“Then the LORD gave special strength to Elijah. He tucked his cloak into his belt and ran ahead of Ahab’s chariot all the way to the entrance of Jezreel”. (1 King 18:46).
Divine speed, or divine acceleration is the grace that catapults a man from a particular situation to a new position in record time. It is the effortless grace that enables a man to cover a journey of 10 years in one year and in essence, it is a force that disgraces stagnancy and delays.
Essentially, the difference and distinction between men is the absence or presence of divine speed. This was the speed that was upon Elijah when he overtook Ahab’s chariot to arrive well ahead at Jezreel.
If it is established that stagnancy and delays are the counterforce to divine speed, then we should be assured that there is a mega force that works to neutralize this counterforce to release the overdue blessings of the children of God. The good things that are dead, stagnant, or crawling in the lives of children of God require the unction of divine speed to pick up and come alive.
How did the Bible describe this mega force? In Romans 4:17 we read that “ the God who gives life to the dead and calls into being things that were not”. This is the same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead. (Romans 8:11).
Why do we need divine speed? To be sure, every child of God needs divine speed if he would go on to accomplish any significant destiny in a given lifetime.
Aside from successful accomplishments, some may need speed for healing, deliverance, or spiritual advancement in their Christian lives. At a point in their journey, God knew that the children of Israel needed divine speed and he admonished them at Mount Horeb saying, ‘You have stayed at this mountain long enough’. (Deuteronomy 1:6).
Divine speed is a product of divine grace and not dependent on how much you have worked or that you think you deserve a reward: it is “not by works so that no one can boast”. (Ephesians 2:9). It is purely the grace of God for lifting.
How do we obtain divine speed? The hand of the Lord must be on an individual to obtain that rush of speed. However, that function cannot work alongside worldly distractions. It only works alongside divine purpose in the life of a consecrated child of God. Worldly distractions breed stagnation and spiritual poverty.
Divine speed isn’t for everyone because it comes from a holy desire: it is not automatic for it is the Holy Spirit that births such desire in the heart of men only if they are ready to ask for speed.
It comes with a consecrated heart with full attention on the giver of divine speed: Jesus. The Bible says anyone who loves the world is an enemy of God. (James 4:4). To achieve speed you cannot afford to be distracted by the world.
Nehemiah and Ezra could have shunned purpose and enjoyed their time in Persia and Babylon respectively but they sought speed to accomplish divine purpose- the rebuilding of neglected Jerusalem and a revival among their people.
Charged with divine purpose after an intensive period of consecration in waiting on God, Nehemiah said: ‘And I told them of the hand of my God that had been upon me for good..’ (Nehemiah 2:18).
Like Nehemiah, Ezra established the vital condition for divine speed saying, “ The hand of our God is for good on all who seek him and the power of his wrath is against all who forsake him”. (Ezra 8:22).
Explicitly, 1 John 2:15 admonishes Christians saying, “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.”
Now to be clear, the world in the biblical context does not refer to the physical environment or material world but a system or a lifestyle that is contrary to the teachings of Jesus.
How does worldliness hinder divine speed in a Christian’s life? James was very clear about how worldly desires work against the divine speed needed for purposeful living, “When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures. (James 4:3).
God isn’t an author of waste and he will therefore not give the unction of speed to anyone whose intention is to invest it on selfish worldly desire.
When the wife of Lot needed divine speed to get out of harm’s way in the city of Sodom she was so bogged down with worldliness that she lost speed: she looked back and became a pillar of salt, an unsavory memorial to all those who desire evil things.
We cannot gain divine speed until we have emptied ourselves of all worldly baggage that is slowing us down. 2 Timothy 2:4 is clear in this regard that “Soldiers don’t get tied up in the affairs of civilian life, for then they cannot please the officer who enlisted them”.
May we receive that much-needed speed for lifting and advancement in Jesus’ name.
Reading
Genesis 19: 15-26
