Follow Rahab: Establish a Point of Contact for Release of Faith

Remember Rahab, the harlot, and how she saved herself and her family from death?

When this lady-of-the-night heard about the Lord and what He had done for His people, she believed in Him and did what she was instructed: hang a scarlet cord in her window (Josh 2:1-21).

Because we are human and God is a Spirit, we need something tangible, something we can do, that enables us to release our faith: we call it a point of contact.

Hanging the scarlet cord out of the window became the point of contact for Rahab to release her faith to God.

Thousands of years later we see her name listed among the giants of the faith, like Abraham and Sarah:

By faith, Rahab, the harlot, did not perish along with those who were disobedient, after she had welcomed the spies in peace (Heb 11:31).

My faith-cloth

Looking back over my life, I can recognize some of the points of contact that enabled me to release my faith to God. Here are some I can remember: a) Scripture verse, b) dream, c) prophecy, d) personal word from God, e) laying on of hands, f) prayer of faith by elders, g) focusing on something God had said or done in the past, and h) most recently a little faith-cloth—or prayer-cloth, some might call it.

As I was recovering in the hospital from a terrible accident, a friend came to see me and asked for a piece of cloth. Lacking any fabric, we cut a long piece from the bottom of my husband’s shirt. Then they prayed over it and gave it to me.

I slept with this faith-cloth wrapped around my injured leg every night for many long weeks. Later I slept with it under my pillow. Today I can walk on this leg without pain, and some say it is a miracle.

Was there any special anointing in this cloth? I don’t know, but perhaps just the act of tying it around my leg every night provided me with the means of continually releasing a tiny mustard seed of faith to God.

Establish a point of contact for the release of your faith

In the Acts of the Apostles we read how handkerchiefs and aprons were sent from the body of St. Paul to the sick. These tangible things, when placed upon the sick person, became points of contact for releasing their faith (Acts 19:12).

And it is through faith that the power of God is released.

Remember the woman with the issue of blood? She said, “If I can just touch the hem of his garment, I will be healed” (Mark 5:28)? Was it the garment that healed her? Or was it the faith she released when she touched the garment?

During this time of crisis, let us follow Rahab’s example: lay aside our fear, stir up our faith, and establish a point of contact as a means for releasing our faith to God.

Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance … let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God (Hebrews 12:1-2).