The Daily CHEW™
Chew on God’s Love. Live Transformed. Multiply Hope.
Last Sunday, sitting in my favorite spot during worship, I felt deeply moved as we sang about God’s unconditional love—you know that moment when the truth feels so real you could live on it forever. But by Tuesday afternoon, when a client meeting went sideways and I found myself spiraling into worst-case scenarios, I realized I was living like God’s love had conditions I hadn’t met yet.
Maybe you know this disconnect too. The gap between the Gospel truths that move your heart on Sunday and the fears that drive your decisions on Wednesday. The space between knowing God loves you unconditionally and living like His approval depends on your performance as a leader, parent, or spouse. That uncomfortable reality where your theology is sound, but your emotions tell a different story entirely.
Here’s what I’ve discovered working with hundreds of Christian leaders and high performers: our greatest breakthroughs don’t come from learning more about God’s love, but from honestly facing where we’re not actually living from it. This gap isn’t a sign of weak faith—it’s the most fertile ground for transformation, if we’re brave enough to name it.
The Hidden Power of Gap Awareness
Gap Awareness is the powerful but revolutionary practice of noticing where our lived experience doesn’t match what we say we believe about God’s love. It’s not about shame or condemnation, but about the freedom that comes when we stop pretending our hearts and heads are perfectly aligned.
Think of it like this: we can intellectually know that “God works all things together for good,” but when crisis hits, do we reach for control or rest in trust? We might affirm that “God’s love never fails,” but do we brace for disappointment or lean into hope? These gaps aren’t failures—they’re invitations to experience God’s love in places we didn’t even know we needed it.
The power isn’t in eliminating these gaps (impossible this side of heaven), but in developing the courage to name them honestly and return to Gospel truth with fresh dependence on the Holy Spirit.
CHEW in 3-5 Minutes: Closing the Gap Between Head and Heart
Join me. Let’s practice Gap Awareness together right now:
- Take three deep breaths—remembering God’s love is present now, meeting you exactly where you are.
- Adore: “Father, You love me right now, not because my beliefs and emotions are perfectly aligned, but because of Christ.”
- Confess: Use this Gap Awareness worksheet to get honest:
- Column A: “What do I say I believe about God’s love?” (Write one Gospel truth)
- Column B: “How did I actually live/feel this week?” (Name a specific moment where your response didn’t match that truth)
- Hear: Choose one Gospel promise that speaks directly to what you just confessed, or browse these targeted categories to find the biblical truth your heart most needs right now:
- “God’s love is patient” (2 Peter 3:9)
- “God’s love is secure” (Romans 8:38-39)
- “God’s love is present” (Psalm 139:7-10)
- Exchange: Use Column C of the worksheet: “If I really believed God’s love is [that characteristic], how would that change [the specific situation from Column B]?”
- Walk: What’s one small step you can take today to live from this truth instead of the gap?
- Thanksgiving & Worship: Thank God that He meets you in the gap—not to shame you, but to love you deeper into freedom.
Growth isn’t instant, and every honest acknowledgment of the gap is actually spiritual maturity. God doesn’t need you to have perfect alignment between belief and experience—He delights in your trust and your willingness to return to Him with what’s real.
The Three Levels Where Gaps Show Up
Using the Gap Awareness practice, you’ll start noticing that these disconnects happen at different levels:
Surface-Level Gaps: Daily emotions that don’t match Gospel truth
- Belief: “God is with me always”
- Reality: “I felt completely alone in that meeting”
Operational Gaps: The scripts and self-talk that drive our reactions
- Belief: “God’s approval doesn’t depend on my performance”
- Reality: “I worked until midnight because I was terrified of disappointing the client”
Core Belief Gaps: Deep life patterns shaped by years of experience
- Belief: “God delights in me as His beloved”
- Reality: “I live with a constant low-grade anxiety that I’m not enough”
The beautiful truth? God’s love is big enough for every level of gap, and the Holy Spirit specializes in transformative work from the inside out.
CHEW On This™:
If I really believed God’s love is steady enough to handle the gap between what I say I believe and how I actually live, how would that change the way I respond to my own spiritual inconsistencies?
Gap Awareness isn’t about achieving perfect alignment—it’s about the freedom of honest return. Every time you name a gap without shame and turn toward God’s love, you’re actually growing in spiritual maturity. The goal isn’t to eliminate the disconnects, but to become someone who runs to God’s love faster when you notice them.
Ready to start practicing Gap Awareness? Download the worksheet and try the two-column practice this week. Notice, name, and return—that’s where transformation becomes a lifestyle instead of an occasional breakthrough.
Get God’s love from your head to your heart—subscribe to The Daily CHEW™ and experience real change, peace, and hope every day.
Ready for lasting transformation? Learn how to make CHEWing a daily rhythm in CHEW Groups and beyond.
Chew on God’s Love. Live Transformed. Multiply Hope.
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