“I fell on my face, and I heard a voice of one speaking.”
These were the words of Ezekiel after he saw a vision of the glory of the Lord (Ezekiel 1:28b). His response was to physically fall face down on the ground before the Lord. This posture of humility and surrender happened many times throughout the Bible.
When God appeared to Abram to establish His covenant, Abram “fell on his face.” (Genesis 17:3)
Moses and Aaron “fell on their faces” before God when the people were complaining about lack of provisions in the wilderness. (Numbers 20:6)
Joshua “fell on his face and worshiped” when he saw a messenger of the Lord. (Joshua 5:14)
God’s people “fell on their faces” when they saw the fire of the Lord consuming the burnt offering before them at the hand of Elijah. (1 Kings 18:39)
According to the Bible Hub website, falling on one’s face is the “proper response to God’s overwhelming presence and power.”
I remember literally falling to the ground in thankful humility after we dropped Lexi off at the Youth With a Mission campus in Kansas City. After years of watching her struggle, I was overwhelmed with gratitude for God working in her heart.
How often do we come before God in this humble submission? Though sometimes we show our reverence and praise by the position of our body, what is really important is the posture of our heart — the inward surrender to our Lord and Savior.
Jesus, in the garden of Gethsemane, the night he was betrayed, “fell on His face and prayed” as He asked for the Father’s will to be done. Wow. What an image of humility and submission before the Father by the Son, just before he carried out the most important act in all of history.
How amazing also to note what happened to Ezekiel directly after he fell on his face. He “heard a voice of one speaking.” It is when we come humbly before God that we are able to hear Him speak to us.
“Come let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the Lord our Maker.” (Psalm 95:6)
Our God is always there for us, trusting the process is how I seem to struggle mostly. Hands in the air or face to the ground, I am grateful for his grace through it all!