“Clyde, don’t
slouch in your desk.”
I was in the
third grade when I first became familiar with the definition of posture.
Although my teacher, Mrs. Early, didn’t use the actual word, she associated it
with the word slouch. So, if I didn’t slump, I would have good posture. Good
posture, evidently, meant sitting up straight. But Clyde had a habit of
slouching. Mrs. Early didn’t explain why it was important for Clyde to sit up
straight. That part of good posture I would learn later in life. For now, it
was enough to know I needed to sit up straight. Posture was important.
Posture is also
crucial in prayer. The Pharisee who prayed in the temple stood while praying,
and God said he went home no better off than when he arrived. The tax collector
stood a different way and left with a prayer accepted by God. Daniel knelt
while he prayed and found himself in the lion’s den. However, God closed the
mouths of the lions.
Lying face down,
standing, sitting, and kneeling are prayer postures illustrated in the Bible.
Not everyone can do some of them because of health problems or disabilities.
But the body’s posture isn’t nearly as important as the heart’s position.
Daniel’s outward posture matched his heart’s; the Pharisee’s didn’t. Daniel
knelt in his heart and posture. The Pharisee stood before God with his posture
but paraded before God in his heart.
Our inward
posture should be humility regardless of our outward posture when approaching
God’s throne in prayer. We, as mere humans, are approaching the Creator,
Controller, and Savior of the universe—the One who has the power to give and
take life with a breath from his lips—the One who loved enough to sacrifice his
Son for our salvation—the One who loves unconditionally and persistently.
We humbly offer
ACTS: adoration, confession, thanksgiving, and supplication. Before our lists,
we adore him. Before our lists, we confess our sins and shortcomings. And
before our list, we thank him for his goodness, which is beyond our
imagination. When we finish those things, our list of wants is typically much
shorter.
Think about the
posture with which you approach God.
Father, in my
heart, I fall before you, the deliverer of all good things and the sustainer of
our souls.
I invite you to try my newest book, Grits, Grace, and Grands, in eBook or paperback. If you are a grandparent or just want to hear grandparent stories, this book is for you. Click on the title above to order your copy. And thanks to all our faithful followers who share our posts on Facebook, Twitter, and Linkedin.
