Loving: the Successful Life - 1 Cor 13

Father,

We desire public esteem

We desire to be praised for our wisdom

We even desire radical generosity

But they are nothing without love.

We do not desire patience and kindness.

Keep us from envy, boasting, pride, rudeness, self-seeking, anger and hatred.

Make our hearts to delight in truth,

To always protect,

To be full of trust, hope and perseverance.

May we look not at what is temporary but at what is eternal.

May we contemplate the cross and your love that is the source and foundation of all love

For your glory alone 

Amen

Jesus Christ and him Crucified - 1 Corinthians 2:2

Father of Jesus,

We commit to your son,

To his deity, his humanity and his Lordship over us.

We declare he is the anointed, Messiah king,

Promised by the prophets,

Ruler of heaven and earth.

We submit ourselves to him.

We desire to love him.

We embrace his crucifixion.

We declare he died for us,

It was our sin that placed him on the cross.

That cross is our beacon of hope,

   Our lighthouse for direction,

   Our only hope of mercy,

   Our confidence in our brokenness,

   The goal for our hearts,

And the rule for our lives.

May we bear it,

   Live it,

   Love it,

   Proclaim it,

   Be moulded by it,

And trust the one who died on it.

Amen

My Selfishness

Father,
    You are good,
    Your love endures forever,
    Your faithfulness continues from generation to generation.

But I am selfish, addicted to my own happiness, unable to see beyond my own desires.
Give me eyes that see and a heart that grieves what I do to others in my selfishness.
Give me your Spirit to transform my will. 
Keep me persevering towards Christlikeness in the face of my stubborn selfishness.
And give me a heart that is ever fixed on Christ - my Saviour and my God.
Amen

Single Minded Devotion

1 Corinthians 10:14-22 

Father, please help us to flee from our idols.

Remind us that we participate in the death and life of your son.

Remind us that we are one body.

Keep us from a participation with demons.

Give us an appreciation of the greatness of being Christian.

And make our hearts solely devoted to you.

Amen

1 Corinthians 9:1-14

Father, forgive us

    For the times that we have squandered your blessings on our own desires:

    For the times when we have supported causes through emotion and not careful             consideration:

    For the times when our motives in giving have been selfish rather than selfless:

    For the times when we have begrudged a living to those in ministry:

    Forgive us for muzzling the ox; and receiving your word without                                     generous compensation.

Grow our love, for your servants;

for Jesus sake.

Amen

1 Corinthians 8:4-13

Almighty God, 

you are the only true God, the maker of all things; the one for whom we live.

Help us to guard our freedom;

    to not cause others to stumble;

    to not destroy those you love;

    to not to sin against them;

    to not wound their consciences.

May we restrain our freedom and live for love.

Amen

Prayer for a Loving Heart

Father, cleanse our souls from the clutter that dampens our love for you.

We confess that our hearts are filled with false loves that have become a cheap and unsatisfying substitute for loving you.

Show us the loves of our hearts.

And then show us yourself so that we may

     adore you,

     worship you,

     And cherish you.

Father, we are prone to love ourselves.

But we are not made for that love.

We are not made to live inwards towards ourselves.

We are made to live outwards towards others and upwards towards you.

Create within us that love for you.

Cause us to remember that you have loved us and lead us to love you with our whole hearts.

And then create in us a love for others.

Amen.