Opening the Gates of Heaven Perry Stone

methods of prayer that I learned from my father. 1. B OW Y OUR K NEES IN P RAYER

My dad believed you should bow your knees in prayer. I am a walker when I pray. I find it difficult to remain in one spot or location, and thus in a sanctuary, my private office, or basement of my home I often walk when I pray. If I am not walking, I will at times sit in a chair and pray, especially if the prayer is more of speaking to God as a son to his Father. When I am about to engage in an extended period of intercession, I have lain on my face or placed a Bible under my head as I lay on my back with my face toward heaven. However, when Dad prayed, he would always pray in one position: on his knees. If he were in a hotel room, he would kneel by a bed. In an office, he would kneel at a chair, and in the sanctuary, he would bow his knees at the front pew. After seeing Dad pray in this position for years, I once asked him why he always prayed on his knees. He immediately quoted this verse: “For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Eph. 3:14). He said, “We should pray bowing before the Lord as a sign of humility and honor toward Him.” Throughout the Scriptures, when a person in covenant with God was in prayer or was encountering the presence of the Lord in some form, they “bowed their heads” (Exod. 12:27), they would “kneel before the L ORD ” (Ps. 95:6), or they would prostrate themselves on the ground, especially in the