Close the Gap

I once heard Bob Goff say that most people are at least two jobs behind who they are becoming. If we’re honest, that statement describes where we are today – or at least, where we’ve been in some recent season of life.

Some of us, so used to feeling frustrated and under-utilized, default to going through the motions rather than exerting the energy needed to close the gap between who we are and who we are becoming.

Why? Why is there such a disconnect between our current situation and the dreams inside our head? I may not have it all figured out, but I suspect it boils down to at least three things:

Comfort

The job I have today affords me a certain level of comfort and security. While it may not be my dream job, it pays the bills and perhaps gives me a place to use my gifts and abilities in beneficial ways. Even if it leaves me feeling unfulfilled, my current position gives me the means to maintain my lifestyle and the toys in my garage. It keeps the family happy, or at least it keeps them comfortable. If comfort is my middle name, where’s the impetus to close the gap between my calling and my commitments?

Fear

Change is a fearful thing for those who love comfort. To begin to close the gap requires making changes to the way my life is now, which raises the blood pressure for even the most courageous among us. When we begin to entertain the possibility of change – even change for the good – the resulting pile of what-if’s threatens to bury our dreams in a shallow grave, never again to see the light of day. Fear of change promises to immobilize us every time, feeding the gap instead of building a bridge to the other side.

Control

Taking steps toward who we are becoming may seem like taking control, but it can feel more like a relinquishment. When we choose to move toward the desire of our heart, all of the variables shift along with the paradigm we’ve created. Trusting God to meet our family’s needs while moving us closer to our calling is much easier said than done, keeping some of us control freaks from ever fully realizing our Kingdom potential in this life. Handing over the reins – even to the God of the universe – is a move that many refuse to make, causing the gap to widen as we trample our own potential underfoot.

Given these three strongholds, it’s no wonder so many of us have failed to live into our callings as children of God! But it doesn’t have to end here. We don’t have to numb out to the repeated disappointment of failing to be all we were made to be, which begs the question: What’s it going to take to close the gap?

Believe that those pangs of promise – those yearnings for fulfillment and meaning – are God-given, Spirit-driven impulses! You aren’t crazy, and this isn’t just a dream. It’s who you are meant to be!

Move! The God who calls us is able to equip us to serve as He intended. It is never too late to step into the life God is giving you, so what are you waiting for? Someday? Take the first step! Today is someday!

Pray and ask the God who is able to close the gap to help you realize His very best for you! Pray for doors to open. Ask for eyes to see the path ahead. Beg for courage to lay aside illusions of control and fear of change. Trade in your love of comfort for love of Him! God – if there’s a gap between my Kingdom potential and the work I am doing today, let my prayer be…

Close the gap!