Many complicate the prayer process. They feel we must say the right words, at certain times of day, at specific places, and in the perfect position or God will not listen to us.
Opinions on these issues abound. Should our hands be open, closed or lifted up to God? Are righteous prayers only done in Hebrew and Latin? What about repeating Christian mantras? Should our eyes be open, closed, or lifted up to God? Should we pray silently or out loud? Should we pray at church, at home, out in nature, and on the freeway coming home from work? Should all prayers start with “Our Father who art in heaven” and end with “amen”? Should we pray in the morning when we get up, during our lunch hour, or at night when we go to bed? Is there a magic formula that can assure God will give us what we want, if we do everything exactly right?
Truthfully, these things are not important to God. They are peripheral issues, matters of personal preference. What makes one person feel closer to God will not do the same for another. The danger is judging others who do not do it the way we think it should be done. Also a Pharisaical approach takes the heart out of heartfelt prayers. Prayer becomes more of a ritual than a heart to heart talk with God. God is looking for that personal connection with us.
Some get very fixated on having a perfect posture for prayer. There are no rules in the Bible about this either, but we find lots of examples of…
- Sitting (1 Chronicles 17:16-27)
- Kneeling in prayer (1 Kings 8:54, Psalm 95:6, Luke 22:41, Acts 9:40, etc.) Bowing (Ephesians 3:14,
- Genesis 24:26, Exodus 34:8, Psalm 72:11, Nehemiah 8:6, etc.)
- Falling prostrate, on their faces (Matthew 26:39, 2 Chronicles 20:18, Joshua 7:6, Ezra 10:1 etc.)
- Bowing heads (Exodus 4:31, Genesis 24:26, etc.)
- Spreading hands/lifting hands (1 Kings 8:22, Psalm 28:2, Psalm 63:4, 1 Timothy 2:8, etc.)
- Standing (Luke 18:13, Mark 11:25, Luke 18:13, 1 Kings 8:55, 1 Samuel 1:26, etc.)
- Walking (2 Kings 4:35)
All these opinions remind me of a poem I read years ago. It contains a great deal of wisdom on the proper way to pray.
The Prayer of Cyrus Brown
By Sam Walter Foss
“The proper way for a man to pray,”
Said Deacon Lemuel Keyes,
“And the only proper attitude
Is down upon his knees.”
“No, I should say the way to pray,”
Said Reverend Doctor Wise,
“Is standing straight with outstretched arms
And rapt and upturned eyes.”
“Oh, no, no, no,” said Elder Snow,
“Such posture is too proud:
A man should pray with eyes fast closed
And head contritely bowed.”
“It seems to me his hands should be
Austerely clasped in front.
With both thumbs pointing toward the ground,”
Said Reverend Doctor Blunt.
“Las’ year I fell in Hodgkin’s well
Head first,” said Cyrus Brown,
“With both my heels a-stickin’ up,
My head a-pointing down;
“An’ I made a prayer right then an’ there –
Best prayer I ever said,
The prayingest prayer I ever prayed,
A-standing on my head.”
The proper way to pray is from the heart. If we pray from the heart, God will hear us.
