ZEAL: The Quiet Fire That Changes Everything

Every personality test I’ve ever taken puts the word zeal somewhere near the top for me.

Wholehearted. Driven. Purpose-centered.

It’s almost funny how consistent it is—this theme of having a big, bright internal fire. I am passionate.

But here’s the truth no test captures:

Even the most zealous person gets tired.

Especially in December.

Between the weight of expectations, the nonstop pace, the emotional load of the holidays, the gatherings, the lists, the pressure to make everything magical—that inner fire can start to flicker. Christmas has a way of exhausting even the strongest hearts.

And yet Scripture offers this gentle but steady reminder:

“Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord.” — Romans 12:11

Not in a performative way.

Not in a “push yourself harder” way.

But in a return to the Source way.

What Zeal Really Is

Zeal isn’t frenzy.

It isn’t working yourself into the ground.

It’s not perfection, productivity, or performance.

True zeal is steady devotion—the quiet, rooted, unwavering desire to show up with intention. It’s the warmth that remains even when the world feels cold and loud.

Why Our Zeal Fades (Especially at Christmas)

• Overcommitment
• Emotional exhaustion
• Too many expectations
• Too many voices
• Not enough silence or space
• The weight of wanting everything and everyone to be okay

Zeal doesn’t vanish in a moment.

It drains drop by drop.

But it can be refilled.

Where Zeal Comes From

Scripture makes it clear: zeal isn’t self-manufactured.

It’s God-sustained.

It grows from:

1. Clarity

Remembering what matters in this season—and what doesn’t.

2. Connection

Letting your heart be held by God, and by the people who speak life into you.

3. Conviction

The quiet belief that what you do, how you love, how you serve—it matters.

Reigniting Your Zeal in a Draining Season

1. Re-center

Take a moment daily (even 3 minutes) to ask:

Lord, what actually matters today?

2. Reduce

You don’t need to carry every tradition, every plan, every expectation.

Lighten what you can.

3. Return

Come back to Scripture, to prayer, to the grounding presence of God.

Return to the environments and people that refill—not drain—you.

A Final Word

You don’t have to be the hero of the holidays.

You don’t have to keep everything together.

You don’t have to pretend you’re not tired.

But you can guard your flame.

May this season find you not hustling, not proving, not pleasing—

but keeping your zeal, in the most grounded and God-centered way.

Because the fire within you is not yours alone.

It was placed there on purpose, by a God who knows exactly how to tend it.