In Joshua 2:8-11, ex-prostitute Rahab explains that a "fear of God" had come upon all the inhabitants of Canaan. This fact made Israel's military exploits in Canaan much easier--winning battles by a margin disproportionate to the effort Israel put into them.
For the most part, military matters are a math exercise. This amount of resources times this amount of firepower times this amount of troops equals a certain result. Of course there is great skill in knowing when and how to strike, but much of military success can be computed by math... (If you don't believe me, just ask someone who has played the game Risk.)
Church growth operates, if I may speak this way, much the same way. You can predict a certain amount of growth based on resources, opportunities, and talent. I don't think there's anything wrong with thinking that way... God often works through quite "natural" means (i.e. "if you send out this mailer, x # of new people will come to your church), and He expects us to use our brains.
But then, God does something in Joshua that exponentially multiplies Israel's "natural" military efforts. He sends a sense of "fear" upon the people of the land.
That is what I am praying for my Raleigh-Durham community--that a sense of holy "fear" would grip the hearts of the people so that our efforts would be greatly multiplied, far beyond normal, natural means. This is when you can march around walls and scream "boo" and things come crashing down.
It is no coincidence, I believe, that Acts 2:42-47 says that when "a great sense of fear and awe was upon every soul" that "God added to their number daily those that were being saved."
Father, send this holy "fear and awe of God" onto my neighbors, my community, and all of Raleigh-Durham! Send it on those communities in which our people are serving in Central Asia, SE Asia, South Asia, and South Africa!
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