Could You be Superman or Superwoman?

Do you believe in superpowers?  Could you be superman or superwoman?

If your answer is no, then think again.  Whatever spiritual beliefs you may have, and whether or not those beliefs encourage belief in certain powers such as healing abilities, I can assure you that superpowers of a kind really do exist.  There is nothing esoteric about this, just the wonderful facts of nature.

For example, how about a normally quite frail and certainly not muscular person suddenly demonstrating enormous physical strength?  Is this possible?  Certainly!  Has it ever happened?  Many times!  Typically this is a mother lifting a car off her child.  Search the internet and you will find countless examples of this.  Some may not be completely verifiable, but there are enough that are for us to know for certain that this has happened in the past and will happen in the future.  There is even a scientific term for this superpower - "hysterical strength".  What seems to happen is a combination of a release of the hormone noradrenalin, to give a temporary additional power to the muscles, and a number of endocannabinoids and opiods to deaden any pain the person may feel when using that increased strength to the maximum.

As I have said, there are very many verified examples of people lifting cars to save a person's life.  But one example of hysterical strength which I found very inspiring was the case of Lydia Angiyou who managed to fight off an adult polar bear that was trying to kill her seven year old son and two of his friends.  She had no gun, or other weapon, just her hands, her determination, and her hysterical strength which saved the lives of her son and friends.  I am sure most of my readers have seen a polar bear in a zoo and know just how big and heavy it is and how lethal its massive clawed paws and teeth can be.  Imagine yourself standing alone in unarmed combat with a polar bear.  It doesn't bear thinking about, does it!  But that is exactly what Lydia did, using her superpower strength.  Lydia received the Medal of Bravery from the Governor General of Canada for her actions, so you can be sure this story is very true.

Superpowers are, of course, not simply limited to hysterical strength.  We all have many powers that could be described as superpowers.  Most of us simply don't know the powers we really have.  The power to heal - physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually.  The power to turn evil into good.  The power to attract to us whatever it is we may need in order to achieve whatever it is we wish to achieve.

In Matthew 17:20 we are told "if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.”  Personally I have never moved a mountain this way.  Nor have I ever heard of anyone who did.  Most Christians would probably say this was not meant literally.  But actually, I believe it was.  Just because there are no recorded instances of it happening that doesn't mean it never will.  I know many will disagree with me here, but that is my personal belief.

What I particularly like in this quote is that last sentence: "Nothing will be impossible for you.”  I believe this.  I know that superpowers exist because there is enough evidence out there to prove the case beyond any reasonable doubt.  I know that those powers generally appear when they are most needed.  And I believe the words of Jesus that if we have enough faith we can use superpowers to achieve marvellous results in our own lives and in the lives of those around us.