Blog by Natalie Groff
As I sit here and type, I remember this exact day one year ago when I dropped our kids off at my Mom’s house so that my husband and I could finish clearing out our house, pack up the moving truck, and clean our home of almost five years from top to bottom. It was the day before closing and moving day. We were filled with the bittersweet exhilaration of leaving our old lives behind and stepping into the new.
Through a set of extraordinary circumstances, we knew God wanted us to move our family of five from rural Pennsylvania to Virginia Beach. That year has stretched us more than we could have ever imagined. For one thing, there were the extensive renovations that needed to be completed before we could even put our house on the market. My husband, with the help of his dad, quite literally ripped out and replaced the kitchen, bathroom, and several external walls. No big deal, right?!
For my part, I had the equally arduous task of decluttering. Now, I know that may not seem quite as impressive as my husband’s handyman skills, but as a recovering pack rat and less-than-stellar homemaker, it was monumental. In addition to that, I had to learn how to keep our home showroom perfect for any possible showings that might pop up. With three small boys! For six months! Oh, and did I mention that the entire septic system had to be replaced? For real. Help me, Jesus!
Well, He did. It was, without a doubt, the grace of God that empowered us to do the seemingly impossible.
Oftentimes grace is simply understood to be the unmerited favor of God and it absolutely is! But it is also so much more than that. It is also the divine empowerment to fulfill all that God has called us to do. Even digging into the back of the closet and trying to remember why I kept that diaper bag that I never really liked or preventing my inquisitive then-four-year-old from falling into the enormous ditch in the front yard.
Ephesians 2:7 TPT
“Throughout the coming ages, we will be the visible display of the infinite, limitless riches of his grace and kindness, which was showered upon us in Jesus Christ.”
Throughout these last two years, I have seen first hand “the infinite, limitless riches of His grace”. Anyone who has seen my house on a normal day can testify to His grace when it came to being ready for showings.
As exciting as it was driving away from that house for the last time and making our final preparations for our new lives in Virginia, we had no way of knowing how much more we would need to lean into His grace. For one thing, what should have been a seven to eight-hour drive the next day turned into twelve. Or that one of our sons would be diagnosed with autism. And we were certainly not prepared for me to tailspin into the depths of depression six months later. Even now, five months out, I still struggle to remember the goodness of God on a daily basis.
But sitting here, recalling “the infinite, limitless riches of His grace and kindness, which was showered upon us in Jesus Christ” this past year, I know that He has been with us throughout the whole journey and will continue to walk with us.
Daily I’m reminded that He’s the good Father and wants to walk with you and me in this path of motherhood. His grace has been and will continue to be, sufficient for me.
And He will continue to empower us with His grace to emerge from this calling of motherhood victorious.
Let’s just start with the summer for now!