Canvassing The Perimeter Series

If you want to possess the Promised Land of what God has called you to do in ministry, it begins by tearing down the walls one stronghold at a time. Whether you are seeking to claim a city, or looking to impact just a small group of people, you will need to canvass the perimeter. The phrase “canvassing the perimeter” means to thoroughly cover an area tying up all loose ends.(1) When you, as a believer, canvass the perimeter, you are walking the length and breadth of a target area, encircling it repeatedly until you have saturated every nook and cranny with faith-filled prayer. As an example, allow me to share the testimony of John Dawson, as he and a group of missionaries prayed for a city in Argentina. Dawson says,

I thought back to my first experience at seeing a city change through the power of prayer. It was Cordoba, Argentina, 1978. We were frustrated. The international Youth with a Mission team had been on the streets all day, and we were not getting anywhere . . . The Lord responded and gave us a plan. As we prayed in small groups, the Holy Spirit revealed the same strategy to many minds . . .

We went downtown the next day – all two hundred of us – and formed into small groups of about thirty. We positioned ourselves all through the fashionable malls and streets for pedestrians of the downtown area. Then we did it. We knelt down right there in the midst of the fashion parade, surrounded by expensive bistros, outdoor cafes and boutiques. With our foreheads to the cobblestone, we prayed for a revelation of Jesus to come to the city.

Breakthrough was immediate – breakthrough in us and breakthrough in the city. Large crowds of curious people gathered around each group . . . I stood and explained through an interpreter why we had come to the city. As I lifted my voice to communicate to the people at the edge of the crowd, the boldness and compassion of the Lord filled me and I began to preach . . . Large street meetings went on for several weeks until our departure. Large numbers came forward publicly to indicate that they had turned to Christ.(2)

Canvassing the perimeter in prayer will result in a breakthrough in the walls of resistance and opposition. Your target area can be either a physical stronghold – meaning an actual location – or a spiritual stronghold; and as you pray, you are clearing away stones and tilling spiritual soil in order to sow seeds of the gospel and reap a great harvest. This morning, in the book of Joshua, we will see an example of canvassing the perimeter in prayer and worship.

A Captive Audience (vv. 1-2)

1 Now Jericho was securely shut up because of the children of Israel; none went out, and none came in. 2 And the LORD said to Joshua: “See! I have given Jericho into your hand, its king, and the mighty men of valor.”

In verse 1 we read that “Jericho was securely shut up because of the children of Israel; none went out, and none came in.” We read earlier how the Lord’s reputation had proceeded the Israelites before they ever arrived at Jericho (2:10-11), and we read here that the city was paralyzed in fear and all trade and travel came to a halt. Keep in mind that when you begin to enter where God is calling, many of the people you will be trying to impact with the gospel will have heard of your intentions and will be closed off, and the city will be shut up – figuratively speaking.

The Lord informed Joshua that the halt of people going in and out of the city was not something to bring about discouragement. It didn’t mean that the people of Jericho had securely fortified the city, but rather it meant they were trapped and under Joshua’s command. They were right where Joshua wanted them. The Lord said, “See! I have given Jericho into your hand!” (v. 2). When you find that people seem closed off to you, it means they are under conviction by the Lord, and that is exactly where God wants them to be. They are at the place where the Lord can begin tearing down the walls the walls of resistance.

Penetration and Saturation (vv. 3-5)

3 “You shall march around the city, all you men of war; you shall go all around the city once. This you shall do six days. 4 And seven priests shall bear seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark. But the seventh day you shall march around the city seven times, and the priests shall blow the trumpets. 5 It shall come to pass, when they make a long blast with the ram’s horn, and when you hear the sound of the trumpet, that all the people shall shout with a great shout; then the wall of the city will fall down flat. And the people shall go up every man straight before him.”