Mackerel Mobile

Highway driving and fuel consumption has almost everything to do with going against the wind; it takes 70% more horsepower and 20% more fuel to average a speed of 70 mph vs 60 and 58% more horsepower and the same 20% to go 65 mph vs 55. The numbers skyrocket from there as the faster you go it has so much less to do with weight and rolling resistance than with the force against you then is the wind resistance or coefficient of drag. As you can see from my illustration above God knew this way before we did and so as Auto Manufactures use modern computer design techniques we have gone from cars that average around  .50 Coefficients of Drag to now days averages under .30, but those number don’t come close to God’s design for the Mackerel at .0053 or Rainbow Trout at .15 That number for the Mackerel is an engineering  MASTER piece really but we are even more so as the more we learn the more we realize God’s Handy work.  So how can your understanding of these forces save you money? Here are a few…

  1. No Windows Down, (Over Fifty it’s not thrifty) The Naked Scientists says over 40mph as does GM.  Still for most folks over 50 is sustained highway driving and under 50 is stop and go where windows down makes more sense, But at maintained speed over 40mph windows should be up to save gas.
  2. No Sunroofs open, again (Over Fifty it’s not thrifty) same data applies.
  3. No Roof Top Carriers: they cost you 5% more gas or just figure if you are paying $2.20 for gas you might as well be paying $2.31 with that roof top carrier even the really efficient ones, the bag type are much worse.
  4. No Tailgates down: The point where the two air flows come together behind you vehicle is where drag takes place that’s partially why drafting works in racing, leaving your tailgate down allows that to happen too close to the vehicle and costs you gas don’t do it.
  5. Don’t allow someone to tailgate you for long distances on the highway, slow down let them pass, Truckers do it all the time it’s safer for one thing and don’t let that tailgater steel your energy.

This week I was studying William Gurnall’s Classic “The Christian in Complete Armor” and was even more amazed at what he taught in the 1600’s about going against the wind. The Spirit had clearly illuminated the passage in:

Ephesians 6: 12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

When he noted that it wasn’t just Satan but God Himself we often wrestle with, amazed I then studied hard the next volumes he wrote on just this verse and here a tasting of things I gleaned from this gifted teacher of the Word on this verse.

  • As Jacob wrestled with God before Essau got there we often wrestle against the wind so to speak.
  • Wrestlers in the days when Paul wrote this stripped naked as to not allow their opponent to be able to throw them from their clothing. WE must strip off anything Satan could get a hold of:  idols, unforgiveness, sin etc…
  • Wrestlers in the days when Paul wrote this anointed their bodies with oil so their opponent couldn’t get a grip. We should anoint our bodies with Jesus love and grace. I even pictured being covered in the blood, let Satan get a hold on that.
  • We not only try to wrestle with God or other people’s flesh we try to wrestle with our own flesh and wrestling with flesh and blood even if it’s your own is a hard way to go because flesh doesn’t understand things of the spirit.  The gospel is foolishness to even my own flesh it can’t understand.
  • Instead if if I wrestle with Satan who is the rider of my fleshly horse and do so with God’s Help and His anointing my Strong Man (Jesus) will pin him every time, as Satan has no wisdom and is under Jesus and our feet as well, and since he is prostate ready to strike your heel all the time eating dust. Dust meaning spent flesh, but the Spirit of God in us Satan can never touch…Song of Songs 4: 16 Awake, O north wind; and come, thou south; blow upon my garden, that the spices thereof may flow out. Let my beloved come into his garden, and eat his pleasant fruits
 

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