Let no one seek his own good, but the good of his neighbor. 1 Corinthians 10:24 / A Prayer

Our Father, Who art in Heaven, hear our prayer.  Oh God, who is above all things, hear our plea.

Lord, we come to you to ask that you banish a spiritual crisis that is in our midst.  Mighty God, we’ve fallen into an “It’s all about ME” culture and universal mindset.  We are all guilty of this sin, Father, and ask that you both forgive us and save us from its grasp.

We are Selfish

Lord, we know that we are, by nature, selfish people.  Whenever we are presented with a situation, our first thought is always, “How is this going to affect me?”  We think of ourselves first and others second.  And to our shame, You and Your wishes for us, last of all.  We have come to live out the phrase, “After me, you come first!”

God, we can see this self-centeredness in us and all around us.  Common courtesy is becoming rarer with each day.  When we drive our cars, we cut in front of other drivers because to do so allows us to move a little faster, even when our actions place ourselves and others in danger.  In grocery stores, we rush to be the first in the check-out line because we feel that our timetable is more important than anyone else’s.  We rush past the beggar on the street because stopping to help might inconvenience us in some way or make us uncomfortable.  We don’t visit friends or even loved ones in hospitals and nursing homes for the same despicable reasons.  And, our churches are half-empty, Lord, because it’s become “too much trouble” to attend your house and worship You as we should.

God, this “me first” mentality has so permeated our political climate that it is strangling our relationships with others with whom we may have honest disagreements.  We no longer seem able to talk with one another about our differences and reach a consensus about what would be best for all of us.  Now, we disregard the “greater good” in favor of what’s “good” for us.

And, Father, we routinely neglect our attention to and obedience of You and Your will.  We don’t ask, “What would Jesus do?” before we think or act.  We ignore our consciences and satisfy our baser instincts rather than allow You to rule over our thoughts and actions.

We Ignore Your Cautions

Lord, we ignore the cautionary examples You have given us about people from the past.  The Bible is filled with stories of people who exhibited our attitude and behaviors, and the tragedies that befell them because they’d turned from You and from Your Wisdom.  In our conceit, we presume that the judgments of the past will not be visited upon us.

Lord, we pray that You will look upon us as a people bereft of kindness and mercy.  We have forgotten Your commands for charity, for sacrifice on the behalf of others, and that we should place You first in our hearts. We have allowed our passion for self-gratification to consume us, oh Lord, and we know that since You are Just, our reckoning is sure.

We see that we are already reaping the harvest of our sins.  Our children no longer respect us.  Our spouses no longer honor us.  Our leaders no longer place our wants and desires above their own.  And our churches are filled with people who are spiritually dead but don’t realize it.

Remind Us

Save us, O Lord.  Come to us in power and glory to remind us of who we are and what we are to be.

Remind us that we are the chosen People of God.  Make us again see that we were to be the ones You selected to be examples for all mankind.  We are the ones You told to “take care of one another, for in each other, you will encounter Me.” [paraphrased from Matthew 25:36-40]  We have forgotten the touch of Your hand, the joy of Your spiritual breath, and the glory of living daily in Your presence.

Forgive us, we pray.  Forgive us and help us to put away our selfishness and our obsession with our own wants and desires.  Help us to see the need in each other and to reach out to address those needs.

Because that’s what You did.  You manifested Yourself as Jesus the Christ.  You came from Heaven to live among us, to show us how to live with one another, and then sacrificed Yourself for our behalf.  Also, remind us that “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” [John 15:13]  We pray, Lord, that you will help us not only to remember that but also to regain our passion for it.

Change Us

Dear God, please take this mantle of sin and self-aggrandizement from us.  Help us to regain the humility and meekness that Jesus spoke of.  Help us to remember Your assurance that “the last will be the first.” [Mark 10:31]

Help us to re-ignite our love for you, and again place you first among our thoughts and desires.

For we know that until we return to You, and again place You at the center of our lives, we will not truly begin to live again.

Only when we surrender our passions for ourselves in favor of a passion for You will we begin to heal and to become whole.  And only when we turn away from ourselves and turn to You alone will we begin to see our world, our society, and ourselves change for the better.

Lord, help us to remember Your sacrifice and Your Love for us.  And help us to reflect that attitude of sacrifice and love to one another.  We know, Lord, that only through You will these things be possible.  But we also know that with and in You, all things are possible.  By living In you and allowing You to live in us, we can truly become “more than conquerors.”  Through You, we can regain our way and again become Your People.

Thanks

Thank you, Lord, for Your grace that makes our redemption possible.  Thank you for the opportunity to renew our commitment to You.  And, thank you, Lord, for the vision of a world where all people put Your first instead of themselves.

These things we pray, in Your Name,

Amen.

God’s Blessings On You All

Richard

November 8, 2019