Living in the Gaps: Where God Does His Best Work
Life has a rhythm of highs and lows. One moment you're crushing it at work, closing deals and feeling unstoppable. The next, you're holding a termination letter. One season you're healthy and strong, and then a diagnosis changes everything. You're celebrating Christmas with joy, then suddenly facing the painful reminder of loneliness or loss.
We're real people living real lives in a real world, and that world is filled with ups and downs. But here's what most of us miss: the most important part of life isn't found in the mountaintop moments or even in the valleys. It's found in the gaps between them.
The Question We Ask in the Gaps When we find ourselves in those in-between places—those uncomfortable, uncertain gaps—our natural instinct is to ask the wrong questions. We ask "Why me?" or "How do I get out of here as fast as possible?" We hate the gaps so much that we spend all our energy trying to build bridges from one high point to the next, hoping we'll never have to experience a low again.
But that's not how life works. The apostle James tells us to "count it pure joy" when we face trials of many kinds. Not if we face them, but when. That's reality.
The right question to ask in the gap isn't "why" or "how." It's "what"—as in, "God, what do you have for me here?" And even more importantly, "God, who do you have for me here?" Because in every gap, if we look hard enough, we'll find Jesus right there with us.
When God Gave in the Gaps The Gospel of John describes the birth of Jesus in a beautifully simple way: "The Word became flesh and blood and moved into the neighborhood."
Think about that. God didn't send Jesus during humanity's finest hour. He sent Him during one of the darkest periods in recorded history. He didn't send Him to the religious elite or the wealthy and powerful. He sent Him to a carpenter and a teenage girl—imperfect, flawed, ordinary people living in extraordinary gaps.
This is the pattern of God's giving: He gives His best in our gaps.
When we learn to give from our gaps—whether that's giving our time, our resources, or ourselves—we're learning to give the way God gave. And here's the promise: when we're faithful to give from our gaps, God is faithful to fill them back up.
The Gap of Our Failures Many of us disqualify ourselves from being used by God because of our failures. We think we haven't been faithful long enough, don't know the Bible well enough, or haven't gotten our act together enough to serve or give.
But look at the people God chose to be part of the Christmas story. Joseph wasn't a high priest or religious scholar—he built things with wood and nails. Mary was an unwed teenage mother in a culture where that brought tremendous shame. By all human standards, these were not the "right" people for such an important mission.
Yet God chose them anyway. Throughout Scripture, God consistently uses people who probably should have been passed over for someone better. Why? Because when He uses imperfect people to fulfill His perfect will, He gets all the glory.
Your failures don't disqualify you. They're actually the perfect place for God to work.
The Gap in Our Families Family gatherings can be wonderful, but they can also remind us of deep gaps. Whether it's dysfunction, distance, or disappointment, most of us have some family weirdness we're navigating.
Jesus' family was no different. The circumstances of His birth created tension between Mary and Joseph. The shame and stigma likely drove extended family away—we don't even know the names of Jesus' grandparents. When Jesus was born, it wasn't in a family member's home but in a borrowed barn.
If you've ever thought your messy family situation disqualifies you from being part of what God is doing, you're wrong. God does His best work in the messiest family situations. Jesus' genealogy includes a prostitute, immigrants, and a king who was also an adulterer and murderer.
In all that mess, God still sent His very best. And in your mess, God still wants to work.
The Gap in Our Finances Financial stress is real. Many of us reach that point in the month where there's more month than money. It's stressful to navigate inflation, unexpected expenses, and the constant pressure just to survive.
When we find ourselves in financial gaps, we often convince ourselves that the gap is too deep for us to give. But Mary and Joseph were poor—so poor that when they went to the temple to make their required sacrifice, they brought two pigeons instead of a lamb, which was the accommodation made for those who couldn't afford more.
Yet they still gave. They still showed up. They still participated in what God was doing.
And remember the wise men who brought gold, frankincense, and myrrh? Their gifts didn't just fulfill prophecy—they financed the holy family's escape to Egypt when Herod sought to kill Jesus. Their obedience in giving literally funded the mission of God Almighty.
Financial obedience isn't just for people who have extra. It's for all of us. Because here's the truth: you can't think your way out of financial gaps, but you can give your way out of them. When we give in our gaps, God fills them back up.
The Invitation Life will always have gaps. We'll face failures, family dysfunction, and financial pressure. But these gaps aren't obstacles to overcome as quickly as possible. They're the very places where God wants to meet us, work through us, and show His faithfulness.
The question isn't whether you're good enough, qualified enough, or have enough to give. The question is whether you're willing to give from wherever you are—right in the middle of your gap—and trust God to fill it back up.
Because when we give the way God gave—generously, sacrificially, right in the middle of the mess—we discover that God specializes in filling gaps. He fills the gaps of our failures, our families, and our finances.
And in the process, we find that the gap was never meant to be rushed through. It was meant to be the place where we encounter God most deeply and experience His faithfulness most profoundly.