Standing in the Gap

 "So he said he would destroy them - had not Moses, his chosen one, stood in the breach before him to keep his wrath from destroying them." (Ps. 106:23)  Moses sought the favor of the Lord and pleaded that His fierce anger would not bring disaster on His people, and the Lord relented. (Ex. 32:11-14)

 Also, recorded for our instruction is the testimony of Nehemiah as he stood in the gap and prayed, "I confess the sins we Israelites, including myself and my father’s house, have committed against you..." (Neh. 1:6)

 This is a subject that has been burning on my heart for some time, but is hard for me to deliver. It seems so often I have had to learn things the hard way, but the Lord knows how to get my attention. I had no understanding of what it meant to "stand in the gap" for others until I was faced with praying into a dream I had received to cover a friend in prayer. I prayed but knew I had not received a breakthrough - which left me puzzled as to what I needed to do or pray until I received peace - I knew it was not good. Two weeks later this person died. I was devastated and cried to the Lord for revelation as to why this happened. After two years I received revelation that I must "stand in the gap" for people that have opened doors in their lives and given the enemy a right to take them out. The strategy of the enemy is to kill, steal and destroy. The enemy has a right to be in our lives when we have allowed him in, or opened doors to him. Dr. Ken Smylie gave us excellent teaching on this two weeks ago. This became very real to me. The Lord was showing me that He would use me to support people in prayer who were under attack from the enemy.

 The day that I received this revelation I was faced with another matter of life and death. I received a text from one of my children that they had received a suicide note by text from a friend and did not take it seriously, but only laughed because it was so out of character for this girl to be saying anything of this nature. As soon as I received this message I cried out in intercession, standing in the gap, repenting for every sin she had committed, laying every sin at the foot of the cross. Asking that every door be closed to the enemy.  And I asked the Lord to send his guardian angel to protect her and keep her safe. I felt the power of prayer at that moment and I had faith that the Lord heard my plea of desperation.

 I began to text this young woman, but no answer, until about 20 minutes later.  She responded and asked me to come and get her. She was on her way to commit suicide, and knew that she was being driven by the enemy. She felt a strong presence of evil. Being a person of prayer herself she knew it was demonic and from the pit of Hell, but the enemy had a grip on her and she did not have the strength to overcome. She said that she felt the moment I began to pray - that power was broken and a man began to yell to her not to "do it". She knew the angel of the Lord had appeared.

 In Ezekiel we hear the Lord say, "I looked for a man among them who would build up the wall and stand before me in the gap on behalf of the land so I would not have to destroy it, but I found none." (Ez. 22:30)

 Let this not be said about us.  The Lord is calling His people to stand in the gap for one another, for our church, for our city and for our nation. The cry is going out - Will we listen?

 Janet