Jesus, Superpowers, and the Bully: Adventures from the Throne Room

By T.M. Barton

How can I get superpowers? 

Troy, a fifth grader, was born with a birth defect and is made fun of by Brock, the bully at school. In his search for superpowers, he prays to ask Jesus into his heart. 

During the prayer, he is transported into the throne room of God, where he meets Jesus and receives

• Language: English
• Publisher: Trilogy Christian Publishing
• Release date: Jun 21, 2023
• ISBN: 9798887383316

T.M. Barton

T.M. BARTON lives in southwest Kansas and developed a love for writing while homeschooling her younger two children. She recognized a need for quality, biblical chapter books for children between the ages of eight and twelve. Her writing is inspired by Frank Peretti, C.S. Lewis, and The Passion Translation of the Bible, but most of all she is inspired by her close friend, the Holy Spirit. She enjoys being outdoors, spending time with with her children and good friends, and sipping on caramel lattes.

Book preview

9798887383309_FrontCover.jpg

Jesus,

Superpowers,

and the

Bully

T.M. Barton

Greyscale Trilogy logo

Jesus, Superpowers, and the Bully

Trilogy Christian Publishers

A Wholly Owned Subsidiary of Trinity Broadcasting Network

2442 Michelle Drive, Tustin, CA 92780

Copyright © 2023 by T.M. Barton

All scripture quotations are taken from the New International Version, The Holy Bible, © 1973, 1978, 1984 by the International Bible Society Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House.

This is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, organizations, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without written permission from the author. All rights reserved. Printed in the USA.

Rights Department, 2442 Michelle Drive, Tustin, CA 92780.

Trilogy Christian Publishing/TBN and colophon are trademarks of Trinity Broadcasting Network.

For information about special discounts for bulk purchases, please contact Trilogy Christian Publishing.

Trilogy Disclaimer: The views and content expressed in this book are those of the author and may not necessarily reflect the views and doctrine of Trilogy Christian Publishing or the Trinity Broadcasting Network.

Manufactured in the United States of America

Cover Illustration: Susan Krugg

Chapter Illustrations: Nero Gonzaga Bernales

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available.

ISBN: 979-8-88738-330-9

E-ISBN: 979-8-88738-331-6

For more information, visit www.tmbarton.com.

Dedication

This book is dedicated to all the boys and girls

who are superheroes in the faith

and who dare to believe

that miracles still happen today.

3

FREE coloring pages are available

as a small gift to you at

https://www.tmbarton.com/coloring-pages.

Table of Contents

The Boring Church Prayer

The Throne Room

The Bully

A Message from Luke

Temptation

Training

The Appointment

Doubt and Unbelief

Truth and Faith

Identity

Another Confrontation

The Stranger

Body Parts

A New Arm

A New Friend

The Surprise Visitor

Resources

Prayer of Salvation

Words for Activating Your Armor

Scripture Verses to Learn

Review Request

About the Author

In a dark space illuminated by a flashlight, two young boys sit in prayer. Behind them, a heavenly stairway is illuminated, with an angel beckoning them to ascend toward the throne at the top.

The Boring

Church Prayer

Luke had superpowers, and Troy wanted them.

Troy finished eating breakfast and stopped on his way out of the hotel to say hi to Luke, the ten-year-old son of a hotel guest. Luke and Troy were the same age and had met a couple of days ago for the first time. That’s how Troy began to pick up on Luke’s special powers.

Luke waved and said, I’ll see you after school, Troy.

Troy smiled and waved back, thinking, I wish I could stay home from school and talk to Luke!

On days when it wasn’t raining, Troy rode his bike to school. It took about ten minutes to make it to Johnson Elementary School, which Mom said was the best public school in their town. Today, it took Troy a little longer. He pedaled slowly. He was not looking forward to being at school. He really wanted to be back at the hotel talking to Luke. Superpowers are real? How do I get some?!

The morning bell rang, and all twenty-four students in Troy’s fifth-grade class rushed to their seats. It was a Monday morning, so everyone was chattering about their weekend. Troy sat down at his desk, quietly resting his head on his right hand, hoping the day would pass quickly. His mind kept playing out the conversation he hoped to have with Luke later in the day.

Mrs. Roiken’s announcement brought him back to his desk. Today was report card day. She began calling students alphabetically to come forward and pick up their report cards.

When Troy’s name was called, he walked up to receive the manila envelope and dragged his feet back to his seat. The rest of the class excitedly tore open their envelopes. He slowly opened his, dread filling his stomach, and hung his head when he saw the grades. A tear ran down his cheek. He quickly wiped it away before anyone could see it. His grade card confirmed that he was not as smart as the rest of the class. He was not only embarrassed by his grades, but he was also disappointed in himself. Could he do better? Or was he just dumb?

The school day seemed to drag on before the last bell finally rang, dismissing all the students. Troy raced home on his bicycle as quickly as his two legs could pedal and his one arm could steer. Having been born with only part of his left arm, Troy’s bike-riding was a sight to see. Mom said it was a birth defect. When he was born, he’d had multiple surgeries to repair it, leaving him with a round nub at the end of his arm, just past his elbow. His arm never hurt, but he liked to keep it covered so people wouldn’t stare. He could use it, just not like most other kids used their arms.

When Troy arrived back at the hotel, Luke was nowhere to be found. He searched in the lounge and in the snack area. He even knocked on Luke’s hotel room door, but no one answered. If he had superpowers, he’d probably be able to find Luke just by picturing him in his mind. Instead, he’d have to wait.

Troy took a deep breath and kicked a small rubber ball toward the front door of the hotel. He caught a sweet smell coming from the kitchen and remembered that Mom had made chocolate chip cookies today for the hotel guests. He raced to the dining room and took three cookies and a glass of milk back to his seat in the lounge. He sat in the comfortable recliner in the lobby to wait for Luke, whistling between bites of the cookies. He didn’t want to miss an opportunity to get his own superpowers.

Troy’s parents owned a small hotel. His family lived in one wing, and hotel guests stayed in the opposite wing. The building was an old house from the early 1900s that had been converted into a hotel. It was a Victorian-looking, two-story home with a new section added to the back, where the guests stayed.

Troy liked the older part of the hotel best because of all the hiding places, and it was the section where he and his family lived. No one knew his favorite hiding places. He especially liked hiding from his five-year-old sister, Ella. She always followed him around, asking him to play with her baby dolls. Troy was not a fan of baby dolls, but he sometimes helped his mom by playing with Ella. It only took one time of playing with her and her baby dolls. After that, she pestered him repeatedly to play again.

Troy’s blue eyes shined brightly in the sunlight as he looked out the front hotel window, crunching on his chocolate chip cookie. He sat quietly, thinking about all the questions he would ask Luke when he arrived. Several guests walked in and out of the doors, but Luke never came. Troy figured Luke probably had something to do with his parents. So, Troy took his leftover cookie and went to his hiding place in the laundry room, dropping his empty glass in the kitchen sink on the way. Even though he only had a partial arm, he could still use it for holding things against his body, and it worked all right.

The laundry room was a large room on the main floor with several industrial-sized washers and dryers lined against the wall. The room was noisy when the machines ran, so it was easy to sneak in and out without being heard or seen. In the corner was a very old built-in door to a closet, and the inside was dark. His parents didn’t use it for anything, because a newer closet had been built on the other side of the room for laundry supplies. It was the perfect hiding place.

Troy’s little sister, Ella, never wanted to go into this closet because there were cobwebs inside, and she was afraid of spiders. Troy didn’t necessarily like spiders, but he wasn’t afraid of them, either. He knew how to step on them and remove any cobwebs in his way. Once in the laundry room hiding place, Troy turned on his flashlight and opened a comic book to start reading.

Just as he began to read, he heard his mom call, TROY! Troy quickly closed his comic book, grabbed his leftover cookie, turned the flashlight off, and slowly peeked out of the hiding place. When he saw no one was around, he jumped out and closed the door behind him, walking quickly