By Michaela Gordoni
TODAY host Craig Melvin’s pastor’s prayer for the new year is the same as previous years — and it’s something we can all pray, too.
“My hope and prayer for 2026 is not all that different from 2025, 2024 and a whole bunch of others. It’s the prayer to help me and to help this world to learn how to disagree better, you know?” Pastor Jeff Rider told Melvin in a recent TODAY interview. “Learn how to lean into difference and to the sense of community and belonging that comes from that.”
He also wants people to cling on to hope this year.
“Hope is alive. Hope is here for you and it’s found in the most unlikely of places,” he said. “When we do church right, we make room for God and God shows up. God never disappoints.”
Related: TODAY’s Craig Melvin Calls New Children’s Book a ‘Love Letter’ to His Kids
He added that many people in our world right now suffer from stress and believes they are looking for relief.
“They’re looking to connect and grow with their relationship with God,” Rider said.
Melvin later reflected on the interview with his pastor on his social media, calling it an “inspiring conversation.”
The TODAY host also brought in the new year first by hosting the annual Rose Parade with Hoda Kotb and Al Roker, and then by sharing a poem he wrote for his co-host Sheinelle Jones. Jones will leave her regular hour on the TODAY show to join Jenna Bush Hager in the fourth hour of the show on Jan. 12.
Melvin read the poem aloud to her on a recent segment of the show:
To my sister in spirit. /In the glare of the cameras your light shines through / a sister, a leader, so fearless and true./ You juggle the chaos. Three hearts call you mom / yet walk into work with that grace and calm
The stories you tell come straight from the soul / authentic and kind — journalism’s gold. / The loss you endured the world also saw / yet still you rise daily, inspiring all.
That smile could outshine the studio’s gleam / the spark of resilience, hope and dream / Through laughter and tears, you’ve guided my way. / Dear Sheinelle, my sister in spirit, you brighten each day.
Jones fought back tears as Melvin read to her and embraced him afterward.
“Took me six hours,” Melvin confessed.
Connection is a powerful gift. Melvin is certainly doing his part to help everyone have a hopeful and meaningful new year.
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