When tackling a demanding activity that we’ve chosen to do, the effort may not seem arduous at all. For example, while I was heading up a snowy mountain on skis recently, it occurred to me how endless the climb seemed. Around every bend there was another steep incline to conquer. And yet, the beautiful day, great company, and quiet woods meant the strenuous ascent was nothing but fun.

The challenge is applying this kind of unceasing effort in a task or activity we aren’t feeling so eager about, or maybe one we fear we cannot successfully complete. 

As a protracted war in Eastern Europe and conflicts and general unrest elsewhere drag on, praying for a peaceful end to hostilities can require this same persistent effort. Relentless conflict, in our own lives or the world, calls on us for unrelenting prayer—not praying just a handful of times and, if we see no change, going back to life as usual, forgetting about the broader needs of the world. Prayer that teaches us to “love more for every hate” (Mary Baker Eddy, Poems, p. 4) enables us to grow in grace and expand our hearts with new views of God as well as of our neighbors and ourselves as children of God, always under the care and control of divine Love and Truth.