Living in the Gap

Posted by Erin Roberson, August 21, 2024

This blog is inspired by a sermon by Dr. Crawford Loritts (Click here to listen.)

In a recent sermon, Dr. Loritts said “It’s never okay to not depend on God, and God creates gaps in our lives when we must depend on Him.”

God spoke to me through Dr. Loritts’ statements, because I am preparing to enter a “gap” very soon! On December 1, I will retire from my career as an educator, and my husband and I will move back to our home state of Kentucky. When people find out I am retiring and moving away, they often ask, “What will you do next?” My reply is always the same, “I have no idea!”

There is a Hebrew word for this kind of waiting - “Qavah.” This word means much more than passive waiting. With Qavah, we are eager, hopeful, and actively involved!

It’s a time for growth, discovery, and deeper connection with God.

Maybe you are in a “gap season” of qavah as well. It may be an exciting time of waiting expectantly for what God has planned next, or it may be a terrifying time that has you asking, “How long, God?”

Perhaps you have experienced the end of a relationship that was very important to you.

Maybe you’re between jobs or, like me, you are retiring from the only career you’ve ever known.

Maybe your child has wandered away from God and the family, and you are waiting for God to intervene.

Maybe you have no money until your next paycheck, and you’re not sure how you will make it financially.

What should we do when we find ourselves living in the gap?

Be watchful

“But they who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint” (Isaiah 40:31). As we wait, we should live in prayer and worship! We lean in and call on Heaven, listening for God’s leading. We also look for God. Henry Blackaby wrote in Experiencing God, “Look for where God is working, and join Him there.”

What is God showing you during your gap season?

Be generous

We may be tempted to focus on ourselves when we're waiting, especially if our choices have put us in this “waiting place.” We may be tempted to cling to past mistakes or shame. Instead, spend this time to meet the needs of others. Serving others brings joy, and it helps our perspective. It also blesses the people around us.

Generosity is the path to our own provision. I Timothy 6 tells us to be generous and ready to share, and God will supply what we need. Being generous causes us to be grateful, and it creates in us a spirit of hope.

“Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (I Thessalonians 5:18).

Be trusting

God is never early, and He is never late. His timing is always perfect, even when it feels like a very long delay. Our faith can grow during gap seasons as we wait and trust God’s perfect plan and timing. ”Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for Him…” (Psalm 37:7).

Be malleable

God knows what we don’t know, and He is already in our future. We need to remember that God’s ways are higher than our ways. He may have plans that far exceed anything we can imagine, and we can participate in those plans if we allow Him to have His way! We will be ready for whatever is next when we allow God to transform us.

How do we do this? Attend worship services, get involved in a group of Believers, read Christian literature, and get immersed in God’s Word. These activities are especially important during gap seasons, because they prepare our hearts for the Holy Spirit to provide wisdom, peace, and clarity.

“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect” (Romans 12:2).

Be content

While we are waiting, we need to avoid the temptation to grumble and complain. It may feel good in the moment, but complaining results in a negative mindset that can keep us from learning the lessons God has for us. Besides, the Bible says God doesn’t like it (see Philippians 2:14-16 and I Corinthians 10:10). Contentment is found in the source, not in the resource.

So, when you find yourself in a gap season of qavah, it is important to give everything to God. God wants us to live this way - to have open hands, to live generously, to allow Him to transform us, and to join Him where He is working.

In His perfect plan and timing, he will lead you out of the gap and into the next chapter He has planned for you!

Erin Roberson is a wife and mother of two wonderful grown boys. She is a lifelong educator who loves learning and teaching others. She believes our primary focus should be on our relationship with God, learning who God is, who God says we are, and how God wants us to live.