Colleen Orchanian

Have you ever caught your dog being bad? You scold him, Bad dog! and he slinks away in shame. I realize that some dogs are quite proud when misbehaving, but the more sensitive ones don't want to disappoint their owners.

There are times I have felt like the bad dog when I sin or fall short of my call as a Christian. I hang my head in embarrassment for disappointing God.

I thought about that for a while – how we come to God. At times we come with our heads down in embarrassment, the prodigal son or daughter. Other times we stand up and rejoice, filled with the Holy Spirit. Both postures are appropriate at the proper time.

Lower postures like kneeling, lying prostrate, and placing our forehead on the ground are postures of humility and submission.

We bow when we are in need. In the Gospel of Mark, the leper begs Jesus and kneels. He expresses his faith that Jesus has the power to heal him, and shows with humility that he (the leper) cannot heal himself. The woman who had been bleeding for 12 years was on her knees to touch the tassels on Jesus' cloak, believing that she would be healed. We are all beggars needing healing from the Divine Physician. And so we get on our knees. We beg for ourselves and we beg for those we love.

We bow in sorrow. When we recognize our failures, we might fall to our knees. In Luke chapter 5, the apostles have a miraculous catch of fish. When Peter saw it, he fell at Jesus' knees saying, Depart from me, for I am a sinful man. Peter knew he was unworthy of the miracle and bowed down in humility.

We bow in reverence. The disciples at the Transfiguration heard the voice of the Father saying, This is my beloved son, with whom I am well pleased. They fell on their faces, filled with awe.

Psalm 95 says, Oh come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker! A lower posture – bowing down – reflects humility and submission to God.

We might balk at taking a submissive posture, but that's what Jesus did in the Garden of Gethsemane, submitting to the will of the Father. The Incarnation is God coming down to our level because we can't get up to him. Philippians 2:6-8 tells us that Jesus emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being born as a man. If Jesus – God Himself – can humbly submit to the Father, surely we can, too.

Sometimes we bow down, and other times God raises us up. He wants us to stand, to raise our arms, to lift our heads. When Jesus heals the paralytic, he tells him to rise. He raises a girl from the dead in Mark 5:41. He reaches down with a healing touch and tells her to rise up.

We read of Paul's conversion in Acts 26:16. He hears God's voice and falls to the ground. He is told, Stop persecuting me. Paul has been doing terrible things to Christians, and Jesus corrects him. He then tells Paul to rise up. God doesn't want us to stay bowed down in shame. He wants us to rise up and help build the Kingdom.

The one who wants us to stay bowed down is Satan. Even when God has forgiven us, Satan keeps reminding us of the past. He doesn't want us to accept the identity we are given in baptism – a child of God. He wants us to be humiliated. Humiliation is about shame, ridicule, and self-hate. In contrast, humility is seeing the reality of who we are – in our poverty and our wealth. Our poverty because we are nothing without God, and our wealth because God has adopted us as His children.

When I bow in shame, mired in self-hate, that comes from the devil. When I bow my head in sorrow, asking for mercy, that's holy.

When I make demands of God and expect Him to do my will, that comes from the devil. When I kneel and present my needs to God, when I am the poor beggar, that is holy.

When I stand up because of me and my ego, that comes from the devil. When I stand up because of wonder at how God has blessed me, that's holy.

In Luke 21:38 Jesus is talking about the end and tells us, When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near. We don't need to be afraid or ashamed when the end comes because our redemption is drawing near. We should look for God with anticipation and excitement.

We pray with our whole bodies. This is most evident to me at Mass. We enter the church and kneel to pray. We stand and joyfully sing Glory to God. We sit and listen to His word, except during the Gospels when we stand out of reverence. We kneel humbly as we prepare for Communion. We stand as we are sent out into the world, to share the Good News.

Notice your body. Is it reflecting God's grace or the devil's hostility? When you feel bowed down, is it good and right? That's God. When you stand tall, filled with strength and joy, that's God. Let your body reflect your relationship with God. Even when you feel like a bad dog, God is there with mercy to lift you up. He wants you to stand and hold up your head. You've been forgiven. Praise God. Sing with arms raised. Worship the Lord, your God.

Questions for prayer:

1. When are you – or should you – be bowed down to God, showing submission and humility?

2. When is the enemy affecting your prayer posture and how can you reject the lies he uses to keep you bowed in shame?

3. When is God calling you to rise up and receive your adoption as a son or daughter of the King?