The smell of bonfire, cozy sweaters, cute boots, Friday night football games and pumpkin spice galore…this can only mean one thing! Fall is here! HAPPY FIRST DAY OF FALL, EVERYONE!

The changing of seasons can bring a whole mix of emotions. The days get shorter, the leaves change and fall to the ground, kids head back to school and the days at the lake and swimming are long behind us. Life gets busier with kids sports in full swing and the holidays are quickly approaching.

As the seasons change, so do we. Sometimes it is difficult to get back into the groove of things. Some of you are sending your babies off to college, while others are shedding tears over the first day of kindergarten. No matter if you are in a fruitful season or a “why is this happening” season, you need to know you still have a great purpose. Everything we walk through has an opportunity to develop us or hold us back. It is all about the perspective we hold.

When we walk through seasons of change, how do we grow from our situations and not allow them to overwhelm us? It doesn’t come naturally to us as humans but with an adjustment of our minds, you’ll find that you’ll be able to tackle the seasons of life in a much greater capacity than ever before.

So how do we refocus our lives to handle the changing seasons? There are three things that are crucial to being able to deal with the seasons of life.

1. Be Positive

When things get difficult to handle, what do you do? Do you throw your hands up in the air and say I give up? Does your mind immediately go to a dark place or do you start speaking positive things over yourself, family, life, business, etc? Instead of allowing yourself to become a pessimist, take this challenge. The next time something tough comes along, stop for a minute…..just stop. Take a deep breath before you respond to your situation. Stimulus causes an action or response and sometimes that response is not what we wanted to happen. Instead….stop! Give yourself a pause in the middle of your stimulus and response. Take a minute and think about how is this going to affect everyone around me? How will this affect me? Over time, the more you practice this, the easier it becomes.

2. Stop Wallowing in the Dirt

Stop the pity party! When our kids fall down, we don’t just let them stay laying or sitting in the dirt, do we? NO! We either rush to their aid or we tell them to get up and wipe the dirt off and that they are going to be okay. So if we don’t allow our kids to do it, why do we as adults do it? We have to face our situations head on. We can make the decision to sit in the dirt and allow life to pass us by or we can say, “Hey that hurt!” Then we get up, wipe the dirt off our pants and continue moving forward.

3. Take that First Step

When we make decisions or are facing a tough situation, sometimes it just requires us to have a little bit of a risk-taking faith. That simply means that it is okay to be afraid, it is okay to wonder what is going to happen if you step out….but that’s it. All you have to do is step out. You’d be surprised how quickly things can fall into place when we say, “I’m going to do this and I’m going to do it afraid.” The growth that comes in one tiny step, no matter how small, may be the one step needed to catapult you forward.

Maybe you need a little boost to help you get started. Did you know breathing the aroma of essentials oils can help combat seasonal depression? They are a safer alternative than candles or commercial air fresheners in your home or office. Nature provides powerful benefits from essential oils made from leaves, flowers, roots, and trees. Here is a wonderful recipe called “Beat the Blues” to help you have the confidence you need to move forward.

So as the fall season begins, take a moment to reflect on the seasons of change taking place in your life and realize that these moments may be difficult but eventually they will come to an end and another season will be on the horizon. A season of hope…a season of new….a season of growth….go and be blessed!