Gap-Standing

​​"Then Moses pleaded with the Lord his God, and said: "Lord, why does Your wrath burn hot against Your people whom You have brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand?"...So the Lord relented from the harm which He said He would do to His people.

Exodus 32:11, 14

"Get away from among this congregation that I may consume them in a moment."...Then Aaron took it (the censor), ran and put it in the midst of the assembly...And he stood between the dead and the living.

Numbers 16:45, 47, 48

So I sought for a man among them who would make a wall and stand in the gap before Me on behalf of the land, that I should not destroy it; but I found no one.

Ezekiel 22:30

When I was younger, tracts were the thing. Small pamphlets to hand out to tell people about Jesus’ death on the cross. Diagrams were also used. A hill on one side of your paper identified as the people and a hill on the other side identified as God. You'd then draw Jesus with his outstretched arms, connecting the two hills. Jesus standing in the gap. Like Moses speaking up for the people and Aaron standing between the dead and the living.

As I read Ezekiel my heart beat madly. Wondering would I be one of those that God could trust to stand in the gap to save people? I wanted that so badly as I read these verses. But then I wondered, is gap-standing still needed since Jesus was the ultimate gap filler. But then there's the story of Paul (post Jesus) who stood on a boat in the midst of a storm and assured the sailors that God would save them. He had prayed, stood in the gap for them, and God had answered.

Which brings me back to my question. Am I gap potential? Am I worthy of standing in a gap on behalf of others? Well, on my own I'm certainly not. God, more than anybody, knows my sins. But I have been made righteous, right? At least according to Paul.

But, then, I don't think I can just stand in a gap at my own discretion without God's calling. Because I wouldn't trust my motives. Either on the surface or underneath the surface, I could very well be making a stand for what I think is right, what I think should be done, the people that I think should be prayed for.

Which then took me to thinking about prayer. Is prayer the same as standing in a gap? I don't think so. Gap standing feels ominous, weighty, holding life in the balance. Although Moses took it upon himself to speak and then Aaron ran with the incense, Ezekiel seems to imply that the idea and the need originates with God. Which would make sense, but it would also be very weight bearing.

Gap-standing means that you’re attuned to God. When to start. What to pray. When to stop. It’s not a prayer on the run, in your car, while falling asleep. It’s full out concentration with a clear vision of what you’re praying for, what God, himself, has asked you to do. 

As much as I want to be a gap-stander, I think I may need more time. Willingness does not mean readiness. In fact, I think if God called me to gap-stand, I’d need a minute. To work up the courage, to read the Bible a little bit more, to pray more often. But, again, with God it’s never been about worthiness. It’s been about God and His desire to use us - me - to love His people. To save His people. To the point where if He calls, with that in mind, I would, should, could immediately, without hesitation, yet with great fear and trepidation, say yes. 

So here I stand. With one toe over the edge. Letting God know that, if and when he thinks the time and need is right, I’m here. Ready as I’ll ever be, to be a gap-stander. For Him.