As we roll around to another Friday, the first line of the 5th Sunday’s prayer feels fitting. It’s difficult to maintain energy, let alone faith and love on a Friday, especially at the end of the school term.
Let us pray for a greater faith and love.
Father of peace, we are joyful in your Word, your Son Jesus Christ, who reconciles us to you. With our eyes set on him, let us run the race that is set before us with the eagerness of faith and love.
We are this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
This prayer is great. It’s a prayer that we might keep our eyes fixed on the goal, that is, Jesus Christ. What I also like about it, is that it doesn’t only ask God to help us keep our eyes on him. It asks for us to run with eagerness.
Running with eagerness is not something I do frequently. Probably because I rarely run, full stop. And I don’t think I’d describe most of the people I see running along the riverwalk near my house as ‘eager’. They mostly seem to be slogging it out.
Just so the Christian life.
More often than not it seems like a slog. A daily choice to continue to do the right thing. A long obedience in the same direction with as much energy as you can muster.
Which isn’t much.
But ‘eagerness’?
These days I think I most eagerly anticipate the next time I can go back to bed.
Sad, but true.
After reading this prayer, I’m encouraged to reflect on what the eagerness of faith and love looks like in action. And also to reflect on how I can do it more and more.
Yours remaining awake and then some,
Alison
