1 Kings 18:46 After Ahab had left, the hand of the LORD came upon Elijah, and he tucked his mantle into his belt and outran Ahab in a race to the city gate of Jezreel.
‘The Man vs Horse Marathon’ began in the 1980s in Wales. Unquestionably, horses are much faster than man but a casual debate in a pub gave birth to this annual event where humans compete with horses! It took 25 years to see the first human win this race and since then there have been three human winners. Unlike other races it starts with a slow climb including a river crossing and 15-minutes head start for the human runner.
Much before 1980, in 863 BC there was a man vs horse marathon between Elijah and Ahab’s chariot. In this race, the man did not have a kick start; the chariots of Ahab did. So Elijah said, “Go and tell Ahab, ‘Hitch up your chariot and go down before the rain stops you.’” (vs 45). Ahab, the wicked king, was well ahead of Elijah on his way back home after his miserable defeat on Mount Carmel. As Ahab was mulling over his pathetic beat down on his ride back home to Jezreel, he saw Elijah outrunning him like a bullet train zooming past him. It is about 50km from Mount Carmel to Jezreel. A marathon is about 42.185km and Elijah ran an ultra marathon and defeated the chariots as the hand of the Lord was upon him. Ahab witnessed the fire of God to fall on Mount Carmel and the hand of God empowering Elijah to overtake his chariot.
The hand of the Lord gives us an edge over the enemy. The maximum horsepower of a horse is about 15 hp and the hp of a human is about 1.2. However, when the hand of God is upon us, we will outrun and outdo any other forces on earth and hell.
The Man vs Horse Marathon:
1. Outrun: Don’t be intimidated by affluence or influence, we are divinely empowered with supernatural horsepower to outrun our race. They will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint (Isaiah 40:31b). We are anointed with supernatural favour.
2. Outstanding: Don’t be afraid of human authorities or managers, the Holy Spirit will anoint you with exceptional divine wisdom. “And when you are brought to trial in the synagogues and before rulers and authorities, don’t worry about how to defend yourself or what to say, for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that time what you should say.” (Luke 12:11-12). We are gifted with supernatural wisdom.
3. Outwit: Don’t be afraid of the envious enemies, God’s word will outwit the craftiness of the enemies. Your commandment makes me wiser than my enemies (Psalm 119:98a). We are empowered with supernatural strength.
We have been equipped to outrun horses, chariots and demonic troops as we are supernaturally empowered to overthrow anything that comes against us.
Psalm 18:29 For by You I can run against a troop, By my God I can leap over a wall.
Prayer: Dearest Lord Jesus, let your hand always be upon me to outrun and outwit the enemy and to outstand the challenges that I face every day. Amen.
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