Psalm 141:2
Let my prayer be counted as incense before you, and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice!
Psalm 46:10
“Be still, and know that I am God.
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth!”
As a high school student, I was in a fashion show for a school fundraiser. I excitedly showed up to the practice, ready to strut my stuff, only to find out that I walked like a duck and had poor posture. How embarrassing to my teenage-self! That event left a mark because to this day, I am constantly checking my posture when I walk.
Having good posture is healthy, and we ignore it to the peril of aches and pains setting into our muscles and spine.
Equally valuable is our spiritual posture. You may or may not raise your hands as you sing to the Lord (If you’re driving, please keep your hands on the steering wheel!), but what matters is whether our hearts are inclined toward God, or toward ourselves in self-centeredness.
Navel-gazing creates a dreadful, slouched posture. I speak from experience.
I love the image painted by the lyrics of Hillsong’s tune, “The Stand”:
I’ll stand with arms high and heart abandoned
In awe of the one who gave it all
I’ll stand, my soul, Lord, to You surrendered
All I am is yours
Awe and surrender… now there’s a healthy posture!
I have not yet mastered maintaining this posture every moment of the day, but I pray for us all, by God’s grace, to develop this healthy posture of praise for who He is and surrender to His purposes and lordship.
May our hearts be postured toward our glorious God!
Reflection: How is my heart's posture today? By God's grace and help, what are some ways I can get back into alignment with Him when I find myself bent toward other things?
LYRICS
The Stand
By Joel Houston (Hillsong United)
Verse 1:
You stood before creation
Eternity in Your Hand
You spoke the earth into motion
My soul now to stand
Verse 2:
You stood before my failure
And carried the cross for my shame
My sin weighed upon Your Shoulders
My soul now to stand
Pre-Chorus:
So what could I say?
And what could I do?
But offer this heart, Oh God
Completely to You
Verse 3:
So I'll walk upon salvation
Your Spirit alive in me
This life to declare Your Promise
My soul now to stand
Pre-Chorus (x2)
Chorus:
I'll stand With arms high and heart abandoned
In awe of the One who gave it all
I'll stand My soul Lord to You, surrendered
All I am is Yours
(x3)
Pre-Chorus