#accept salvation

[thelordismylightandmysalvation]

Verse of the Day - Revelation 3:20

[deancasforcutie]

still chasing the high of that halcyon age where Supernatural was my healthy safe escape from the horrors of US politics, and then

[midnight-mismanagement]

I’ve been thinking about That Church SceneTM and idk I think what hit me hardest was how Spike is talking about his former pre-soul mindset and how naive it is. He says “and she shall look on him with forgiveness and love and everyone will forgive and love and he will be loved” because while pre-soul he knew he was a monster and he knew he had done horrible things, he was okay with those things, he was a vampire after all, but he felt horrible for what he did to Buffy, but even then he still had a bit of hope. From the outside looking in, Angel’s soul seemed like the “button” for the “be good” switch. It would be the “piece that would make [him] fit” so he would be the “kind of man who would never [hurt her].” The “be a man not a monster” switch, that would make him be able to tell right from wrong and never hurt the people he loves anymore. But...the soul is not a “be good” switch. I don’t really know what the soul exactly is, since it’s never really concrete in the lore, but it doesn’t just make him fit, it doesn’t turn him into what he wants, but what it does do, is make him much more aware of himself and what he’s done, and he comes to the realization that no, there is no forgiveness. There never will be, he will never be worthy of it. He is condemned. He says “it’s okay now, right?” with hopeful despondency because he knows it will never be okay. Spike has always wanted acceptance, and love, and he sought it from places he would never get it, and now he knows he will never get it because he shouldn’t.

So when he goes up in flames by the end in heroic sacrifice and all that jazz, he’s happy he even got to have an ending like this, he’s finally doing something right. And when he comes back in Angel, as a ghost with no ability to affect the world around him (except annoy the crap out of Angel) he feels he is on borrowed time. In the moment of burning up, he didn’t have to think about if he would end up in hell or the aftermath, but with Pavayne toying with him, tugging him in to hell, it’s a slow torture of what he’s known all along, even if he didn’t fully want to face it. He is still condemned. And yet, given what he believes to be the one opportunity to stave off the inevitable for however longer and get a body, he still chooses Fred’s life over his own. And Fred tells him “you’re someone worth saving.” She doesn’t condemn him. She believes in him, like Buffy did, and this time it’s someone he doesn’t have a rocky past with or romantic feelings with, she just sees him for him and wants to help. And in the end he gets a body while she loses hers, and it’s because Angel and Spike did the “right” thing because it’s what Fred would’ve wanted. I think soulless him would’ve saved Fred, even if it meant condemning so many others. 

And on the day he thinks will once again be his last before the big suicide mission showdown (which he was the first to volunteer for), he doesn’t call Buffy to give her the pain of finding he’s alive only to die again, instead he goes to a bar and reads his poetry, the window into his shameful, soft soul that was stamped on and laughed at the last time he was a human, and hopes for acceptance. And he gets it.

[yuseirra]

this chapter was a piece of art

no, but Kamiki DID understand Ai very well in essence. I get why Ai described him as the first person she's ever wanted to love?? He just got ONE thing off and I don't even think that's entirely his fault either. It cost him everything though.

[fallencalliope]

I need to drown out the poison from my life,

I'm tired of being seen as a mistake,

Just because I don't fit in with all the rest,

Constant pressure of wanting to be perfect,

Fearing of being a victim of hate,

Carrying my bruised soul to find redemption,

As the guilt takes over me,

When I'm not the one who was wrong,

Searching for salvation from all of this wasted time...

©️randik86

[friendrat]

The problem with the church today is that so many "Christians" do not actually believe in redemption.

[i-dreamed-i-had-a-son]

“because he never accepts that it's never been about righteousness--it's about repentance.” except javert killing himself IS repentance.

well, it’s like 12 different things, because bro had gone days without sleeping and very little food and water and he already had low self-worth and kept asking the amis to kill him and just assumed he was going to die AND THEN valjean upended his understanding of the world and morality. he was really going through it & there are a lot of overlapping reasons for why he jumps into the seine.

but javert is like Number One Most Responsible guy in the whole story. taking responsibility is his Thing (forever bitter the musical doesn’t include the punish me monsieur le maire scene). how else, in his derailment, could he atone for his conceived misdeeds other than by handing in his resignation to god? in the brick he had already left a note urging his superiors to treat convicts at toulon better, which is another step in his repentance (and another crime the musical commits by not including it). jumping into the seine was another step.

honestly a lot of ppl who like the book think the musical was dead wrong to exclude him from the big heaven group sing, because it COMPLETELY undermines the themes of forgiveness and compassion threaded throughout les mis. like the musical was simply wrong lol.

This is helpful context! I am still finishing the brick, although I have fully read the abridged version, and that detail about the letter wasn't included, so I didn't know that occurred! (And thank you for the message--this is a long response but I'd love to hear more of your thoughts!)

I agree that Javert is certainly deeply distraught and remorseful; like you mentioned, his worldview is literally falling apart, and his actions reflect his mental state. But his death isn't really repentance--in the sense that it's not what God would have wanted. To me it reads like a Judas situation: a desperate realization of a huge mistake, and doing the only thing you think can make it right, namely, ending it all. That's the just punishment for someone so wrong, isn't it?

But true repentance, meaning the repentance that the Lord desires, is about changing your ways, not "paying a price." Had Javert really understood the beauty of Valjean's mercy (an image of Christ's, just as the bishop's undeserved mercy was to Valjean himself), rather than killing himself, he would have lived to also become "an honest man"--in heart. One who could forgive and understand forgiveness, for himself as well as others. One who could recognize that he is not The Law, that he can fall, but that he can also be "brought to the light." One who could accept that men like Valjean, and men like himself, CAN change, and be changed.

It's tragic to me because so much of "Stars," and his character in the book as well as the musical, is about wanting to be righteous, to rise above his birth and the sinfulness he associates it with. It's about wanting to please the Lord by his actions. But in his end, he shows he never understood what God really wanted from him, and that's where my original phrase comes in: not righteousness, but repentance. To live, and face the man you were, knowing it's no longer the man you are. That it's never been about what you've done or can do, but about what's been done for you. That's the Gospel that he could never fully accept.

To use another example you mentioned, that misunderstanding drives why he asks the Mayor (Valjean) to punish him--in his worldview, mercy is unjust, or at the very least, unfair. Evil must be punished; "those who fall like Lucifer fell" receive "the sword." But "as it is written," God "desires mercy, not sacrifice" (Matthew 9:13). God would have wanted Javert to live, and Javert couldn't see that, and that's why it's devastating to me. In his misunderstanding of the heart of God, he misses what would have set him free from the chains of sin he's always been trying to escape.

That's why he's contrasted with Valjean, who (though he carries guilt about his past till the end of his life) is eventually able to face it and confess what he had done to those he loves. He knew there was mercy to be found, if only it was asked for. Javert was too blinded by pride and shame to realize it, and so, while broken, he never was able to truly repent.

For that, you must go on.

[just-horrible-things]

'Verse: Resistance Story: Unlikely Salvation, co-author @whump-sprite Timeline: Pre-main-story, Ariadne is a senior interrogator

Protected Sources

The first taste of the whip is one of the points where people change their minds about their commitment to silence or to anger. If the sight of it isn’t enough, and the ritual of stripping their back and cuffing them to wall or floor isn’t enough, sometimes the revelation of exactly how much this will hurt is the tipping point.

For this reason, Ariadne typically leaves a pause between the first stroke and the second, or the second and the third. A chance for wait, wait wait, I’ve changed my mind.

This time the tune’s a little different. After the yelp and the gasped curse word, the witch blurts out, “Agent Thompson. I want – to talk to Agent Thompson.”

Ari coils the whip loosely, and walks round in front of her to meet her eyes. There’s still brazen fury mixed with the fear, but there’s more fear than there was before.

“What’s your name?” she asks. “Did you hear me? I’ll talk to Thompson. Not to you.” “There’s more than one Thompson in this building,” Ariadne points out. The witch looks thrown by this concept. Ari can practically see the dread taking hold of her, battling with the anger. This was supposed to be her way out, the one she didn’t want to use but was keeping in her back pocket – and she’s just now considering the possibility that it might not work. “I don’t – know his first name,” she flounders. “He didn’t say.”

“Give me your name – or whatever name he knows you by – and I’ll look you up. If you’re on our books, it’ll tell me which Thompson you’re looking for.” “What so you want to help me now?” There’s the anger, still. “If you’re on our books,” Ariadne answers levelly, “it should never have gotten this far.” A vague gesture with the whip – not towards the prisoner. “You should have said something sooner.” “I … don’t know if I’m on your books,” the witch admits in a small voice. Then, more hurriedly, “Maybe I want to be. Is, is that a thing?” “Of course it is.”

She could be stalling. Giving her the benefit of the doubt won’t do any harm though. At worst, it will lodge the possibility of better treatment in her mind. Ariadne drops the whip into the sink to clean later, and crouches to unlock the witch’s wrists from the floor. She tries to yank her hands out of Ariadne’s grip, but when it doesn’t work she gives up and lets herself be hauled up and led back to the table. 

Ariadne had been thinking about leaving her unattached, but after that show of resistance, she thinks better of it, and locks the cuffs to the edge of the table once again. The witch glowers up at her.

“Give me your name,” she repeats, “and I’ll look you up. If you’ve already got a file, I’ll match you to your Agent Thompson. If you haven’t, I’ll open one, and… I’ll see what I can do.” The witch barks a sharp, disbelieving laugh. “Am I supposed to believe you’re reasonable now?” “You can reason with me. I’m not nice, but I can be reasonable.” The witch shudders. Ariadne hopes it’s the realisation of her own helplessness sinking in.

“Name,” she prompts. “Come on, what do you think I’m going to do with your name? Put a curse on you?” “... Tansy.” “Tansy.” Ari waits. “More name? Am I supposed to look you up with just that?” “I didn’t tell your agent my last name.” “He should have asked.” “I, I think I lied.” A little flinch at the admission, but a defiant stare follows it. “I don’t remember what name I told him.”

Ari resists the urge to sigh. “You’re not making this easy for yourself,” she notes. “... I’ll see what I can do.”

She leaves Tansy – if that’s her name – cuffed to the table, while she goes to find the documents. The other interrogation room is still free, the witch shouldn’t be in anyone’s way. And they can move her if she is. Ariadne doesn’t offer her her shirt back. She hasn’t been cooperative enough for that kind of consideration.

On the way through the security room, she pauses to check the camera feed. Prisoners often forget about the cameras, and show more candid emotion when they think they’re no longer observed. Tansy just looks shell-shocked, staring into the middle distance. Fine.

One first name and one last name isn’t a lot to go on, but there aren’t that many protected sources in the city. If Ariadne has to leaf through all the files by hand, it should be doable. She does know one Thompson personally though, so she sends him a quick email with a snap of the witch’s face before she gets stuck into the paper records.

Connor doesn’t get back to her before she’s numbed her brain checking document after document. There is a supposedly central list of protected sources, and of course she checks that first, but people don’t keep it up to date.

Every file with a photo she can discard pretty rapidly, and every male. Tansy is not androgynous, no one’s likely to have gotten that much wrong. The dead and in custody are stored separately, so she doesn’t need to worry about those. The rest she has to skim for any notes regarding cooperation. If they were officially off-limits they should be stamped… but Tansy said she might not have an official relationship, yet. And she can only check out so many from storage at a time.

It’s not the most exciting work in the world.

Hall saunters into the office to print out some forms, and does a double take when he sees Ariadne’s stack of files. “Looking for someone?” “Yeah, my latest reckons she might be down as a source already but she’s not sure… or what name she’d have given us last time.” “That’s a bad start,” Hall observes. “Oh, who cares about fake names, they all want fake names. It’s the least important thing. She can have her fake names.” “So… you’re trying to find a file that may or may not exist, that could be under any name.” “Yeah, pretty much.”

“Why don’t you just draw up a new one? The paper pushers can sort it out later if they find the duplicate.” Ari leans back to give him an incredulous look, then rolls her eyes. “Just draw up a new one,” she echoes. “This is the exact reason the system’s such a mess in the first place.” Hall shrugs a not my problem shrug, and takes his forms to a desk to start filling out.

Ariadne checks her email. Connor’s gotten back to her – and he recognises the witch, thank god. Yeah, he knows her, he’ll make time to talk to her but he’s not sure when it’ll be. Good enough. Ari emails back to ask if “Tansy” has a file and if he remembers what name it might be under – then she takes the ones she has out back to storage.

She checks herself back in the cell block, checks that Tansy’s still where she left her, then fills out her action plan to reflect the new circumstances. She marks her on the rota for two meals a day and full water rations, and makes an extra note of “no violence” to stop anyone getting too eager with her.

Then she goes back to the interrogation room. The witch glares knives at her, but the fear is unmistakeable. Her brush with the whip has left its impression.

“Good news. I found your Thompson. That means he’ll be deciding whether you get to walk or whether you stay with me. So if I were you, I’d make it worth his while.” She picks up the witch’s t-shirt, still discarded on the floor, and hands it back to her, freeing her cuffs from each other and the table long enough for her to put it on. 

“Are you going to walk back to your cell, or will I be dragging you?” Tansy doesn’t answer, but she gets up, and when Ariadne takes her arm to lead her, she walks where she’s directed.

She’s not terrified enough to need reassuring that she won’t be hurt if she cooperates, and not compliant enough to deserve that comfort. Let her stew, wondering if Thompson’s coming to talk to her, wondering if they’ll keep beating her until then. Maybe it’ll do her attitude some good.

“On your knees, give me your hands. What, you don’t want them unlocked? You can stay like that if you prefer.” The witch offers her hands without getting down on the floor. Ariadne waits. Reluctantly, the prisoner sinks to her knees. Ariadne unlocks her wrists from each other again. “Stay down until I close the door.”

So far she’s resisted every time they’ve moved her. She’s familiar with the consequences. But this time, with the nebulous chance of getting out of this in the balance, she stays down. There’s naked, venomous hatred in her stare, but she stays down.

She looks for a moment like she has something unwise to say, but when Ari pauses to hear it, she thinks better of it and presses her lips together. Ariadne nods acknowledgement, and closes the door. As the lock clicks, she hears a single wordless sound of frustration from the cell.

[wiirocku]

2 Corinthians 6:2 (NKJV) - For He says:

“In an acceptable time I have heard you, And in the day of salvation I have helped you.”

Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.

[holdmymetaphor]

nobody at this hospital even liked amber

[mettywiththenotes]

Tomura going from "I'm not interested in you anymore" to Bakugou in war arc to then taking an interest in him only because he's the closest person to Izuku and therefore injuring/killing him will set Izuku off (which it did)

He is just continously taunting Izuku to get a reaction out of him so he'll slip up in the middle of the fight

[thelordismylightandmysalvation]

(via Verse of the Day - John 1:12)

[sundaynightservice]

I lay down my arms

accepting His terms of peace,

silent before God

with nothing to boast I kneel,

my foe has become my king.

.

D W Eldred

[twentyfivemiceinatrenchcoat]

if i say getocoded

[milfdarthrevan]

People like seeing the Salvation Army???

[sunsetschloe]

to the church, and to my parents:

Please stop forcing me to love out of pure terror that my soul will be in eternal agony. I truly don't think humans are that evil and terrible that a person had to die for us to even get a chance to not rot in the fires of hell. If we are to be judged because of something an ancestor did thousands of years ago, then what is life, except trying to atone for the sin of an ancestor that made one wrong decision? Isn't god's love towards us toxic, because only if we worship him will he accept us into his realm?

Religion has always been about power and oppression, and it simply isn't applicable to the modern world. You can't just take the same standards set for people thousands of years ago and force it upon people today. Yes, the bible preached kindness and love to all, but it also provided the foundation for a deeply sexist society that people today still suffer from. Not all the sexism and racism and xenophobia are directly due to religion, but large aspects can be attributed to it.

I love church, i truly do. I love the discussions, the songs, the prayers we did for each other, but I'm starting to realize how messed up everything is. To be saved means to pray everyday, to go to church and sing about how terrible humans are and how kind god was to kill his son so we could live and how lucky we are for this chance for salvation. I'm tired of thinking that I'm worthless if I don't do all this, and I'm tired of believing that it's only if I love god that I can have peace. Isn't this what we all deserve? Even if christianity was real and proven, I would rather live believing we all deserved peace and joy and love without having to worship a god that deemed us worthless if we didn't worship him everyday. I want to believe that all of us are deserving of love.