Revealing the Unseen Hand

The Unseen Hand saves my doctorate program Another very serious problem, almost fatal to the whole PhD program, developed due to my own naive misunderstanding of the meaning of “out-of-state tuition.” In the University Catalog, I had noticed a big difference in tuition and fees between in-state and out-of-state residents. However, I hadn’t worried because, in my mind, I was going to be a two-year resident of Illinois. I reasoned that if I had a residence, a postal address, a local banking account, and an Illinois driver’s license, I must be a resident of Illinois. I carried documentation of all these proofs with me when I went to register and pay my summer school tuition and fees. I was expecting to pay approximately $370. I was shocked when the clerk said, “That will be $3,700.” “What? Why?” “How long have you lived in Illinoish?” “About a month,” I replied, “but, I am a resident.” I attempted to show her my proof. She didn’t even want to look at it. “You moved to Illinois to go to school, so you are not a resident as far as the University of Illinois is concerned. Please pay, or move out of the way!” I looked behind me. The waiting line had grown long. I looked in the back of the checkbook which my bookkeeper, Patricia, had entrusted me to carry for the day. There was a balance of just over $3,700 showing. I had been supremely confident that it was God’s will for me to go to school. I had too much invested and no place to go if I backed out now. I shrugged my shoulders and wrote the check. On the way home, I wondered how I could explain to Patricia that I had just blown all our expense money for the summer. Then it hit me! This was just the summer session. In September, the University would probably expect more than $5,000 for a full semester, then $5,000 more in January. Even if she found a job immediately, there was no way we would be able to afford to continue in the fall. I decided since I had already paid for the summer, I would complete those classes and seek a job myself in the fall. I beat myself up. How could I have been so naive not to understand the University’s definition of the term, “resident”? Just as Peter had gone back to fishing, even after the resurrection and the appearances of Jesus (John 21:3), I was resigned to return to carpentry, at least long enough to get back to some professional job. I did not ask for, or anticipate, the wondrous solution the Lord was already preparing for me! I returned home just ahead of lunch and faced Patricia with the bad news. There was not one word of rebuke, criticism, or questioning of my intelligence or judgment. She said, “After lunch, you watch the boys, and I will go look for a job.” It was Friday afternoon. I put the Chip and Rick down for a nap and went to check the status of our food supplies. Like Old Mother Hubbard, the cupboards were bare. The refrigerator had a little milk, ketchup, and other condiments. I was in despair. Even if we had a credit card at the time (which we didn’t), grocery stores were not allowed to accept them. I knelt down in front of the sofa and started to pray. “Lord, what am I going to do? I don’t understand. Why am I in this mess? I thought I was following your guidance . . . ” As I was praying, the new phone rang. “Who even knows our number?” I thought as I answered it. The caller was my new Department Head. “I have checked your record; you supervised student teachers back at Montclair, didn’t you?” “Yes,” “Would you like to supervise student teachers for us?” he asked. WOULD I? YOU BET! He went on to explain that the graduate fellow who was scheduled to supervise had suddenly resigned to go to Israel. He was offering me a half-time fellowship to fill that position. The fellowship paid a salary and all fees and tuition, even for out-of-state residents. The fellow had also walked out on a half-time grant for summer research work which I could take over immediately if that was my desire. OF COURSE IT WAS MY DESIRE! “By the way,” he said, “if you can get down here this afternoon, I will have the paper work ready for you to take to the Business Office and pick up a refund of your charges.” “Patricia has the van,” I said, “As soon as she comes home, I will be there.” Then my prayer changed. Aloud, I cried, “Thank you God! Please send Patricia home so that I can get this taken care of before the Office closes.” Chip had sensed the excitement and gotten up. I didn’t even try to put him back to bed. We were about eight miles from the Department Head’s office, and another three miles back to the Business Office, so there was no possibility of walking. Patricia had searched for a job and finally decided to come back home in defeat for the day. It was about four-thirty when she drove in. Normally, we always take the time to explain our actions to each other. That makes for a smoother marriage, but there was no time for explanations now. I opened her van door with one hand and hauled her out with the other saying, “Everything is OK. I’ll explain later!” I left her bewildered, made the circuit to the Department Head’s office, signed the papers he had prepared, and arrived at the Business Office window just as it was closing. The clerk stopped her action and took my papers. “Do you want a check or cash?” She asked. As no banks were open late on Friday evenings back then, I hopefully said, “Cash.” She counted out $3,700 into my hand! We were able to celebrate by going grocery shopping that evening. In retrospect, if I had understood the University’s definition of “residents,” I would not have had the faith or courage to make the move which jeopardized the family’s welfare at the time that I did. If in the planning stages I had applied for a fellowship, I would have been told that there was a long waiting line for openings in the future. I would not have been where I needed to be when the opportunity arose! Sometimes, the Unseen Hand uses innocent ignorance and blind faith to work out God’s purpose. “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28).