“God works in fantastic, mysterious, wonderful ways”.

One of my best friends said that after I told her about what the last two months have held for me. The same things that I want to share with you.

Before I do so, I want to apologize for my updates being so hit-and-miss the last few weeks of my assignment in Massachusetts. This blog has not only been a way for me to exercise my love for writing, but also has been a way to keep loved ones informed on what I was up to. I didn’t do very well of honoring the latter.

So, to start off, I should tell you this: my time of traveling has come to an end.

I first had the inkling of this season ending during my break in-between my San Francisco and Worcester assignments. I was driving to my old college town to visit friends when God and I had a moment in the car. I believe He spoke and I spent the rest of the weekend trying to ignore what He said, tucking it into the back of my mind. Once I came back to Columbus, however, I brought it to the forefront and wrestled with it for several days.

I didn’t want to stop traveling. I loved it. I REALLY loved it. In fact, the original plan was to travel long enough to save for a down payment on a house (roughly another year and a half), then put down roots in my favorite place: Washington D.C.

However, God was calling me elsewhere. To where, you ask? During that drive in the car, I knew He told me that Massachusetts would be my last travel assignment and I would settle down in my college town: Rio Grande, Ohio.

Though I have fond memories of my time there, settling in a very rural area with seemingly non-existent, high-risk, OB ultrasound opportunities wasn’t what I had in mind for my life. Where would I live? Where would I work? Why now?

After enduring days of turning these questions over and over in my head, loss of appetite, crying myself to sleep, and unceasingly praying “Lord, tell me what to do!”, He spoke again:

“Lauren, I already told you what to do. Trust and obey Me.”

In that moment, it clicked and I knew. I knew what He was asking of me and (loosely) knew what He had for me next. And all the while, I knew if I trusted and obeyed, He would knock my socks off in how He provided perfectly out of seemingly nothing.

Boy, has He.

During my time in Massachusetts and within the last month, He has provided me a place to live, a job, a community of Christ-seeking people, and a growing awareness of what what being a follower of Christ actually means. Priceless, abundant, overflowing gifts.

The answer to the “where am I going to live” came in the form of one of my dear friends from college, Mackenzie. She lives in the area (literally next door to the home I lived in during college) and, as I came to learn, had been looking for a roommate for months and was at the point of giving up when we again crossed paths.

I think we’re both still in shock at how perfectly it worked for us to room together. The timing, the location, all of it screamed of being Divinely arranged. This happened the seventh week into my Massachussets assignment.

One answer to “where will I work?” came a few weeks later, then the final answer on October 19th.

I had been closely monitoring job openings at several different hospitals and private practices drivable from Rio Grande since beginning the Massachusetts assignment and found one job to apply to. The tenth week into my assignment, I received a call from that job. This position was a per diem position that included both radiology and high-risk OB. I interviewed for it on September 10th, then found out a week later that another candidate had been chosen. While living in Rio, I continued in my job search for another month, finding two more positions to apply for. As the month drew on, no movements was made on those applications. I waited and prayed, not only that God would provide a job, but that He would provide a sonography job specifically in OB.

On October 11th, I received a message from one of my college professors about a sonographer position that opened up at an OB/GYN office in the area.

That day, on a Thursday, I applied. Friday, I had an interview scheduled. Monday, I had the interview. Friday, I got the job offer. The whole process took a little over a week.

The answer to my “why now” question has been somewhat answered. I would bet that the growth I’ve seen in my relationship with Christ, as I’ve been encouraged and challenged by my Christ-following friends, was by design and with intention. I wholeheartedly believe He wants me to be involved in the lives of others, but also use friendships, mentorships, and leaderships to refine me. I believe He is using the college ministry I was a part of when I was in school as a way to do that in this season. However, I also believe only time and hindsight will allow me a glimpse of the fullness of that question being answered.

This has been such a wild ride, but by golly, seeing how He has provided and those He has brought alongside me throughout this process has humbled me like no other. I’m looking forward to scanning babies again, to investing into others’ lives, to growing in my field and in my faith, to becoming more like Christ.

As far as the future of this blog, I’m still undecided. It may act as a blog with a wider spectrum of topics, now that my traveling days are done. Or, it may be act as a well-lived venture that had its season.

Either way, there’s life to live. On to the next adventure.