Episode 37: Workaholic Veterinarian to Homeschool Mom | Finding Identity Outside of My Career

Dr. Amber Langley Gill was working 12 hour shifts (with a 2.5 hour commute!) as an Emergency Critical Care Veterinarian. She felt God telling her to step down and didn’t listen for five years. One day it finally hit her - Amber was in a serious car accident on her long commute that totaled the truck. Work asked if she was still coming in for her shift that day. Instead, she listened to God and quit her job. Now, she’s been finding identity in faith, marriage, writing, and motherhood - as a full-time homeschool mom to twins. 

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Transcript

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SPEAKER_00 0:11

Hey friends, welcome to the Only God podcast, where we share stories only God can write. I'm your host, Stephanie L. Jones. In each episode, we'll dive into powerful testimonies, have great conversations, and encouragement that remind us when the impossible happens, it's only God. Let's get started. Hey friends, it's Stephanie here with another episode of the Only God podcast, sharing stories only God could write. And today I have my friend Dr. Amber Gill with us. Hey Amber. How's it going? Good, good, good, good. I always start our conversations with our Only God connection. Um, so I would love for you to share like how we got connected and maybe share like where you're at. So you're not in Indiana with me. Um yeah, so take it away.

SPEAKER_02 1:08

I'm trying to think the exact moment that I met you because we were in a mastermind together, right? Yes. And I remember hearing, like seeing you virtually and listening to your story and learning about your books and purchasing your books. Um and which are so cute. And then I met you, but I'm like, what moment did you meet?

SPEAKER_00 1:33

And I was like, I think we met at Jesse's in Connecticut. Uh was that I I think so. Um I think so. And what I remember about that moment is there was what, one, two, three, four, maybe five or six of us women in one room. Um, there was more. There was more.

SPEAKER_02 1:55

I was like, there's at least eight on the beds, and then there was someone on an air mattress. Yes.

SPEAKER_00 2:02

Eight. There was a lot of us. We got it, even though we had only met virtually, we got very intimate very quickly. Um and uh, you know, I just remembered that, and that's actually why I invited you on the podcast, because I think we were out like on a bow and women were just sharing their stories. Yes, and uh you shared your story, and it's I don't know, people's stories I feel like just always like hang with me, and um, that's why. So I'll I'll pass it over to you. I want you to share your only god story, and uh we'll go from there.

SPEAKER_02 2:36

And I remember I'm just gonna say this, but I remember on the boat there was somebody else with it, there was like five or six women with us, and I was sharing my story, and she's like, Oh my gosh, that happened to me too. And like our stories were very similar, and I was just like, What is happening? Um, so a little context for the story is that I am a former emergency critical care veterinarian. At the time I was working full-time. We, my hubster and I, we are college sweethearts. We've been married, it's gonna be 20 years this April. Possibly the best human on this planet. Um, no offense to anyone listening. Um, and then we have twins, which I nicknamed the Gillies. So at the time they were probably um, I'm trying to think of when this when the story happened, how old they were. They were probably like five, um, four or five years old. And I have was doing a residency in Wisconsin. We had the twins prematurely, and then we decided to move closer to family because I'm originally from Louisiana. That's where all my family is from. We're Cajun, right? Is also from Louisiana, but he's more like I always tell people he's more duck dynasty, and we're like more swamp people. Watch those shows. So um, and it's not an insult to either one of our families or anybody, but it just like he's more redneck and we're more Cajun. So we're both from Louisiana. We were living in Wisconsin. Right now we're in Idaho, but at the time of the story, we were in Texas because that was the closest we could get to live by our families, um, but still work. And so I was working in Houston, living about two and a half hours away and making a commute. And well, um, and I feel like for the longest time, um God was telling me to step down, and I just refused for the longest time. And I feel a lot of that was about my ego and what I felt clay like claiming that title of emergency veterinarian meant to me because I didn't just do vet school like I went vet school, I went straight into emergency medicine, and then I even did a residency. So I had like advanced training that I thought like surely I'm supposed to use this advanced training in my life, right? And so I fought it for the longest time. And I remember going to work one day, and my shift started at 6 a.m. So it means I had to leave the house around 3 a.m. And I would work probably I would work a 12-hour shift, so it was 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. And then I would have to stay and like catch up on paperwork or anything else that if there was a procedure we were doing that was staying late, like you just you don't leave at six, right? You can't move around, you have to do paperwork, you have to finish procedures, and sometimes it would be like 10 or even midnight that I would be leaving, and then you have to do three hours back. And I was doing this multiple times. I was trying to stay with it, but I couldn't do full-time, so I was working part-time, and even that was hard for me to just let go. And I got up in the morning, told the hobster goodbye for the day, kids were asleep. Everything was normal. Everything was normal. It was raining a little in Texas, it's totally fine. I had my music, like I get in the car, and like for the first hour I would just say prayers. And then after that, I would turn on my music and just like get in the headspace of like, let's go. Um, because it's like 4 30 in the morning now. I need to like wake up. We're about to hit use some traffic. And I remember driving and I was I would it was dark. I was in the middle of nowhere, Texas, and it I just hit like um what is it called? A mini scurve. Like, oh gosh, it was not like black.

SPEAKER_00 7:08

Right, but it it's similar to black ice, but um yeah.

SPEAKER_02 7:11

Yeah, I just like hydroplaned a little and I was like, oh, oh, I'm gonna slow down. Like this is really bad. Like, I'm on the highway, okay. We're gonna slow down. And so I was going, it was supposed to be like a 60, 70, and I was going like 40, right? I wasn't speeding it by any means. I was like, we're just gonna go a little bit slower, just gonna see. And there was like nobody on the road with me. And I was coming over a hill and I hydroplaned again. And when I hydroplaned, the whole truck turned like perpendicular to the road, and I was just sliding down in the truck, and I was like, I guess like time really slows down in those moments. And I remember thinking to myself, oh, the hobster always told me if I hydroplane or if I slip on black ice, because we were living in Wisconsin, there's black ice there, right? I was like, to turn your head away from the direction, don't slam on the brakes and grip the wheel. And so I just remember lifting my knee up and like gripping the wheel and turning away from the glass. And I just kept sliding, and I don't know how long I slid, but then I slid into the oncoming traffic, which thankfully there was nobody there. Like I was just on that side of the highway because it was two parallel, um, two-line roads. So I slipped through the median, slipped through the other side, and then I went into the woods, and I just remember hitting tree after tree. And in my mind, I counted 15. Was there 15 trees? I don't know. My mind, I hit like I was just hitting things like bam, bam, bam. And then I was like, it's okay, it's okay. One's eventually gonna make you stop. You're not gonna flip, one's just gonna make you stop. And then all of a sudden it did, and it like took the back half of the truck off. And so, and I remember standing there and I was like, okay, it's complete black now. The truck had stopped. There was no lights on in the truck for some reason. My glasses I was wearing were like tossed off me. I had a drink that was like had the lid screwed, had unscrewed, and all the drink was spilled all over, like was just coming off the truck bed. And I was like, this is so weird. And I just sat there and I heard this voice that said, I'm not done with you yet. And I was like, oh, okay. Um like okay. And so I just sat there and I was like, I don't, I don't think I'm supposed to go to work. Like, I don't think this is the path that I'm supposed to. I think I've been fighting for so long. This isn't for me. This isn't, I need to like go of this ego to like actually start serving the way I should be serving. And I fought that. I had fought that for five years, and now it finally hit me. Literally. Literally, they hit me. And I remember calling. I like I didn't know where I was. I was I left this town 20 minutes ago, right? So I called the hubster and I was like, I'm on this highway. I got an accident. He's like, Are you okay? Yes, did you hit anyone? I hit a lot of trees.

SPEAKER_03 10:29

I was like, I hit a lot of trees.

SPEAKER_02 10:31

I was like, I'm pretty sure the truck is like totaled. He's like, it's okay. Um, I was like, I've never been in an accident before. Like, I'm 30, I was 30, what, six at the time? I was like, I've never been in an accident before, not going. I was like, I don't know what to do. He's like, you need to call the cops. I was like, I don't even know what cops to call. Like, I don't even know where to tell 911 to come get me. He was like, figure it out. He's like, you just stay put and stay and I'll call you back. And I was like, okay, because he had to go to the hospital, right? He was still working. We had some a family member come to help with the kids that day. And um while I was there, two guys come up in this truck, this beater truck, and they start screaming at me because they're on the highway, I'm in the woods, and they look like extras from the Z Z top band. Just like, are you okay? We knew there was no left turn in the woods. I was like, thank you. I was like, Do y'all know where we are? And they told me, I was like, okay. They were like, Where are you headed? I was like, I was going to Houston because I work. And he was like, They were like, Do you want to? We can give you a lift. And I was like, I know I'm in shock, but I'm pretty sure I'm not supposed to leave the scene. And then I don't know, y'all. How would I even get home? And they were like, okay, and they just left. They just like left me. And then this other vehicle came. It was like five, two minutes later, another, and it was a mom and her son. And she's like, Oh, we were just headed uh to practice or somewhere. She's like, Are you okay? I was like, Yeah. She's like, Okay, I'll call the cops and let them know. I was like, Thank you, because I still don't know where I am. And she was like, Oh, by the way, it's unsafe for a woman to be out here alone. I hope they come quick. She gets in the car and she lips it. I'm like, this, what is happening? And then the cop came and we had a really, I think, hilarious interaction. Um, he probably did not. He probably thought I was this weird woman who refused to get in his cop car. Because I was like, You're gonna arrest me if I get in the car. He's like, I'm not gonna arrest you, but it's raining. You're getting red. I was like, Well, you can get in the car. I'm gonna say he's like, I can't get in the car unless you get in the car.

SPEAKER_03 12:50

I was like, I'm not getting in the car unless I can keep the door open. He's like, keep the door open. I was like, then we're at an impasse. I was like, we're just gonna stay here. And then the husband gets there, and he's like, like an hour and a half later, because it takes, you know, it took him that long. And he goes, Why are you not in his car? And he goes, Your wife didn't want to get arrested. He was like, it makes sense.

SPEAKER_02 13:14

And so we get in the car and I call work and I tell them what happened. And they were like, Oh, are you gonna still come in? And I was like, No, I just got in an accident, I just totaled my vehicle. I understand I'm the clinician on the floor, but I I can't. Like I came in the process, like, I still think I'm in shock. And so I get home, and on the way there, I looked at the hubster. I told him what happened, I told him the voice. I was like, I just don't think I can go back. And he's like, I've been waiting for a sign for you to step down, and I think this is your sign. He's like, and it's okay with me for you to pursue things that are on your heart. It's like, but we have to stop. And so I called and I told him I would finish the shifts on my schedule, but after that, I was done.

SPEAKER_03 14:06

And then I'm not working currently as a veterinarian, which is sounds so weird.

SPEAKER_02 14:12

Like when you you go to school for so long, right? To do something, and then all of a sudden it's like, and I struggle with that. Like, I I lost um so many years, and I was like, I didn't get to do all these things. And my husband was like, all the stuff that you learn prepared you, like trained you for the person that you are today.

unknown 14:33

Right.

SPEAKER_02 14:34

Like you didn't lose anything. You may not be using the skills, right? And I may not be placing urinary catheters in Pomeranians right now, but I still have those skills to help me do other things.

SPEAKER_00 14:46

So do you think? I mean, thank you for sharing that story because I think that your story is a lot of women, where it's like you knew what you were supposed to do. And I mean, you said five years, like five years, five years you knew that you were like, okay, I need to be doing something else. How do I want to say this? Is why do you think you kept pushing? Like, was there anything beyond the ego of like, I've I've used all this, but do you think there was anything like deeper down with like your worth, your identity, and that if I quit and walk away, then who am who am I?

SPEAKER_02 15:30

That's yeah, I was about to say it was my I clinged onto that identity of veterinarian, of emergency critical care veterinarian. And I told officer, I was like, I don't know who I am, right? If I'm not working, and I have to say this, I have to put it in context, like when I was working, um before the kids were born, I was working five to six days a week, 12-hour shifts plus, right? Because you don't clock off at 6 p.m. So some days it was six o'clock, I would get out, but most of the time it wasn't. And so, and I did that for years. And even when I would go home, I would think about my cases. I would even call the overnight clinicians to check on my patients before I would go to bed. Like I was annoying, I was so annoying. And and the hubsters like, it makes it makes you a great veterinarian, you know, it may and but it wasn't healthy. And I think if I would have kept on that road, um I wouldn't have the relationship I have with my hubster, I wouldn't have the relationship I have with my kids, and I I don't have that capability that many of my colleagues have. Like they're able to separate their patients from their life. I just wasn't born with that. I struggled with that very much. There's some people that when they clock out and they hand over their cases, they're able, I mean, they may struggle a little bit, but I would wake up at 2 a.m. and call. Like that's natural. So I really struggled with it. And I was like, if I don't have that, then I'm just a mom. I'm just a wife, I'm just a former veterinarian, right? I have nothing that's mine. And then I was like, oh, how selfish of me that that's what I'm thinking is what's mine.

SPEAKER_00 17:35

So I I love that you say that because I think there is a balance between being a mom, like, what are your priorities, being a wife, being a mom? But I do think it is important for women to have something that like is their own and and pour into that. So I I would like to transition a little bit because I know that you've done some like cool things just on your own, but how did you transition from, okay, I'm stepping away from being a veterinarian? I'm going to like the the Lord obviously called you out. You you didn't you didn't bring yourself out, so he called you out. And then you step into this new life. What were some things though? How did you find and I hate the word balance, but that's the only word I know how to use is how did you find some balance to be able to find some things that were just ambers?

SPEAKER_02 18:30

Um you know that was hard too. Like nothing, nothing was easy. Um, and it was hard for me, and I bet it was hard for the hubster. I don't think my kids realized it because they're kids. They're kids, and they see what you put in front of them, they don't see the struggles unless you know you broadcast it. So, but the hubster, he knew I was struggling, and he is was super supportive throughout the whole thing. Um, because I had put my identity in one thing, and that was no more. And so, what did I do? I threw myself in an identity of something else just as hard, and it was just as time consuming. And I was like, well, this isn't it either, right? And so I had did a lot of things. I tried um a lot of different things I thought were for me. I became like a high performance coach um in the community. I was a copywriter, I helped people launch strategy and marketing, and I got into like the online space, but that was just as consuming because that's 24-7 as well as emergency, right? Um, and I just remember thinking like this this is not fulfilling me. And we're all like diamonds and we all have different faucets that like I am still emergency vet. My husband says, Stop saying former. I was like, Well, I just want people to know I'm not actively practicing. He's like, But you're still studying for it, you're still keeping your credentials. Um, he's like, You're still active, you're just not practicing. And I was like, okay. So, like, I still have like I'm still a mom, a twin mom. We homeschool, right? So even while I was a veterinarian working as an active veterinarian, I was homeschooling my kids. Granted, they were in kindergarten. So it's in like that's a lot, that's a lot. That was the best. Um, that was my most, that was my favorite time because they were learning, you got to see their expressions. But um, I'm a homeschool mom, I am a wife, I am a copywriter, I am an author, I am like all these other things, you're not just one thing. And I told the hubster, I was like, I don't want my tombstone to say just Amber Langley Gill, emergency event. Like, I don't want to be a, I don't want a title to define me. And so I had to step away from that high performance uh coaching job, which I loved and I loved the community, I love the people, and I did it for probably three or four years. And then I stepped away because I was like, I'm just trading one addiction, occupation addiction, for another, and there's no real balance. And so I stopped and I and the hubster was like, I just need you to find something that makes you happy, and I was like, I think what makes me happy is serving others and telling stories and connecting with people, and he was like, Okay, we'll do that. I was like, Well, I need to do it in a way that's healthy and not I can't be overly consumed.

SPEAKER_00 21:44

Um, because I again I I have a problem disconnecting with important what you said about the addiction, because I was thinking about that when you're talking, and I think a lot of times is we don't. Maybe it's not a true addiction, but I do think that it right. But there's that was the word that popped in my head because I have seen people who I know friends who are alcoholics, but you know, they may stop drinking and then they go to something like something else fills that void. And at the end of the day, it's only Jesus Christ that's gonna fill our void. Our identity is in him, you know, you're a child of God. And then it's what gifts do I have? And like you said, is okay, how do you use your gift of storytelling and you know, those sorts of things? But then how do we do that in a healthy manner? Um, so have you been able to kind of find that where it's like, okay, obviously my focus is my family. I know you're great at creating a great home life, and that really seems like it is your priority. But then have you been able to figure out how can I do something for Amber that's not that all-consuming kind of addictive, back to burning yourself, running yourself out?

SPEAKER_02 23:04

So it wasn't the last until the last probably two years that I kind of fell into this groove. And it comes from, I think, because I got I said at the the end of 2024, I was like, I want to have stronger relationships. Um, I want God to remove all the toxic relationships from my life and just really protect me in this season. I was like, I want to get closer to to God. I want to get like be an exceptional wife, I want to be an exceptional mom, but I want also want to have a better relationship with myself. And I'm like, I'm 40. I don't even know what I like. I like so many things that's I don't know what I like. I like so many things. I love to do so many things, but what am I truly passionate about? Or not even what I'm passionate about, because I think that can be a dangerous road too. Um, but what talents did God give me to help me serve? And because that really brings me happiness. And I learned that first and I I'm gonna be honest, this I did not think this was gonna be it. It's writing. Like I didn't know that writing was gonna be one of my talents. I never really liked to write. I don't find myself to be a good public speaker, you know. Even whenever I tell stories with family, they always cut me off. Amber, you went on a tangent. I'm like, oh gosh, like come back to the storyline. I'm like, come back to the storyline. So um I really, I really poured into that. Please protect me. Please help me to figure out what what talents I have. And it I did, I did find a way to use my writing to help serve others. Um I also balance it with I do like my family life. Um, my hubster works a lot of hours. Um, he's in a human healthcare. So I do he does humans. And so I have to say that with my close-knit friends, um, so he does human medicine and he's gone a lot, right? He I solo parent a lot, and I'm very blessed that he works so hard and he's so talented, and God gave him those talents to serve in that way. I could not do what he does, but it also helped me create the motherhood that I wanted to have with my kids. And everybody's like, oh, you're creating a good childhood. I'm like, let's be honest, they don't remember the stuff I did for them at four years old or five years old. They probably don't remember what they ate for breakfast yesterday, but I remember those moments. And so it's not just me creating a childhood, it's me creating a motherhood that I want to enjoy and that I want to remember. And so once I had that relationship defined with the hubster and my kids and what I wanted that our relationship to look like, and the relationship I wanted with God and how I want to get stronger with him, then I focused on like, well, who's the person that I want to be? What talents do I feel like I have? And what am I trying to force? And what am I avoiding that's very uncomfortable? Um, that I keep coming back to. And then I had to just sit with that. And some things are still coming up. I don't know the long-term plan. I know that um one of the things came up for me was like to get back into ultra running. Yeah. And so it was like to get back into that and to really pour into that, which I was like, okay. Um that's fine. But as a 44-year-old woman trying to ultra train, right? Like that's I feel like it's harder. Um, just because the season of life and your hormones and all that stuff, that's a different story. Yeah. But um it would I felt it on my heart to do it. And yeah, so I'm just trying to, I guess when you say balance, I think the best way that I can say I balance everything is with over-communicating with my the ones that are important to me. I over-communicate with the hubster what I want, how I see us, what do I envision, what I need, and asking him what he needs. And I do that with my kids too, but I also make sure I do it with myself because I wasn't.

SPEAKER_00 27:28

I love I love that. And I love that you're, you know, I mean, you do have that coach background. And I always say a good coach asks hard questions. And, you know, you're you're asking yourself hard questions of like, what am I avoiding? What am I? I think you said, what am I forcing? Which that is an amazing question because it goes back to your original story of forcing five years when it was like God was clearing you, clearly calling you out. And so I want the listener to hear that is like when you spend time with God, is sit in silence and ask questions and see what comes up, what surfaces journal, because a lot of times we might be surprised or not surprised. We've just been ignoring that thing that comes up. Um so I'm glad you mentioned that because I don't think we take the time to do it. We just run, run, run, run, run. Run.

SPEAKER_02 28:23

And we look, I think we also look for opportunities to make our desires happen.

SPEAKER_00 28:28

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 28:29

And so I did that. Like I actively sought this clinic out to work that was three out, like two and a half, three hour commute, depending on traffic, from my house. Do I need to be driving two and a half hours on top of a 12-hour shift? One way. No, no, I do not. So I was forcing the things, these things, and I I think sometimes I always say I'm God's comic relief because puts things and he's like, Here, my child. I'm like, oh yeah, look, there's the hard way. I'll go do that. Um, and that's what I was doing. I was like, oh, he has this brilliant plan laid out for me. That's fine, but I know I want to do this, right? And I was causing my own suffering by ignoring and trying to create opportunities to feed my ego. I didn't need to.

SPEAKER_00 29:19

I love that because it is where we do have free will. So God, God says, like, hey, if you pray and pause and be still and listen to me, I'll guide your path. We see that all over the Bible. God will lead us, but He also gives us free will for us to say, Nope, I don't want to go on the path that you have. I'm gonna do this. And he's like, Okay. But what's interesting about that is like you said it led to suffering, it didn't lead to what you thought it was going to, this happiness and this, like, you know, so it's like, okay.

SPEAKER_02 29:52

I wasn't seeing my kids when the hopster would send me pictures of the kids through the day. My heart was like breaking because I was like, I'm missing these moments. And he was like, but and the hubster would reply, but you chose this, yeah. And I was like, I did, okay. I was like, I chose this, and um that makes me think of I think some of it too comes from the fear that I have, and I think I shared with you my dream with them.

SPEAKER_00 30:21

I love that you're I honestly was just getting ready to say, I would love for you to wrap up and end on your dream because it is, I don't know, it's so cool. It's one of the things that I think about, and so it's like, go for it.

SPEAKER_02 30:35

Well, my kids, um, it's a dream I've had ever since I was little, like, and it's a nightmare for me. I really should say it's a dream, but it's like a recurring nightmare, and I have it sporadically throughout my life. I don't have it every day, so don't feel bad for me. But I do have it, and I think it's like whenever I have like these pivotal moments, I think it's like kind of like a a god kiss, like it's like, hey, here's a little, here's a little reminder, here's a nudge. And it's funny because my kids are at that age where they're asking me, Mom, what are you scared of? Are you scared of the dark? Are you scared of this? Are you scared of this? And I'm like, no, I just have really one fear, and it's envelopes. Stupid. Say it out loud, but it's like blank envelopes. And so the dream goes that I pass away, which is kind of morbid, um, but I don't, I don't know how I die. I just know that I am dead and that I um go, I'm traveled into this white room, and all the walls are white, the floor, everything is just shining bright white, and there's a chair. And so I go and I sit in this white chair, and as soon as I sit, all these envelopes pop up on the walls all around me, and there's like thousands of thousands, and then I see what I assume is God come in and like motion for me to pick up an envelope, and I read it. Inside the envelope is like an index card, and the index card has like maybe it says like join Stephanie on her podcast, or maybe it's like help um help this friend move into their house, or maybe it's um you write you're writing your own book, maybe it's you're helping someone that you don't know, like someone's name I don't know yet. Um, maybe it's that I it's like all these things that maybe I know who they are, maybe I don't, but it's all these things that I that I'm doing that I haven't done yet. And I just sit there and I'm I when I pull out the last envelope and I read the index card, I put it on the ground, and there's just thousands of index cards around me with all these things. And some of them are great, some of them are little, some is like you smile at this old beggar woman, right? Like they're all these like random moments scattered on the floor. And I look up at God and He's like, This is all that could have happened had you only believed. And then I wake up and it's like, oh, and in my mind, it's like those are all the things that I try to take the hard way, like what I avoided, what I refuse to acknowledge. When you said earlier, you're like, you know, we just you need to pray, and then you um you're still. And I think I always had a strong faith, and I've always um known how I believed.

SPEAKER_01 33:42

And my problem like before my accident, my hydroclining with accident, was that I didn't intend to be stealed. And listen to what you were trying to talk about. So those events cards and all those things and that's what I think here is that I don't live like God has that I don't I'm the one that's wearing my topic in the competitor that I'm not trying to, you know, invest in myself to do his work to serve the way he wants me to, that I'm fighting it and then I'm sorry.

SPEAKER_00 34:22

Well, thank you for sharing that. I mean, I think it's a great, like just ending because if we're not following God's path, then I this is one of the questions I always think I'll I'll want for God is if we're not following your path, do we miss those opportunities? Do we get those again? Um, and I think, you know, is maybe we don't, you know, maybe it's like God saying, okay, you have free will and those envelopes, but I just love that visual because it's like, okay, if we're following God's path, are we gonna hit those envelopes and and enter it and go, okay, I said yes to because I'm following God's will that I said yes to be on Stephanie's podcast. You know, I'm not gonna be scared of when I pass the lady, I'm gonna smile at her and make eye contact or a friend, you know, like those sorts of things. So um thank you so much for sharing your story, sharing your heart. I know what it's getting to connect with, just so many mamas and so many professionals out there, because a lot of times is our jobs are our identity, and God's like, no, it's not. You're just a child of mine. And I'm not telling anyone to quit their job. Right, exactly. Well, and I think it's one of those things, it's it goes back to pray and pause, give it to God because I really do believe if you are letting him lead, he will show you, he will guide you. Um, and then sometimes he just says, you know what? Like you can do what you want to do, but it's also when you're doing it, don't self-destruct you. Exactly, don't let it self-destruct. And I'm not saying it it did with your family, but like I've seen it over and over again where that job is God's like, I've given this to you. Like, go do this. Go. That is a way that you can serve and connect and be a light sometimes, and you know, wherever it is, but then also make sure what are your priorities and it's not ruining your family and your kids and everything else. So um, I think those things are important.

SPEAKER_02 36:22

One of my um my hubster's talents is to do the work that he's doing now, the way that he handles his patients and how he cares for them. I feel like that is his talent. And I think in the season, he needs to be there fully, and I need to step down and serve in a different way. And I feel like maybe later our seasons are gonna swap. Right now, right now, I'm yeah, and the hubsters like, do you feel like you'll ever go back? And I was like, I don't know. In the season, no, but you never know what God's voice is gonna tell you.

SPEAKER_00 36:54

So it can change tomorrow. It could. Well, Amber, thank you so much for uh sharing your story on the Only God podcast. And to the listener, thank you for listening. And I hope everybody has a fabulous day. Hey friends, thank you for joining me today on the Only God Podcast. I hope today's story encouraged your faith and reminded you that God is still writing our stories each and every day. If you were inspired by this episode, please share, subscribe, and tell a friend. And to stay connected with me and find out about all my books and resources and events, go to shineforwardcreative.com. Have a fabulous day.