It was one of those moments that goes by so quickly. It was shown for just a few brief seconds. Probably most of the people watching did not even notice it if they glanced away from the television to grab the remote. But there it was for all who were watching to see. Karl Malone, the old warrior from basketball battles over the years, grabbed his sweats and stepped over some of the seats in the Los Angeles arena to greet some men wearing Army uniforms.
The Los Angeles Lakers had just beaten the Minnesota Timberwolves in game three of their best of seven series for the Western Division Championship. But before Karl Malone would go back to the locker room and celebrate he was seen moving seats out the way to practically embrace some service men who were there watching the game.
Malone had made some comments concerning basketball being a war and its competitors warriors. Tuesday evening he even showed up for the game wearing fatigues. Yet, he knows the difference between war and war and the people who stand a watch to protect this country. His urgency to get to those service men before they left the floor area spoke volumes of his appreciation for his safety and those who provide it. He was thanking the ones who defend his freedom.
God needs warriors. We are in an eternal life and death struggle with heaven at stake every day. Every day there are those who die without knowing Christ. They had no one to fill the gap in their lives that pertained to eternity and the salvation Jesus offers. They had no one to tell them Jesus loves them, that His death on the cross was for them. They had no one to care.
"So I sought for a man among them who would make a wall, and stand in the gap before Me on behalf of the land, that I should not destroy it; but I found none." Ezekiel 22:30 God is looking for people who are willing to build relationships with people needing Christ. God is looking for people who love His Son who will fill the gap of eternity in the life of one who is searching. Will you stand in the gap for another?