Listen to today’s devo!

So we fasted and petitioned our God about this, and he answered our prayer. (Ezra 8:23)

Expanded Passage: Ezra 8:21-23

Perhaps you are familiar with this pattern: (1) Overindulge and overspend during the Christmas holidays. (2) Decide to turn a new leaf in January. (3) Resolve to quit a habit (or start one) for the year ahead. (4) Fizzle out before February arrives.

I’ve abandoned New Year’s resolutions before too. At the turn of the year, my resolve was strong and the resolution seemed worthy. Yet I couldn’t quite muster up the fortitude to stick it out and reap the benefits.

Ezra was an avid student of the law. But more importantly, he was attuned to the heart behind the law and honored it through practical application. He lived it and taught others to learn it and live it too. He strongly desired to see the people of Israel return to their God and experience spiritual renewal as they were brought back from exile. He had fasted, prayed, and revealed his steadfastness to the things of God.

Ezra’s attunement to God’s heart undergirded him with fortitude to withstand the journey of bringing people back from Babylon, only to find them later defiling the new temple. Unlike my abandoned resolutions, he did not quit what he was called to, even when it became difficult, discouraging, or downright devastating.

Perhaps a better approach to the new year isn’t making a quick resolution based on whims, but seeking God’s steadfast heart and desires instead.

Begin 2026 by seeking what God desires for you and from you.

Elizabeth Rhyno is a Wesleyan worship and discipleship pastor and entrepreneur. She enjoys helping people deepen their intimacy with the Lord and grow in their joyful purpose.

© 2025 Wesleyan Publishing House. Reprinted from Light from the Word. Used by permission. Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®.