Yesterday I drove my daughter Felicia to our high school which is just situated about one hour’s drive outside of Stockholm. She has decided to move to the boarding school (actually they live in an old castle built in the 16th century) to study and be with her friends she has grown up with in church.
To be honest with you my wife and I were reflecting over how quiet and empty the apartment felt since our eldest daughter moved about 350 kilometers to the beautiful city of Jönköping to begin a masters degree in teaching and now our second eldest daughter just moved to Ekebyholm school. Thankfully we still have our youngest daughter Angelica to keep us company.
While driving I kept reflecting over the adventure that God has lead us on the past twenty years. I wondered what God has install for us at this junction in our lives when the children are growing up and making their own decisions for the future. The point is wherever God chooses to lead us I am convinced of one thing and that is God is calling us to stand in the gap, so as to speak, to reach people for His kingdom.
I am reminded of the words recorded by the prophet in the book of Isaiah 6:8: “Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?” In a sense these words are even more relevant for us living at the end of time. I believe God is still asking this question. Whom shall I send? Who will go for us? Will you go? Will you stand in the gap?
Let me ask you: If God's Holy Spirit were to search among us today, I wonder if He would find men and women who willing to stand in the gap, willing to pray, willing to be available, willing to reach out to those who do not know Him personally.
In my job as pastor and as a youth leader I regularly meet Christians who openly admit that they are literally afraid to share their faith with people or who are just too timid to confront their friends and relatives with the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
While this in some cases might be true I believe the real problem is far deeper. I believe the heart of the problem (if we are truly honest with ourselves and God) is that many so-called Christ followers don't really have a burden for those who don't know God. I believe if that burden for lost people is burning with enough passion, a believer will work through the obstacles stopping them from Jesus.
That is not to say there are not things we should learn so we can share our faith more effectively. If you happen to live in Sweden I can highly recommend our very own Bible school that not only prepares you to give an account of your faith but also gives you the tools needed to share your faith in a non-threatening way. It also helps you develop the spiritual disciplines needed to grow closer to God and develop a passion for those who do not know God.
But I still believe if the burden is really there, a believer will go out and do something with the Good News Jesus has given us. The bottom line is that sharing our faith isn't really a big deal to many of us. This is why it is so important that we have a God-given burden for unbelievers.
The truth is I would rather make a lot of mistakes in sharing my faith than to never do anything. At least I will hopefully learn something from my mistakes. But when we do nothing for fear of being rejected or for fear we will not meet with great success, we are really missing what God has called us to do. Let us not forget that God has not called us to be successful but to be faithful to the Great Commission.
Challenge:
Who has God called you to stand in the gap for?