As this year of great change enters its last third, the pace of it will begin to intensify. Many are finally starting to feel a sense of clarity again like the storm has passed and the clouds are finally breaking to reveal blue sky.  Those six changes (read “A time for change” blog for a refresher) will quickly go from little or no movement, to fast forward in September.

The changes you thought would never come will begin to drop in your lap quickly. The opportunities, offers, relationships, and moves that are needed for your new will begin to show themselves in rapid succession.  Here are a few things you need to do this month to handle the increased pace of change with great wisdom:

Define Your Circle: Write in stone not only who is in your core relational group, but also how you are investing in them and what is needed from them in the new. Discern “familiarity breeds contempt” within your relationships to know which ones to do the work of readjusting in and which ones just need to be left behind.  Grieve the pain or relational shifts and celebrate vigorously the ones that have proved their worth and value.  Defined relationships will be the basis for changes to stay and flourish.

Be Open to the “Out of the Norm”: Many of the opportunities that’ll come your way as part of this time of change will be out of your normal. They’ll be different than what you’re used to, uncomfortable even. You have to stay open to the differences and not allow your dogmas and traditions to get in the way of the God-ordained changes that come with different skin.  Opportunities will come from people you have not heard from in quite a long time, and some may even be individuals you haven’t wanted to hear from, but be open to at least listen and discern what’s behind what they are offering.

Hear Different: He will speak loudly in September, but it’ll come on a different wavelength. You’ll need to posture yourself differently because you won’t hear what He’s saying how you usually do. Be willing to recalibrate your preferred method of hearing God. This change is pivotal because it involves a deepening of relationship with your Good Shepherd and how you hear and obey Him.  Don’t lean on your understanding of how He speaks to you. Don’t be too familiar with His voice so that you miss it coming differently.

Find a Sabbathed Pace: If you don’t know how to live in Sabbath, now is the time to figure it out. Rapid, God-ordained change is not meant to overwhelm you, it’s meant to fit into the lifestyle of sabbath that you should already have. Learn to live a rhythm of rest and His changes in your life will propel you further, faster.  

The pace of September will be rapid, but your heart must be postered in a “be still and know” place to fully embrace and move into the rapid changes that will come your way.