Summer is my happy place…until fall arrives, and then I’m all about fall. Winter is another story, and its arrival date is (hopefully) still a few months off, so we won’t put time and effort into those thoughts today! (For the record, I love snow, and I love watching it fall to the ground while I sit by a warm fire. Then I want it to melt…before I have to drive in it!) But let’s get back to this whole “officially autumn” celebration!

Change. That’s the word that comes to mind when I think of autumn:

Leaves change their colors.

The temperature changes (at least here in Indiana it does).

Schedules change (school, sporting events, fall festivals, and yes, holiday preparations begin).

Menus change. (Can I get a “Woot!” for soup season?)

Clothing changes (sweatshirts, jeans, and sweaters…insert happy sigh here).

Decor changes (the bright, perky shades of summer are often replaced by the muted, warm tones of fall).

And my outlook changes.

Though I’m no longer a teacher (I previously taught music and speech), my mind remains on a “fall semester” schedule. Maybe it’s my love for routines and rituals. Maybe it’s my love for (okay, fine: obsession with) school supplies. Maybe it’s just that the pace from summer’s additional social activities slows a bit for me, and so I am now able to take the time to set new personal and spiritual goals as fall enters the picture. Whatever the reason, I find fall exhilarating!

So I’ll “leave” (pun intended!) you with two of the changes I am determined to make this fall (in no particular order) with the hope that they will encourage you to also make positive changes that will last long past the seasons yet to come!

1. I will change my routine. I’ve made far too many exceptions to my schedule, and I’m a person who needs a workable schedule. I’m using the amazing Passion Planner this year (yes, I still use a paper planner), and I’m following with greater determination and deliberation the schedule I’ve written for each day. Yes, flexibility is necessary, but for me, a schedule that is nothing but a whole bunch of activities and actions that may or may not take place because I’m constantly being “flexible” may as well not even exist!
2. I will change my focus. Though I would love to be able to state that my focus is always Christ alone, I’m not able to honestly do that. I’m distracted by people, desires, things, and good causes. And I am committed to creating a change in my focus by living a balanced life that, in every area, has Christ as its center. With Him as my central focus, my outward focus on others will also become less selfish and will hopefully have a greater outreach.

The changes in my routine and in my focus also include a change I will make in my writing and in my work as an editor. I’m thrilled with the doors God is opening up for me in these areas, and I’m grateful for the opportunity I’ve been given to do more writing in the days and weeks ahead! I’d love to hear from you either by reply e-mail (subscribers) or by a comment at the bottom of today’s post or on Facebook: What changes would you like to make during the fall months? Remember that God is faithful, and He will lovingly walk beside you through every change!