There is no way Ezra could have asked for what Israel needed for the nation’s temple worship if he had not studied it and known it in advance (cf. Ezra 7:6). Having studied the Law of the Lord (cf. Ezra 7:10), Ezra was prepared to ask for what was necessary, deliver it, and even lead thousands of people along the way. The more we ready ourselves for God’s service through being in the Word and in prayer, so also can we be used in a mighty way, whatever the task may be.

“On the first day of the first month he began to go up from Babylonia” (Ezra 7:9).1

When Ezra set out on this journey, he was resolved to see it through: “For Ezra had set his heart to study the Law of the Lord, and to do it and to teach his statutes and rules in Israel” (Ezra 7:10 ESV). He had been tasked by God and even a pagan king to lead thousands of people to Jerusalem, deliver gifts from Babylon, and set the worship of the temple in order (see all of Ezra 7–8). In doing so, he had to be ready to teach after finishing what would be a four-month journey (cf. Ezra 7:9). From Ezra 7–8, here are a small handful of resolutions that all of us should make.

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