The man who ‘stood in the gap’ for me

Just about every human being has genuinely asked the existential question, “What is the purpose of my life?”  For me, the answer is easy.  Our purpose, as individuals connected to life through the thread of humanity, is to stand in the gap for those less fortunate than we ourselves are.

Here’s the case in point.  I was bullied and abused as an apprentice in the 1980s, back in a time when it wasn’t questioned, and when I found solace in alcohol and other drugs.  Interestingly, I’d resisted the temptation to drink and drug with my friends as a 17-year-old, but the influence of the workplace was instrumental in me giving in.

We did what we did back in those times without a lot of thought.

I really didn’t think too much of the physical and psychological harassment that was dealt to me.  It definitely had an impact on my formation, though, and I did fear those situations, but I blamed myself for being “hopeless” when there were plenty of other reasons I lacked confidence and competence in the third year of my four-year apprenticeship in 1986.

Enter the man DJ.  He was only a few years older than me.  He’d arrived from Perth as a tradesman to come to work with us in the mechanical maintenance department of the Water Authority in Karratha.  It was January 1987.

Looking back on this time, there were a few men I was working with who never had a kind word to say to me, and they talked constantly behind my back, not to mention the practical ‘jokes’ they did that would be health and safety incidents these days.

Others in the team remained silent, probably for fear of these men.  One of the men was our supervisor, who, at that time, had little good to say about anyone.  (I’ve since befriended him.)

To think that back in this time a lot of effort was put into bullying a person to teach them lessons—sadly, I know that this phenomenon hasn’t changed.

DJ had been around about a month, and then one Friday night when beers were being had in the workshop after work, when I wasn’t there, he apparently hushed the group and gave them a lecture.  A couple of the guys had been talking and laughing about a situation where they’d torn strips off me verbally, and I imagine DJ had had enough.

Apparently, word has it that you could hear a pin drop when he said, “This young guy who is in our care, who will be a tradesman this time next year, will never amount to anything if you guys don’t get off his back.”

I learned about this months later when the trade’s assistant (TA) allocated to me confided this.  For some strange reason I couldn’t work out why I’d been given a truck and a TA and was given jobs hundreds of kilometres away—I was being trusted to get engine and pump overhauls and mechanical seal change-outs done when I’d never been trusted before.

DJ had stood in the gap for me.  Standing in the gap is a biblical principle from Ezekiel 22:30.  It’s where just one person is sought to defend the good and do what’s right.  The power in such an action for one person to stand in the gap is compelling.

If you’ve ever been sidelined or abused or bullied or neglected, you knew all it would take is for one person to side with you, to stand in the gap, and make a difference by standing against the injustice—yet, like in Ezekiel 22:30 so often we find NOT ONE person has the courage and integrity to do such a thing.

The power of one person to speak up, to act, to stand for justice, to execute mercy, to walk in such humble kindness, to honour the truth!

That one challenge where DJ stood in the gap for me broke open the opportunity I needed to shine.  Everyone backed off and before long I was excelling and proving all the nay-sayers wrong in the best of ways.  I had earned their respect.  Because of one man who had the guts to simply say what needed to be said.

For us, we’re all in those situations almost daily.

There are times when we say to ourselves, “Better keep out of this,” and it’s truly because we don’t want to put our head above the parapet wall to have it shot or chopped off.

And yet, can you imagine this as your life purpose?  That God has placed you on this green earth to stand in the gap for others who don’t have the voice, the knowledge, or the influence we have?  Jesus did that for each of us at the cross of Golgotha.

To stand in the gap in our contexts is simply speaking the truth in love.

But of course, it would be naïve to think there wouldn’t be consequences in some or many situations.  There are the narcissists who will tolerate no shaming, who won’t respect what’s being done, who will see the challenge to their conquest and then make the gap-stander the fresh enemy.

Be that as it may, perhaps when our lives stand to be accounted for, we might be asked, “Who did YOU stand for?”

All I know is that DJ’s example was a powerful one to me.  And I’ve prospered from his courage shown that day.  I’ve tried to live in that stead.  And yes, more than once it’s backfired.  I’ve suffered some heavy consequences.

But until we’ve tasted defending someone who couldn’t defend themselves, firmly though fairly I mean, in appropriate circumstances, I don’t think we’ve lived our purpose.