I like to be practical. That’s because we can wrongly think of faith as something theoretical which is somehow disconnected from our daily lives.
But it shouldn’t be.
So I spend a lot of time thinking about things we can do on a daily basis that reinforce the daily reality of our beliefs.
One of those is praying on your face.
Yes, that’s right. Praying on your face. Getting down on your knees, then lying on your stomach with your face to the ground [assuming you’re physically well enough, of course!]—as if you’re prostrating yourself before the Lord Almighty. Maybe not all the time, but sometimes.
Here’s my rationale:
In The Idea of the Holy, Rudolf Otto describes how many people have lost a sense of the holiness, awesomeness and incredible power of God. He says that modern people “cannot even shutter properly.”
In other words, we have become so focused on the personal dimension of our relationship with God that we have lost a sense of his awesomeness and holiness. But listen to Psalm 68:34-35: “Proclaim the power of God, whose majesty is over Israel, whose power is in the skies. You are awesome, O God, in your sanctuary…”
Is there a personal and familiar aspect to our relationship with God? Absolutely. But that shouldn’t eclipse our awareness of his holiness, awesomeness and power. If anything, it should intensify it, not diminish it.
So if you’ve lost a sense of the holiness, awesomeness and incredible power of God, do something that reminds you of that life-altering fact:
Pray on your face.
By Matthew Ruttan