A reflection on Ephesians 1:15–23 for Saturday of the 28th Week in Ordinary Time.
I can arrive at prayer with quite a list of things God needs to take care of. My spiritual honey-do list. A relative is making poor decisions. My coworker needs more patience, and before I speak to her again please. The next things I need checked off are worries about money, health, and politics. I give the Lord a complete listing of what needs to be done.
Paul has a different approach in today’s reading. He thanks God for the Ephesians’ faith and their love for others. Then he prays that they will receive wisdom and come to know God more deeply.
I always rush through that sort of thing. Let’s get right to work!
When I pray for someone, my focus is on what I think needs to be fixed up for them. I provide a complete account of their shortcomings and don’t spend a lot of time on what is good about them.
My son no longer practices the faith, so I pray for his return. But he is a wonderful person, filled with gifts and goodness. My concern about his faith should not keep me from thanking God for the good stuff about him.
Someone can irritate me and still be generous. My coworker can have a sharp tongue and also always show up whenever someone in the office needs help. I can acknowledge both in my prayer, instead of just focusing on the sharp tongue.
Paul asks God to enlighten the eyes of the Ephesians’ hearts. I need that for myself too. I miss the goodness when I have already decided what is wrong with somebody.
So before I ask God to “fix” someone, I need to try to spend a little time thanking Him for her. And if I have to think really hard to come up with something, that tells me as much about myself as it does about the other person.
So I pray for wisdom, not just that the other person changes his ways, but also for me. I need help knowing when to speak and when silence would be the more loving act.
God already knows what needs changing. And that includes me. So I pray to be more grateful for the people He has given me while He goes about His work.