Empty Nest Awakening: Weaving the Threads of Your Passions into Purpose

By Ruthie Gray

Are you in the throes of empty nest and wondering what's next?

 

In Empty Nest Awakening: Weaving the Threads of Your Passions into Purpose, Ruthie Gray tenderly navigates the uncharted waters of this transformational phase for moms, offering comfort, gu

• Language: English
• Publisher: Market Refined Publishing
• Release date: Oct 17, 2023
• ISBN: 9798988158158

Ruthie Gray

Ruthie Gray helps empty nest moms find their path to purpose and joy as she charts a course for fresh or renewed dreams after children have flown the nest. She is a wife, Gigi, empty nester, and content marketing consultant for Christian entrepreneurs, specializing in online community building from Instagram to email marketing and beyond. Her hobbies include Florida beach walks, RV-ing with hubby, and reading historical fiction. Ruthie is the founder of Authentic Online Marketing School where she teaches her Community Marketing Framework and podcasts at Authentic Online Marketing (so easy, your mom-or Carol Brady-can do it). Connect with her on Instagram or her website authenticonlinemarketing.com.

Book preview

empty_nest_awakening_ebook.jpg

Copyright © 2023 Ruthie Gray

Published by Market Refined Publishing,

An Imprint of Market Refined Media, LLC

193 Cleo Circle

Ringgold GA 30736

marketrefinedmedia.com

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

Unless otherwise noted, all scripture taken from The Holy Bible, ENGLISH STANDARD VERSION®. Copyright © 2001, 2016 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. All rights reserved worldwide. Used by permission.

Print ISBN: 979-8-9881581-4-1

Digital ISBN: 979-8-9881581-5-8

Audiobook ISBN: 979-8-9881581-6-5

LCCN: 2023915534

Cover and Interior Design by Nelly Murariu at PixBeeDesign.com

Manuscript Edits by Lois Flowers, Dalene Bickel, and Market Refined Media, LLC

Printed in the United States of America

First Edition: October 2023

Contents

Acknowledgments

Introduction

Chapter 1: The Kids Are Gone. Now What?

Chapter 2: Is There Life Outside of Caregiving?

Chapter 3: Is It Selfish to Dream?

Chapter 4: God, Is This Me, or Is This You?

Chapter 5: I’m Scared!

Chapter 6: But What Am I Qualified to Do?

Chapter 7: I Think I Need a Second Opinion

Chapter 8: I Just Want It to Be a Ministry

Chapter 9: But I Don’t Know All the Steps!

Chapter 10: Weaving a Legacy

Chapter 11: Pivots Are Pertinent

Chapter 12: Transformative Case Studies

Chapter 13: Say No So You Can Say Yes

Chapter 14: Courage Doesn’t Equal Ease

Chapter 15: Name That Thing!

Chapter 16: Ask God’s Blessing

Chapter 17: Invite the Unexplainable

Chapter 18: One Warning about Your Health

Chapter 19: Stimulating Creativity in a Seasoned Brain

Chapter 20: Mama Needs Rest (Avoid Burnout!)

Conclusion

Notes

About the Author

Acknowledgments

Thank you to my Instagram posse, training cohorts, clients, and newsletter subscribers. You are what you do, and you do brave!

To my kids, who sometimes wondered during the initial empty nest years, Who is this person, and what have you done with my mother?, thank you for hanging with your ol’ ma and letting me dream. You were the inspiration all along.

Mom and Dad, I’m grateful to you for shaping me, guiding me, and pointing me to Jesus and onto a bigger, bolder life for Him.

Special thanks to Lois Flowers for wading through the Super Rough Draft and making it sound like I knew what I was doing. To my friends, Mindy Kiker and Jennifer Kochert, for getting me started with Flourish Writers resources. And to Dalene Bickel, who gently steered me out of weird, disjointed sentences and into a manuscript anyone can understand.

And last, but definitely not least, thank you to my husband, The Guy Who Does Everything. You were there in the beginning (before kids), in the messy middle (lots of kids), and you are still here (without kids). You are my soul mate, comedy relief, and biggest cheerleader. Thank you for supporting me, urging me to write—yea, verily—for years, and never giving up on me. When I die, you get my royalties (which is probably not a lot). I love you.

Introduction

Thirteen years ago, I stood, arms linked with my daughters at a Beth Moore conference, and pledged to go public with my writing. Beth had just delivered a powerful message on the widow in 2 Kings 4:13 who didn’t ask for anything when Elisha asked, in essence, What do you want?

God had been prompting me to write—and I was—but nobody knew about it. I wanted to go public, but I was scared. However, I didn’t want to be guilty of playing small, like the widow who wouldn’t ask for a son (but Elisha suspected she did).

You may recall that her son died later and she blamed Elisha for fueling her dream. I didn’t ask for a son but you gave me one anyway and now he’s dead! (v. 28, my paraphrase).

Of course, Elisha raised the boy from the dead, and they all lived happily ever after. Or did they?

You see, many times we know what we want, but we’re afraid to ask because we know we might get it. We recognize the responsibility and potential heartache that comes with it, so we don’t ask.

That day at the conference, I owned up to not asking and told my girls I knew what God wanted me to ask for: opportunities to write and get published.

Then I went home and put it off for three more years.

Why? Because of fear. Fear of the unknown, fear of others’ opinions, fear that I wasn’t good enough, and fear of criticism.

My husband, The Guy Who Does Everything, is my polar opposite. He’s a visionary, which means he could care less what anyone thinks, except me. (A trait of which I often am jealous!) He sees what needs done and does it. No regrets.

He’s also the reason I wrote this book, because he’s been encouraging me for years to do it.

It’s taken a lot of guts for me to get here.

I may not live happily ever after, but I will live joyfully ever after. Whatever happens with this book, God knows all about it. He asked me to write it for a reason, and He orchestrated all the other scenarios that led up to this point, which you’ll read about soon enough.

This book encompasses my story, experience, perspective, and what I learned by acting on a long-lost passion. Because I’ve worked with and talked to many other empty nest women, I know this problem is universal.

If you’re reading this book as an empty nester, you’ll likely see yourself in many of my experiences, and hopefully, you’ll be awakened to your new purpose. If you have children who are still living under your roof, you’ll get a glimpse of what empty nest life will be like and why it’s important to prepare now for that next stage. You’ll learn about fear, reasons why we empty nesters typically don’t act, and how to explore your options.

Believers often misinterpret Romans 8:28, And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose, as a lucky charm for obedience. We must remember that Christ was obedient and look where that got him. But that was earth, and the aftermath was exceedingly abundantly above anything we could ever ask or think (Ephesians 3:20).

God wins in the end.

So if you’re struggling with an idea in your empty-nest season of starting over again, one you think God might be calling you to, one that seems too hard, too scary, or simply, too much, let me encourage you to weave the threads. Don’t be like thirteen-years-ago me. Don’t be like the widow who wouldn’t ask.

It’s time to act; awaken your purpose in the empty nest.

With action comes bravery!

Chapter 1: The Kids Are Gone. Now What?

Desire often lives next door to grief inside the soul. Access the grief, and you wake up the longing as well. ~ Emily P Freeman

You get two chances at life. The first half is the one in which you raise your kids. The second is your choice.

Let me clarify.

Most of us chose to marry and have children. I know I did. In fact, aside from the goal I set at age four to be a concert pianist, all I wanted in life was to be a wife and mom. 

If you’re like me, you