May 2026 On the Side: More Than a Title: Surrendering Career, Control, and Identity to Christ
Photo by Priscilla Du Preez via UnSplash
by Sarah Wright
It was my final day of employment at a large pharmaceutical company in Philadelphia. I clicked “send” and off went a heartfelt farewell to the hundreds of colleagues I had worked with across many departments, functions, and countries, informing them of my decision to pursue a calling from God to full-time motherhood for my 9-month old daughter, and her little sister arriving in a few months. I released a pent up sigh, leaving a career I had invested so much in was one of the most difficult decisions I’ve had to make, but I felt confirmation from the Lord that this was His leading.
My husband was finishing his third year of medical school, so practically speaking, financial stability was a key concern. Additionally, we would lose my top-tier health insurance that had covered an unplanned c-section for our firstborn. Even though our preliminary calculations worked out, it was very tempting to keep my position (aka salary), or even drop to part time to maintain a much more comfortable lifestyle through graduation and the upcoming 3 years of family residency, not to mention pay off loans faster, and be able to live more generously in the meantime!
On a deeper level, I felt grief over the loss of the life I had built around my professional career. My PhD research had resulted in a technology to help victims of sexual assault, and opened opportunities to speak at crime labs across the US and internationally. When COVID hit, I was recruited to assist in vaccine development utilizing the same highly sensitive separation and laser detection technology. Throughout my career, God had opened many doors, often in unconventional ways, and I was able to use those professional successes as a platform to testify about Him in a typically dark and lonely field where most search for identity in fame, wealth, and scientific success. I feared that leaving the professional workplace would mean losing my door to witnessing for Christ in a world that often deemed itself above religion. Furthermore, I had a heart for mentorship, particularly to encourage young women in STEM. Without my title and professional associations, would I still be useful to anyone?
As I asked the Lord to examine my heart, (Psalm 139:23), I was convicted of seeking worth and value in idols apart from Him: namely the influence I had because of my professional position, and the dollar value I contributed to our household that had supported my husband’s career change to pursue medicine. Pride swelled my heart as I reflected on my professional accomplishments, and the Lord directed me to Paul’s letter to the Philippians, “I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ.” Philippians 3:7 Everything pales in comparison to knowing God. He does not need me. Yet I am thankful He chose to use me for a season and purpose in each lab, office, auditorium, and breakroom table throughout my professional career. Whether it was to plant seeds, be a light, stand for truth, or gather in the harvest, it was God at work (1 Corinthians 3:6-7). Therefore, if God was now calling me to step away from my career in order to pursue a calling to full-time motherhood, I needed to obediently and humbly trust in Him (Proverbs 3:5-6).
God orchestrated the exact timing so I could enjoy a couple wonderful months with my firstborn before her sister arrived, and better support my husband in his final year of medical school, even traveling to attend many of the interviews to help discern where God was leading us. Since beginning residency, it has become even more clear that this is the Lord’s calling in this season. Long days at the hospital mean the majority of childcare, parenting, housework, and scheduling falls on my plate - which can feel overwhelming at times with a 1 and 2 year old! Yet His grace is sufficient, and I’ve been blessed to see God’s hand at work in using our family as a landing place for female residents to enjoy a meal and community on their day off, meet with the spouses of prospective residents over lunch to give them a realistic perspective of life in the program, and start a new SBS chapter to connect and encourage other medical wives on this journey.
Full-time motherhood is ten times more demanding than any position I’ve held in academia or industry, but 100 times more rewarding! The planning, creativity, and stamina needed to stay one step ahead of energetic toddlers while prioritizing the shepherding of their young hearts and minds for the Lord, requires daily prayer and time in the Word. And while I still look forward with curiosity to how God will use my technical skillset for His kingdom (nothing in His economy is ever wasted!) I am content, and so thankful, that He has called me to the ministry of a full-time parent in this season.
Wherever you and your husband may be on your medical journey, I encourage you to seek and obey the Lord’s call through prayer, His Word, and the mentorship of godly women who have walked before you. Find your identity in Christ alone, and no matter where He leads, trust and obey and He will provide (Philippians 4:19).
Sarah is grateful for a godly mother and role model who also sacrificed her career to support her internal medicine father and three siblings. She currently resides in South Bend, IN and joyously supports her almost-second-year resident husband and two beautiful daughters in the ministry of full-time motherhood.
