People’s high expectations and steadfast confidence filled the air as we counted down the seconds before the stroke of midnight last night. A sense that our old habits and former way of doing things would somehow instantly disappear or make the necessary adjustments and amendments to bring forth the modified, improved, revised version of ourselves we had hoped for. That fresh sense of hope and purpose which created within us an excitement that communicated the message that if we take a fresh breath and attempt to change ourselves, this new year would be better than the last.   

All sounds so good, right? However, the problem comes when each one of our new year’s resolutions, the promises we vowed to ourselves when the merriment and high emotions of the evening found us swept up in the celebrations all now seem so undirected and unguided in the cold, hard light of day. Reality has well and truly kicked in (and possibly a hangover) as we ponder and reflect on how we’re going to take that fresh breath and change ourselves. 

You may need to keep those dark glasses on because I’m going to shed some light on the new year resolution, promise keeping dilemma we face every January 1^st.

The apostle Paul helps us out in his letter to the Ephesians as he teaches that a renewed life needs to start from the inside, not the outside. ‘If you have heard Jesus and have been taught by Him according to the truth that is in Him, then you know to take off your former way of life, your crumpled old self – that dark blot of a soul corrupted by deceitful desire and lust – to take a fresh breath and to let God renew your attitude and spirit. Then you are ready to put on your new self, modelled after the very likeness of God: truthful, righteous, and holy.’ Ephesians 4:21-24 (TVT) 

Ah, so this is where it’s going wrong.

It seems that no matter how many external resolutions, fresh breaths or promises we make to ourselves it still isn’t going to make a jolt of difference if our inner self is not renewed. Paul is saying, as we take a fresh breath into the next chapter of our lives we first need to take off something and leave it behind. 

Dear friend, what is it that you need to take off and leave behind so you’re ready for 2026? 

For me, I have to take off fear and anxiety and leave it behind in 2025. Yeah, I know that comes as a bit of a shock to some of you who have followed my blog and read my books for a while. But truth be told, I occasionally battle with a sense of angst and apprehension of what my future holds. Past experiences remind me that even good things with the best of intentions can turn bad. So, rather than choosing to take a fresh breath, I hold my breath instead. Playing it safe seems far less painful to the daring ‘yes’ to what God has promised and planned for me.

That first fresh, deep breath into the new year has to tell God I trust Him, and I am ready to confidently step into 2026 with Him. God’s promises keep reminding me that He has got my future right in the palm of His mighty hand. And yet, unless I allow that promise get under my skin so God can renew my inner attitude and spirit, fear and anxiety will suck the breath right out of me. (See Psalm 31:15) 

As Barbara Wentroble states, “Fear. If we let it, will wrap its ugly tentacles around us and choke out the very life that God has breathed into us.” She goes on to say that “fear is one of the most common obstacles that keep women from fulfilling their God – appointed destiny.”  

Oh, how true that is!

The fresh breath we need to take to welcome in the new year will never stand a chance if we allow the choke hold of fear and anxiety to squeeze out our God – appointed call and destiny.

On the very first day of this new year, it is time to rise dear friend. It is time to take off something that has held you down or back in 2025. It’s time to leave behind the barriers and obstacles that have stunted your growth in your relationship with God. It is time to open your wings and soar into the future God has for you. 

Paul breathes life into this passage to help sustain us. ‘If you have heard Jesus and have been taught by Him according to the truth that is in Him…’ This is the secret sauce in taking that fresh breath. A renewal of our attitude and spirit that will last far longer than all those pie crust promises our new year’s resolutions offer us. 

Again, Paul gives us hope in sharing that it isn’t in our own efforts that the change comes, it’s in God’s strength. We just choose to take off our former way of life, our crumpled old self – that dark blot of a soul corrupted by deceitful desire and lust, take a fresh breath, and let God renew our attitude and spirit. Then we’re ready. We’re ready to take on 2026 because we have chosen to put on our new self that is modelled after the very likeness of God, which is truthful, righteous, and holy.

So, there you have it. You have to take off something and leave it behind otherwise it will wrap its ugly tentacles around your ankles before new year’s day is over. 

Choose today to step outside, take a fresh breath, and allow God to renew your attitude and spirit from the inside out, as you learn to lean on His strength and abide in Him throughout 2026. 

Wendy xo