It was over. That holy, sacred, once in a lifetime encounter of the divine kind had ceased. The goodness of God has passed before Moses. The cloud had descended. The name of the LORD had been proclaimed. From the protection of the cleft of the rock the glory of God had appeared, the back of God had been seen. God’s light had shone and then was gone. His voice had declared and then was silent. It was over. And Moses felt He needed to respond . . . Immediately!

And Moses quickly bowed his head toward the earth and worshiped. And he said, “If now I have found favor in Your sight, O Lord, please let the Lord go in the midst of us, for it is a stiff-necked people, and pardon our iniquity and our sin, and take us for Your inheritance.”

(Exodus 34:8-9 ESV)

Moses had asked Jehovah to see His glory (33:18) and the Existing One complied. Big ask. Even bigger answer. You’d think that would have been the end of the asking. Nope! Moses continued to petition. Asked for three things: 1) go in our midst; 2) pardon our sin; 3) take us for Your own. In essence, fulfill Your promise.

And here’s what grabbed me about Moses’ continuing supplication. It was worship.

Hearing the voice cease, knowing the LORD was passing on, Moses hastily went facedown lest he lose the favorable opportunity before him. He bowed and he begged. And I think, “Wait a minute. Asking isn’t worshiping. I know the prayer model. ACTS . . . Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication. I’ve been warned about going too quickly to my requests. That I need to work up to it, acknowledge first who God is before I ask Him for what I want. TACO . . . Thanksgiving, Adoration, Confession, Others.”

Wait just a minute! Moses worshiped when Moses asked? Apparently.

Moses saw the glory of God. He was there. Not quite face to face, but back to face, and that’s pretty close. And before it was over, Moses prostrated himself and pled his case. And it was worship.

I get the warnings about being so consumed with supplication that we forget who we are supplicating before. I’m a proponent of being still and knowing He is God before monopolizing the conversation with all that I desire God do. But this morning I’m also reminded that God is exalted when He is entreated.

Our ask is acknowledging His ability to answer. Our meager prayers offered only because we know His majestic power. Our supplications and desires to the Father, a pronouncement of faith that, through the cross, He has made us His sons and daughters.

And when that ask is for more of His presence so that we might be more His people, it is worship of the highest degree. We who were once in rebellion now pleading for deeper relationship. We who once had gone our own way, now asking that He would show us increasingly His way. We who once thought we could do life on our own, now seizing the opportunity to cry out, “Lord, I need You!” And in that, God is worshiped.

Sometimes we’re gonna go straight to “S” and bypass “ACT”. And when that is done with heads bowed and hearts lifted it is worship.

Worship by the grace of God. Worship for the glory of God.