It seems that Christianity today is under a dark cloud of self (pride). We are only moved for Christ for reasons of self. We go to church if it pleases self enough. We want what is called worship to please me rather than God. We want the preaching to be light and entertaining. We want the atmosphere and the furniture to be just right. When we sing we want it to make us feel good. When we pray it is all about the things of self. Down deep we still believe that if we are holy enough God will give us the things we want. Does deep we still believe that if we will be holy enough and pray enough God will give us growth of the church and perhaps revival. Even in the most spiritual things the orthodox in creed have such low thoughts of God when it comes to living. Our worship and our prayers are all very proud when for self rather than God. To pray in the name of Christ means far more than just tacking His name on at the end of a prayer,” but it is to pray without any self-reliance or hope in self. Prayer based on self (even partially) rather than Christ is nothing but pride. True prayer is based on Christ’s righteousness with Him as the goal and motive. It is to pray moved by Christ and seeking His glory out of love rather than anything of self.
“It is also a question to which the answer [fellowship with God] does not lie finally with me. Nothing that I may do or become can decisively ensure my standing with God. I cannot establish a claim to His favour or control His dealings with me. He is not to be moved by my merits or worthiness or by anything else of mine. On the contrary, I am moved by Him. I am moved to both seek fellowship with Him and to strive to do His will-not for the sake of any benefit I may derive therefrom, but simply and solely because such is His good pleasure and my unconditional obligation.” (Let God Be God! An Interpretation of the Theology of Martin Luther)
In daily life and in prayer it is so hard (impossible by the efforts of self) to realize that the answer does not reside within self. It is possible to desire something of fellowship with God based on the desires of self rather than the life of Christ within the believer. But it is so contrary to our being born dead in pride and self-centeredness to understand that we have no claim on the favor of God or how He deals with us. The truth of the matter is that we are totally dependent on the hand of sovereign grace for each and every thing. We are not in hell only and simply because of His good pleasure and not because of any worthiness or merit we have. We have no claim on God and no way to establish a claim on Him through Christ but by grace and grace is always based on the character of God and not anything a human being can do. But a proud heart constantly looks to self for ways to obtain grace.
It is so hard for those bound within a self-centered view of humanity, nature, and of God to think of cause and effect relationships as being God-centered. We think that if we are holy then God will give us what we want rather than God will give us holiness in order to make us like Him and He is the greatest gift of all. True holiness is only found in love for God and the manifestation of His glory. If we think we are being holy when we are trying to get something from Him, then it is most likely that our very holiness is the height of our pride. The inward desires and motives of the heart can be nothing but the pride of self seeking to manipulate God. Ephesians 2 gives the pattern of God (true cause and effect) in all things: “But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6 and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.” God shows mercy because of His great love. His love is based on Himself and not anything found in human beings because there is nothing but sin found in human beings. God makes sinners alive by grace and God moves sinners to holiness and love by His grace. The purpose of God in these things is to manifest the surpassing riches of His grace toward sinners in Christ Jesus. So God is moved by Himself with the ultimate goal of Himself. When we desire God to be moved by self rather than Himself, that is nothing but the horrors of pride in us.
God is not moved by what is in us unless we can claim that God is moved by our sin, but He is moved by love for His own glory. After all, to be truly holy God must be moved by His own glory rather than our sin. We are moved to seek fellowship with Him because it is God moving within us. When God moves within us, our hearts are moved for His glory and pleasure rather than self. When self desires God, it desires God for self. Psalm 115:1 is the cry of the heart that is moved by God. “Not to us, O LORD, not to us, But to Your name give glory Because of Your lovingkindness, because of Your truth.” Self must become repugnant to us by the work of the Spirit moving us to love God. It is only when we have turned from pride and self to love God that we truly fellowship with Him.
God Loves... Himself 
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