It’s The Fall

When my daughter was a baby, she used to throw herself flat on the floor at the sound of the word “no.” This was an attempt to persuade authority figures to give her her way. It seemed to come out of nowhere! She’d literally fall to the floor, have her fit, then, when she was done, the “no” would still be there waiting for her embrace.

In scripture we read about another person who, one day, out of nowhere, just fell. Turns out, his motive was a wee bit different than my daughter’s.

Mark chapter 5 tells us about a demon-possessed man who lived among the tombs, cut himself with stones, and could not be tamed. This guy had issues!

However . . . “when he saw Jesus from a distance, he ran and fell on his knees in front of him.” Yes! This same man who no chains could bind; this man who no man could tame; this man from whom people would steer clear out of fear; that man saw Jesus and without a word spoken to him, he runs and lays himself before Him.

John Gill points out the fact that the demons had been controlling this man’s every move, yet, in the presence of Christ, this man’s body fell before him.

Are you ready to fall?

Perhaps you too have some issues—“chained” by all that life has thrown your way. You’ve tried or heard about ways to cope or deal, but change has yet to come.

Don’t worry. I’m not going to tell you to “fall at the feet of Jesus” so all your troubles will miraculously go away. Chances are, if you were to pray right now, laying out every issue you can utter, you’d rise from your position with the same unreasonable spouse, the same unruly kids, the same pathetic account balance, the same two-digit credit score, and the same unhealthy cravings. The scale would probably read the same, the test results may only be confirmed, the divorce would most likely still be final, and that boss would still be there bright and early Monday morning ready to mess over you yet again.

What I will encourage you to do is what I myself have been encouraged to do: fall anyhow.

All the stuff may remain as is, but you’d be different. Just as the man saw Jesus from a distance, we too, from any distance we may be experiencing, can fall at His feet.

This fall alone will not solve it all. But it opens the way for Him to use it all for good!

Some think it’s the money, the new job, the new man, or the clean bill of health that will make it all good.

But nope! It’s the fall.

Consider this; to “see Jesus” means to hear about Him, read about Him, or remember Him. It’s what may happen at church, while reading a blog post, devotional, or passage of scripture, or what you may experience in a conversation with a G0d-fearing friend or during a time of prayer or reflection. You may even “see Jesus,” the way this man did: while not even looking for Him, yet he recognized His presence and fell anyhow.

To fall anyhow is to acknowledge, not your short-comings, but Christ’s superiority and his power. To fall anyhow is to pray anyhow, to read scripture anyhow, to—while in the midst of havoc and at your wits’ end—seek support anyhow. When we see Jesus from a distance, run and fall on our knees in front of Him, that fall changes us. When we are all done, our issue may be there waiting for our embrace, but we will embrace it in full view of who He is and what He is able and willing to do in addition to all that He has already done!

Falling recklessly to have our way is not advisable. May we instead fall reverently before The Way—ready to then rise and tell others about what used to be and how our change happened after the fall.

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Take Action: This week, fall anyhow by asking God to give you the courage to ask for the help you need from a trusted Christian friend, counselor, or support group.