Why G.A.P.?

The acronym G.A.P. is one that I've thought about for a long time. A few years ago I was doing the study "A Mind Like Christ" and obviously a key scripture in that study is Romans 12:2 - being transformed by the renewing of your mind. As I read the end of the statement it talks about His Good, Acceptable and Perfect will - G.A.P. That really struck me for a number of reasons. Right now I'll just share the initial thought.

Below is part of an unsent letter that I originally wrote in November 2002:

When we think of GAPs we think of holes, things gone wrong, things that we are missing. The phrase “stand in the gap” often means that we are helping to bridge between two things that need connection. When I was studying Romans 12:2, I memorized the end of the verse by remembering GAP – good, acceptable and perfect. When we look at our lives, the gaps are normally far from good, acceptable and perfect. In fact, often we desired that good things would happen in those places, but somehow our best efforts always seems to fall short and there is a gap.

I believe that God desires us to stand in these GAPs but in a different way then we have thought of it before. He desires to stand with us in the hurt places where things have gone wrong and pain has entered in and he would like to begin to reveal to us how he desires to use that for good in our life because we love him. We are all broken creatures and as we read in his word, an acceptable sacrifice is a broken and contrite heart. Not only does he desire to come into the gaps in our life he also desires to help us to stand in his will daily, living a good, acceptable and perfect life. So many of us strive to have just one of those words describe the work we do and the life we live. Through Jesus, God provides a way for us to live like that daily - as a living sacrifice transformed and renewed by Him.

I have other thoughts about what living a GAP life means and we'll talk more about it - this is just the beginning of the pilgrimage.