![]() When the leper came to Jesus for healing, he fell on his face and begged for mercy, saying, “Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean” (Luke 5:12). It recognizes our need for God’s mercy.When God made a covenant with Abraham, Abraham recognized his unworthiness before God and “fell on his face” before the Lord (see Genesis 17:1–3). It acknowledges our total unworthiness.Lying prostrate before God may express the following attitudes: We should plead for His mercy as a beggar destitute of his own resources and trust that His strength and goodness will sustain us throughout the day. ![]() Humbly, we can acknowledge our unworthiness, inadequacy, and inability to accomplish His will without Him. When Job suffered great losses, he bowed down on the ground: “Then Job arose, and rent his mantle, and shaved his head, and fell down upon the ground, and worshipped, And said, Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return thither: the LORD gave, and the LORD hath taken away blessed be the name of the LORD” (Job 1:20–21).Ī wise way that we may begin each day is to get on our faces before God. One who bows in this way before God conveys an attitude of honor, gratitude, and worship, acknowledging that all things come from His hand. However, the original meaning is that of falling prostrate bodily in the Lord’s presence. In today’s Christian culture, we tend to equate this word primarily to the act of bowing one’s head in prayer. Interestingly, most occurrences of the Hebrew word rendered “bow” or “bow down” in the Scriptures refers to this type of bowing one’s whole body before the Lord. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not I am the first and the last.” In Revelation 1:17, the Apostle John wrote about his immediate response to being in the presence of Jesus: “And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. Lying prostrate on our faces indicates we recognize our utter unworthiness to be in God’s presence. ![]() Jesus instructed His followers to learn from His example of being “meek and lowly in heart” (Matthew 11:29). This prayer position demonstrates being poor in spirit, which is the first heart attitude Jesus mentions in His Sermon on the Mount. No position symbolizes humility as much as being on our faces before God. We will also consider appropriate times and situations in which we may choose to incorporate them in our prayer times with God. Let’s look at several postures and other aspects of prayer positions that God mentions in His Word, as well as the underlying heart attitudes which they may represent. The heart of the one who worships is what matters most to God. For example, if we have an attitude of humility or gratefulness, certain postures can be an appropriate way to express these attitudes. However, our prayer postures can give expression to the attitudes of our hearts. Jesus prayed while looking up to Heaven (see Mark 6:41, John 11:41, and 17:1).Ĭommunication with God does not require a certain physical position, neither is a particular position prescribed for a particular occasion. ![]() King Solomon both knelt and spread his hands toward Heaven in prayer (see I Kings 8:54). Moses prayed with his hands outstretched (see Exodus 9:27–29). For example, Abraham fell upon his face before God (see Genesis 17:3, 17). In the Biblical accounts involving prayer, oftentimes the petitioner’s posture is described.
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