Have you ever wished for supernatural abilities? I’m not talking about a child’s fantasy of being Superman or Batman, but wanting a special ability because you want to do something good with it. I wish I did have supernatural abilities.

Just about in every funeral I go to, I wish I had the ability to raise the dead. When I see the family grieving and the body of their beloved laying in the coffin, I just wish I could stand by the coffin, command the body to rise, and give back the person to the family. That would be such an awesome ability. Imagine how not only the family, but everyone in that funeral home will give glory to God!

When I see and hear in the news about thousands of refugees forced to leave their home, many of them drowning or asphyxiating in the boat because some evil men want power, I want to go in there and defeat those men, break up their AK-47s, blow up their RPGs, and hamstring the evil dictators. Just thinking about it gives me some satisfaction!

This kind of power was given to the disciples of Jesus for a time. In Luke 10, Jesus gave power to the 70 of his disciples so that they went out and healed diseases, cast out demons, and bound Satan. And understandably the disciples were ecstatic! But Jesus says something stunning to them! He says, “Do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.” (Luke 10:20)

Given the choice between being a billionaire and being able to heal any disease, I’d choose the healing ability. Can you imagine the look on a mother’s face when their cancer-ridden 7 year old daughter’s body is now completely cancer free because I touched her body? There would be no greater joy on earth! But even so, Jesus says that our joy in having our name written in the book of life should be greater!

If we are not joyful today, it’s because we have forgotten how significant our salvation is. It simply isn’t real to us. Let me pray for you and me.

Oh, Lord, our eyes have grown dim. We cannot see Your beauty nor recognize our salvation as more precious than gold because we have been staring at the gaudy lights of the world. Redirect us to see your beauty. Help us see the magnitude and the worth of our salvation. Let us behold Your glory so that the things of earth will grow dim instead…

PH