Surrendering Like Sarah

Send us Fan MailA big welcome to Natalie DeKryger, our guest for this week's podcast! Natalie is an oncology nurse, new mom, and wife to a fourth year medical student who just matched into general surgery. This conversation was recorded just before the birth of her son and match day, so hearing Natalie's trust in the Lord prior to these big life changes was so encouraging to us!She shares...rhythms her and her husband established to intentionally cultivate their marriage.their pregnancy journey while navigating residency interviews and an upcoming match day.what trusting the Lord looks like as her husband approaches a surgical specialty and unknown match results.We're grateful for Natalie's reflection and testimony, and pray it is exhorting to you!Scriptures referenced: Philippians 1:6, Proverbs 16:9SLS on Facebook and Instagram.Support the SLS Ministry.Purchase SLS StickersConnect with your local Side By Side Ministry!Support the show

Send us Fan MailJoin us for an early Match Day podcast release, featuring our friend, Katie Portolese! Katie is wife to a PGY5 general surgery resident who just completed the match process for a colorectal fellowship. Join us as Katie reflects on and compares her family's residency match experience to their recent fellowship match. She shares...how God has grown her faith in the seven years between both Match Days,the rich blessings God revealed after a disappointing residency match,practical advice on how to prepare for an upcoming Match.If you are looking for Gospel hope as you're processing an upcoming (or recent) Match Day, then this episode is for you!Scriptures referenced: John 15:4, Romans 1:19-20, 1 Corinthians 16:13-14, Proverbs 16:9.SLS on Facebook and Instagram.Support the SLS Ministry.Purchase SLS StickersConnect with your local Side By Side Ministry!Support the show

Send us Fan MailWhat a treat to kick off Season 3 with our friend, Karyssa Davidson! Karyssa is wife to a PGY5 Orthopedic Surgery resident and a mom to now (as of January 2026) four beautiful children! As she reflects on the past five years of training prior to a move for fellowship, her words speak to the heart of wives in the throes of challenging training years. Karyssa exhorts us to give grace to our husbands during long and difficult seasons of training, reminding us to look to Jesus as the perfect example of steadfast endurance as He endured the cross. She shares ways God has spoken to and encouraged her through long seasons of waiting to get married, have children, finish a season of long-distance while married, and completing surgical residency. We pray God uses her words as balm to your soul if you also are walking through a long and difficult season as a medical wife!Scriptures Referenced: Proverbs 3:6, 2 Corinthians 12:9SLS on Facebook and Instagram.Support the SLS Ministry.Purchase SLS StickersConnect with your local Side By Side Ministry!Support the show

Send us Fan MailRobin Morgenthaler, wife to a pulmonologist and founder of Side By Side joins us in our Season 2 Finale! She shares about the numerous times she has surrendered to God's calling, from moving all over the country, to adoption, to founding Side By Side! We are so excited for you to hear the wisdom she shares with us! SLS on Facebook and Instagram.Support the SLS Ministry.Purchase SLS StickersConnect with your local Side By Side Ministry!Support the show

Send us Fan MailWe are honored to have Side By Side's Executive Director, Rebecca Lehman, join us for this episode! We've packed a lot of her story into this one - starting with her early life when the Lord laid a foundation of faith and ministry, and leading to how that foundation prepared her for her current leadership of Side By Side! Rebecca traces her experience with Side By Side, from first joining after having twins, to co-starting a chapter during residency, to joining the executive team, and finally to how she came to her current role as Executive Director. She gives the best practical advice: like when to say "yes" and "no" to ministry opportunities, and how to reassure your husband in his identity in Christ. Her wisdom is timeless and has been inspiring to us - we're thrilled to share this conversation with you!Scriptures referenced: Philippians 1:27, Ecclesiastes 5:6, Romans 8:28, and Romans 5:2SLS on Facebook and Instagram.Support the SLS Ministry.Purchase SLS StickersConnect with your local Side By Side Ministry!Support the show

Send us Fan MailApril Richards, wife to a child psychiatrist and mom of four kids, has packed this episode with such rich and practical wisdom! She shares what it was like when her husband resigned from residency, and how the Lord brought them to complete medical training even still. Her family is so beautifully redeeming family time now that training is complete, and the scriptures she shares are rich truth for us all.Through humor and honest stories, April also gives many practical ways to deepen our faiths and marriages. We can't wait to share this episode with you!Scriptures referenced: Psalm 10:28, Psalm 112:6-8, Psalm 51, Psalm 116:7SLS on Facebook and Instagram.Support the SLS Ministry.Purchase SLS StickersConnect with your local Side By Side Ministry!Support the show

Send us Fan MailWe got to chat with Katie Cross this week and she has so much wisdom to share! Katie is a wife to a current orthopedics resident and a mom to her sweet little girl, River. She shares how she came to have a personal relationship with Jesus while her husband was in medical school, transitioning from one community to another, and how she and her husband have learned to protect their peace during the craziness of residency. She shares the practical ways they do this and how God has continued to sustain them through medical training. We can't wait for you to hear some of Katie's story!Scriptures referenced: Isaiah 64:8 & Isaiah 40:28-31SLS on Facebook and Instagram.Support the SLS Ministry.Purchase SLS StickersSupport the show

Send us Fan MailAllison Ivan joins us this episode and she has such a beautiful reflection to share on their training journey! Allison is a wife to a reconstructive urology fellow, a mom, and a physician assistant. She has such wisdom to impart as she and her family near the end of their medical training journey! This episode is incredibly timely, as she shares about God's faithfulness with a very unexpected residency match, followed by God's provision beyond what Allison and her husband could have imagined during residency. She also gives us all of the best practical tips to build intentional community where God plants us - because where He plants us is right where He wants us to be.Scriptures Referenced: Proverbs 3:5-6, Proverbs 16:9SLS on Facebook and Instagram.Support the SLS Ministry.Purchase SLS StickersConnect with your local Side By Side Ministry!Support the show

Send us Fan MailWe're so excited to be back with you for Season 2! After much time away, we've packed this episode with all the things we need to catch up on - what life looks like for Brooke & Megan, a new partnership for our ministry, a new team member for the podcast, and unpacking her story!Nicole Hull has graciously joined the SLS team and joins us to share what surrender has looked like for her and her husband over the last few years. From experiencing engagement living across the country from one another, to trying for two years to get pregnant - Nicole exemplifies what trusting God looks like. Even if it means living out our greatest fears - and experiencing His goodness along the way.SLS on Facebook and Instagram.Support the SLS Ministry.Purchase SLS StickersConnect with your local Side By Side Ministry!Support the show

Send us Fan MailWhat better way to end Season 1 of SLS than with part 2 of Jackie Nave’s miraculous story?! Jackie is back to share the rest of her story - how a mass on her placenta during her third pregnancy turned into a placental abruption, and resulted in the most incredible outcome with her miracle baby girl. The gift of having a husband in residency gives us an insight into what it means to arrive at the hospital during shift change, the impeccable medical team caring for her, and the gift of personal relationships with her care team. A NICU stay with a resident husband also poses unique challenges - Jackie shares how God transformed her focus during this time with her daughter. We’re so honored to encourage you with the rest of Jackie’s story!Scriptures Referenced: Isaiah 41:10, Philippians 4:6-8, Psalm 46:1-2Songs Referenced: Heaven’s All Around by Life Church WorshipSLS on Facebook and Instagram.Support the SLS Ministry.Support the show

Send us Fan MailLosing a child is something no family should ever have to experience. And to walk through it during residency seems particularly wrong. How do we process and work through grief while continuing to be a mom and spouse? And  how does our husband return to work at the same hospital we received this traumatic news? This week, Jackie Nave joins us to share part one of her story. Jackie is a wife to an anesthesiology resident in Hershey, PA, and shares the story of her son, Boden, who was stillborn while her husband was in the midst of residency.  Jackie's family experienced the unique struggles of a husband in medicine who works at the hospital where they experienced traumatic loss. Through immense grief and raw emotion, the Lord has used Boden's story to give Jackie opportunities to share about Jesus everywhere she goes. At the end, she gives us the biggest mic drop we've ever heard, to give us a taste of what’s to come in Part 2! We pray that God uses Jackie's story to help you taste and see that He is good. Scriptures referenced: Philippians 4:4-8, 1 Kings 4:16-17Songs referenced: I Will Carry You by Ellie Holcomb, Faithfully by TobyMacSLS on Facebook and Instagram.Support the SLS Ministry.Support the show

Send us Fan MailWOW do we have a treat for you with today's podcast! Phoebe Waller and her husband (Emergency Medicine attending in Harrisburg, PA) were both missionary kids growing up, and within two weeks they discovered they were pregnant with their first baby and accepted into medical school. Six months after their first was born, they started medical school and found out they were pregnant with their second. Phoebe shares practical recommendations when moving to a new area, like looking for a church right away, and avoiding an 8th story apartment when you're pregnant!She also shares how she learned to let her husband be a human, how to sacrifice duty for the sake of enjoying Christ and family, and how to live a sold-out life for Christ while living at home with kids everyday. She has SO MANY good things to share, we hope you can soak up every moment of this message!Scriptures referenced: Song of Songs 1:7, Song of Songs 3:9, 1 Corinthians 10:31, Resources referenced: Mike Reeve's "The Love of Christ in the Song of Song's" sermon series, "A Theology of the Ordinary" by Julie Canlis, "Every Moment Holy" - Liturgies for the ordinary moments of daily life.SLS on Facebook and Instagram.Support the SLS Ministry.Support the show

Send us Fan MailKatherine Jackson, wife of a second year gastroenterology fellow and mom to two sweet girls, joins us to tell her story! She shares the honest questions she asked as her firstborn was diagnosed with Phenylketonuria (PKU), she ministered to a mom with Stage 4 cancer, and walked through secondary infertility and miscarriage. All during residency and fellowship. She explains how her husband’s medical training equipped them to have difficult conversations with friends who were hurting - God can use us no matter the season! Though her stories are heavy, she shares scripture that brought light to her soul, and we can’t wait for you to hear her wisdom!Scriptures referenced: John 16:33, Psalm 42, Psalm 43SLS on Facebook and Instagram.Support the SLS Ministry.Support the show

Send us Fan MailHow are medical students different than residents? And what is a fellow? Your spouse is a PGY what?? Today's episode defines some of the (confusing) commonly used terms in the medical world! We reference them in our podcasts, so we thought it important to also define them. Terms defined: Medical student, Step Exams, Match Day, Resident, PGY?, Fellow, Attending, Call shifts, Golden vs. Silver vs. Black weekends.Scriptures referenced: 2 Corinthians 4:1-6SLS on Facebook and Instagram.Support the SLS Ministry.Support the show

Send us Fan MailThis conversation was such a joy! Abby Partin is wife to a current Family Medicine Attending, mom of three, nurse, and faithful servant at her local church. She shares how God faithfully provided during challenging seasons like having a baby during med school,  transitioning to SAHM/toddler life during residency, and having a baby during her husband’s hardest residency rotation. She gives both Biblical and practical advice on believing the best in our husbands, “sharpening our sword” of memorizing scripture, and how to cultivate our marriage in the tough seasons of medicine!Scriptures referenced: Joshua 4:20, Philippians 4:7, 1 Corinthians 15:58, Psalm 100:1-2, Psalm 121, Philippians 2:3-4SLS on Facebook and Instagram.Support the SLS Ministry.Support the show

Send us Fan MailWe are thrilled to welcome Dr. Holly Schonewald, OB/GYN Resident doctor, on today’s podcast! Married to an Internal Medicine Resident doctor, Holly shares her unique perspective as a resident married to another resident. She digs deep into learning to trust God through two back-to-back intern years, spousal burnout, having a baby, and a future of medical missions. Holly gives us the most beautiful picture of Paul's explanation in Philippians 3: though she has reason to put confidence in her status as a resident, she counts that as loss for the sake of knowing Christ magnified in her marriage. We are thrilled to share our conversation with you!Scripture references: 2 Corinthians 12:9, Psalm 121, Psalm 46:10SLS on Facebook and Instagram.Support the SLS Ministry.Support the show

Send us Fan MailMatch Day uncertainty, infertility, and navigating life in general can test our understanding of God's love for us. In this special Match Day episode, Megan interviews Brooke Avon, whose husband is a current 4th year medical student going through the match process. Brooke shares how the Lord has grown and pruned her, reaffirming His love for her throughout the match process and navigating infertility. We are excited for those of you who are experiencing Match 2024 with your spouse. We are praying for you, for peace and joy regardless of the outcome!Scripture references: The Death of Lazarus (John 11:1-27), Psalm 42:5 & John 16:33SLS on Facebook and Instagram.Support the SLS Ministry.Support the show

Send us Fan MailIntern year, a new baby, adjusting to life as a full-time mom, and running a marathon all have one thing in common: they all need the refreshing hope found in the Bible. Join Brooke as she interviews Megan Baer - they discuss the challenges during intern year of residency and how fruitful scripture is when we commit it to memory. Scripture references: Psalm 121SLS on Facebook and Instagram.Support the SLS ministry.Support the show

Send us Fan MailA short introduction to tell you more about who we (Brooke and Megan) are, where the idea of this Podcast originated from, and what our goal is in recording each Pod. We are SO glad you're here!Scripture references: Genesis 12:1-9SLS on Facebook and Instagram.Support the show