In my latest blogpost, I shared about my ambitious plan to quit my job and venture off to do something in Europe according to a prophetic word. I had quit my job in March 2014, and I started off my notice period with no certainty of what I was going to do.
My colleagues and friends kept asking me what my plans were, and to my parents I said about the prophetic word, but to my friends, I just told them that I would be going to Europe. My friends were so convinced that I must have scored a jaw-dropping job offer in Europe, they were convinced I was pulling a fast one on them. I don’t think they had ever seen anyone so “recklessly” resigning with no plans in mind.
But here I was, planning my grand entrance into “Europe…”. As if I were the star of my own blockbuster, I would dream of sauntering through the airport, striking a pose as I took off my sunglasses, and gazing dramatically at the skyscrapers. A true cinematic masterpiece in the making!
That’s all I knew. What would I do there? No idea. How will I go there? Dunno.
After weeks of cluelessness, one fine day, it dawned on me that probably I should try for Ph.D after all, as my favourite professor at IIT Madras, Prof. Amitava Mukherjee had always encouraged me to pursue research in Statistics. I called him, and spoke with him, and he was happy to hear that I was going to pursue research in Statistics. He said he would support me all the way!
That’s a start!
I was like “See. This is God’s hand at work. Everything is happening so smooth like butter”. Only if I knew that it was anything but true.
What “research” da?
One doesn’t just choose to go for research, without a research topic or no proposal. But that was me. I was applying for many Ph.D programs in Europe, despite knowing the odds were against me.
As I waited for the response, I decided to check research papers in Statistics that I felt interested in, and sent emails to the professors listed there, hoping that someone would respond, but there was no response.
I was digging through my old notebooks, trying to remember everything I learned during my Masters. Time was flying by, and soon I’d have to head back to my hometown. One and half months had gone in a flash.
In the final week of my notice period, an unexpected response arrived like a rare oasis in the desert! And believe it or not, it hailed all the way from Italy!
A response landed in my inbox from none other than Prof. Giuseppe Arbia , all the way from Italy. I had sent him an email sometime ago. The Professor was excited about my application, and to be honest, it couldn’t have come at a better time, especially since it was only days before I would have to go back to my hometown.
Prof. Arbia sent me the below email, and encouraged me to apply to the university where he taught, and even suggested other institutions where I could research. This was the first major sign that God’s plan was unfolding, though it was still unclear how it would all come together.
So, I started to see the results of what I was believing for. I remember thinking that things were much smoother than butter. It was happening.
But that’s thing about rollercoaster rides. Sometimes it speeds up, and sometimes it slows down.
Prof. Arbia had inadvertently provided a clueless applicant avenues to look to, and I am so thankful to him for that.
So, now from “no idea”, I had reached shortlisted a few universities among which were:
- Padua- University of Padua
- Rome- Sapienza University of Rome
- Bologna – Università di Bologna
I talked to Prof. Mukherjee about this, and he said that those are good universities, and especially for University of Padua, it will be difficult.
I knew I had to trust God in all of this. So, I called Pastor Sukumaran and we prayed together. He confirmed and said that Italy was God’s plan. He again saw a vision that through all of this, I will finally get a call from a University in Italy. Also, He saw me joyfully boarding the flight to Italy.
That was reassuring. Now I will have to trust him through this whole wild ride, even if it feels like I’m walking on water. I will have to ignore the wind and waves while walking on it.
In a few days, my notice period ended, and I finally left the company with 2 months shy of 2 years. That was how much excited I was about this.
Everything seemed to be smoother than butter
Conclusion
Taking that first leap of faith by quitting my job was seriously one of the toughest decisions I’ve ever made until then. Back then, it felt like the biggest jump I’d ever have to make, but surprise, surprise! Every step along the way, even ten years down the line, turned out there are even bigger leaps every step, and hey, God has never let me down.
But in doing so, I began to see the first glimpses of God’s plan for my life. It was a journey filled with uncertainty, but I knew that His unfailing love was guiding me, even through the darkest moments. The next part of this journey would reveal how God’s timing is always perfect, even when it feels like everything is falling apart.
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