to Jen and I's Financial Aid, as well as people that i come in contact with in life or on my job, but you know what, it's just not worth it. Like it or not, struggles are what makes one stronger, so, i'm just gonna keep praying that the Lord gives me His strength to deal with these irritations in an effective manner.