#verily i am a regular man much like yourself

[july-19th-club]

one of The moments in breaking bad has got to be the time gus invites walter white over for dinner and he has a completely normal upper-middle-class house with a modern, slightly boring kitchen and the camera makes sure to point out Normal Man things like pictures of family and kids' toys scattered throughout the house and gus invites walt to cook fish stew with him and they just have a regular dinner and sit there and eat in this. normal man house just so gus can tell walt not to make mistakes because gus will disapprove of them. and the whole time you can see the gears in walt's head turning as he tries to figure out if gus actually lives this way or if he just.....invited him to a house he doesn't live in with fabricated decor that says nothing about him JUST to make a point in the most 'we-both-know-i'm-performing' way possible. and he doesn't actually figure out whether he's right about this but the show does not tell you that's NOT exactly what's happening

[islamicrays]

Salam Alaikum Hello. I am very worried that I will be thrown into hellfire because of my obsession with masturbating. I am a Muslim girl and I am trying so hard to be loyal to Islam but I can’t stop watching porn and masturbating as a result. I feel so good when doing it but immense guilt and shame afterwards. I have stopped praying because I feel like a liar when I ask for gods forgiveness because I am a horrible Muslim. Is it too late for me to regain allahs love? Thank you

Walaikum Assalaam

Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala is the most forgiving and merciful. If we sincerely repent He will forgive us. No matter how many times we commit a mistake and after every fall we turn to Him and ask for His forgiveness sincerely He will forgive us. Don't despair of His mercy. No matter what do not leave salaah.

“Successful indeed are the Mu-mineen, those who humble themselves in their prayer.”Qur’an 23:1-2

It will become a source of strength and power and will serve as a protection from Shaytan and provide you with stability in shaa Allah

“Verily Salah restrains from indecency and evil deeds” Qur’an 29:45 

So, seek guidance and help from Allah for proper and submissive prayer. The Prophet Ibrahim (as) used to make the following du’a: “O Lord! Make me and my offspring of those who establish regular Salah. O our Lord, and accept my supplication.” Qur’an 14:40

The temptation will be there but you have to suppress your desire for the sake of Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala. Keep striving and never give up. Keep yourself busy and do productive things that will benefit you in the hereafter. Make dua and ask Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala for help. Cry and beg to Him that He give you strength to fight with your desire and help you abstain from sin. Avoid all the circumstances that trigger your feeling and strengthen your relationship with Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala.

“The more you go against the self, the more light will be put in the heart.”

Shaykh Hamza Yusuf

First of all find out what are the triggers and avoid being in those circumstances. Secondly fast if you are having problem in controlling your sexual desires or eat less. Thirdly temptation will always be there, throughout our life. But we have to abstain from the temptation. When you think about the desires and it gives you joy. The first thing you have to do is to repel that thought, before it becomes an action. Try to distract yourself, do something read books, talk to your family or anything that may help you to get distracted from the thought. If you keep thinking about it, it will become a stronger desire and it may happen you may end in doing sin.

Following are some tips that will help you to reduce sin in shaa Allah

1.      Fix your prayers.

Indeed, prayer prohibits immorality and wrongdoing, and the remembrance of Allah is greater. And Allah knows that which you do. (Surat Al-`Ankabūt 29:45)

2.      Being God conscious, always keep in mind that whatever we do, we have to be accountable to Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala and He’s watching us all the time.

3.      When you get tempted to do sin think of the death because it is the cutter of delights.

The Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him) said:“Remember often the destroyer and cutter off of delights, which is death.” (Sunnan Trimidhi:2229)

4.    Have friends that remind you of Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala not those whose company makes you forget Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala.

5.    Strive to get closer to Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala. When our connection is stronger with Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala it will be easy for us to fight with the desires.

6.    When you get tempted think of the following things:

·         Allah is watching you

·         Angels are recording your deeds

·         Punishment of the grave

·         You have to answer on the day of Judgement

Here are some tips to get closer to Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala that will help you in shaa Allah.

1.If we want to get closer to Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala, we have to fulfill our obligatory duties and follows the command of Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala and his messenger (peace be upon him) wholeheartedly.

2.Being God conscious, always keep in mind that whatever we do, we have to be accountable to Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala and He’s watching us all the time.

3.Whenever we do a good work, always make the intention that you are doing this to please Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala.

4.Be thankful to Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala in every situation and be happy with the Allah decree.

5.Try to do dhikr all the time, it will make us closer to Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala.

Following are some dhikr that we can do all the time:

1.  Asthaghfirullah

2.  Subhaanallah

3. Alhamdulillah

4. Allahu Akbar

5. Laa ilaaha illallah

6. LA HAWLA WA LA QUWWATA ILLA BILLAH-HIL ALIYYIL ADHEEM

7. Asthaghfirullah-halladhee Laa ilaaha illa-huwal Hayyul Qayyuumu Wa athoobu Ilay

Or Asthaghfirullah

8. SUB-HAAN’ALLAAHi WA BI-HAM’DIHI SUB-HAAN’ALLAH-IL ADHEEM

Or SUB-HAAN’ALLAAHi WA BI-HAM’DIHI

9. Subhāna-llāhi, wa-l-hamdu li-llāhi, wa lā ilāha illā-llāhu, wa-llāhu akbar. Wa lā hawla wa lā quwwata illā bi-llāhi-l-aliyyi-l-azīm

10. Lā ilāha illā-llāhu waḥdahu lā sharīka lahu lahu-l-mulku wa lahu-l-ḥamdu yuhyi wa yumītu wa huwa ḥayyu-llā yamūtu abadan abada, ḏū-l-jalāli wa-l-ikrām, biyadihi-l-khayr, wa huwa alā kulli Shay-in qadīr

Or

Laa ilaaha illal-laahu wahdahu laa shareeka lahu, lahul-mulku wa lahul-hamdu wa huwa ‘alaa kulli shay-in qadeer

We should also recite much of durood e Ibrahim which is the durood that is recited towards the end of Salaah.

Or the shortest durood is: Sallallahu Alayhi Wasallim

6. Dua and Repentence:

Almighty Allah says in the Qur’an: “When my servants ask you concerning me, (tell them) I am indeed close (to them). I listen to the prayer of every suppliant when he calls on me.“ [2:186]

The place of Dua is so high in front of Allah, that the Prophet (Sallallahu Alayhi Wasallim) has said: ”Nothing is more honourable to Allah the Most High than Dua.”[Sahih al-Jami` no.5268].

Allah loves repentance & loves those who turn to him in sincere repentance:

Truly Allah loves those who turn [to Him] in repentance… (Qur’an 2:222)

Narrated ‘Ubaadah that the Messenger of Allah said, “Whoever seeks forgiveness for the believing men and believing women, Allah will write for him a good deed for EACH believing man and believing woman.” (Tabarrani)

Subhanallah this deed can be done in EVERY dua and can you imagine how many rewards can be gained for each and every Muslim you make dua for from Adam alayhis ‘salam until now and the last Muslim on earth. This is the easiest way to earn rewards that go into the billions and the more you make these dua’s then the more your good deed account will get filled!

Ask Allah for the help and try to do dhikr all the time, it will help you in shaa Allah. Recite Astaghfirullah, Durood Shareef and kalma as often you can. Desire will always be there, nafs and shaitan is our enemy and this battle will continue till our last breath. On our shortcomings we should repent to Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala sincerely. He is the most forgiving and merciful.

I hope it will be helpful. May Allah guide us to the straight path.

Ameen

[jq37]

okay so I meant to send this on anon and I think I might have accidentally done so off but then I tried to cancel it and idk if it worked?? anyways! the point is, I’m the anon who doesn’t have dropout rn so! what’s the tea on the new ep? what did I miss? :)

**spoilers for arcade ambush**

Now, I know I use the word wild a lot, but don’t let that take away from the fact that this episode was truly wild.

Biz had such an interesting power set. He has the wings so he can fly, he has all the weird mesmerization type powers (I was picturing that old bager, badger, badger, mushroom video when he was multiplying himself to trip up Fig). Fighting him is like being stuck in Toon Town but in the worst possible way. Then there were the game cabinets sucking people into them and the ghosts possessing people and forcing them to flee. It was really a brutal fight.

(Sidenote, are we to believe that the ghosts that he raised were nerds who died in arcade? Morbid, if true. Also it would have to be a different arcade since that one was new.)

Anyway, this def was an ep full of frustration. They were constantly getting frightened and forced to run or trapped in games or whatever. It’s a good think Ally casted Guardian of Faith before the fight because they were, once again, a life saver. I was a little surprised the arcade game fights were one and done Box of Doom rolls but I guess there was a lot going on.

“Well I’ll just shoot him.” Riz getting a nat 1 trying to shoot Biz point blank was so painful. 

Riz: Hey guys, Biz is a bad guy./Adaine: Yeah, no duh! 

Everyone making the most mediocre rolls to check out the prizes in the prize cabinet. And Brennan just getting more and more like, “Come on y’all.” I wanted someone to pick up the sneakers. I felt like they were gonna be some kind of stealth bonus item.

Gorgug got a nat 20 charisma! My boy!

Oh, side note, they updated Adaine’s mini with her boss new jacket which is super dope.

Fig and Kristen actively antagonizing the corn god who’s saving their ass.

“Fucking nerd.” Adaine, who has been pretty savage the past few episodes.

Fabian who has never been denied anything in his life looking at the million credit sword: I’d like it.

Trevon

Everyone being furious at Riz being stuck in the game but also impressed by the design of the set.

Gorgug calling his parents mid-fight! Which seems wild but actually is the SMARTEST THING ANY OF THESE LITERAL CHILDREN HAVE EVER DONE.

I feel like Brennan def read up on his philosophy quotes after the last fight because he was back in business this ep.

Cleric is an underrated class y’all. Ally is really rocking it.

What a bad time for Adaine to finally fail a panic attack roll. She’s had a really long run without them though.

I love that Lou always curses as Fabian by saying, “Christ,” completely ignoring that doesn’t make sense in this world, but like. That is what Fabian would say, you know?

Fabian getting stuck in DDR instead of Punch Out is personally offensive to him.

“Hell yeah I take a disengage”

Sidenote: Divination is a really cool ability.

Ugh, Riz. What a terrible time to fail an investigate check. HE GOT PALIMSESTED.

Aww at Lou giving Murph the, “Hang in there, buddy,” shoulder rub after that happened. 

Gorgug getting trapped in whack a gnome is MESSED UP. Also, the fact that whack a gnome is a game that exists in a world where gnomes also exist is SUPER MESSED UP.

Adaine: Fuck, I’m fucked! 

PROTECT YOUR WIZARD BETTER.

Fabian having to have a dance off in the middle of the fight.

The girls getting downloaded periodically throughout the fight was so freaking ominous. 

“I’m under the influence of two ghosts.”

Fabian and Adaine both terrified and running into each other and yelling like freaking Scooby Doo.

OK, while Fig was possessed, Brennan made her read a card that said “Wow. A lot of strong feelings to process here.” And I am told (but can’t confirm) that that’s a line that was said in ep 1? Maybe by the guidance counselor? And then it’s not resolved in this episode. So that seems important.

Emily upon hearing that Riz is stuck in the crystal: Piss in it.

“Do you have any clue about how to get out of here, I mean, clearly you don’t.”

What would Fabian do without that bike, man?

I love that Emily uses Kristen’s full name for no apparent reason half the time.

Kristen channeling the power of friendship to turn undead.

Gorgug is a bottomless pit of HP.

Ally: Is it good to get in the game?/Literally everyone else: NO.

“A tasty walk?”

The philosophers going, “Verily,” to Fig’s base playing and then her moonwalking away.

Siobhan immediately irl cringing at being called a lovely lady by Biz.

HELLISH REBUKE. HELL YEAH FIG. HELL YEAH EMILY.

Penny’s scene with Riz in the palimpsest was like legitimately touching. 

But again, Murph gets the nat 20 at the most story appropriate time! Just like last week.

OK, so the girls’ downloads are getting sent to the AV room in Aguefort. Not necessarily suspicious considering that Biz is involved, but interesting to note.

Gorgug pulling an Odysseus and cranking his tunes to ignore the games. 

Also his, “Sup nerd?” to Biz.

Kristen absolutely crushed this fight y’all. She basically got out without a scratch. 

Siobhan saying sick like Brennan is hilarious to me.

Gorgug being so mad at Biz’s pronunciation of meme.

“Hot topic nerds hate AV club nerds.”

Nothing bothers Emily more than not being able to take an action.

The gang actively mocking and taping Biz as he tries to mesmerize them.

Aww man Murph failing that roll before Penny was downloaded. Heartbreaking. 

Everyone visibly recoiling every time Biz talked.

Zac reminding Brennan about advantage and then him picking up every dice he owns. “LIE NEXT TIME DUDE!” He has a cool ass shock of white hair now though. Like, not good but kinda rad.

I feel like Ally has gotten really comfortable with the game mechanics as we’ve gone on. 

Kristen hugging Gorgug to protect him is such an adorable image. 

“I’m still full health because God exists!”

Shoutout to the SFX guys. They were especially on point this ep.

“Can I just use mage hand to plug the machine out?”

Kristen as Fig getting is her ass kicked by the doppelganger Figs: KISS ONE OF THEM.

The guardian that killed Biz throwing down his cig like a true French philosopher. 

FABIAN. 

Kristen was the MVP of the fight but Fabian was the MVP of the episode y’all. Like I said, all that promo yelling was either gonna be a TPK or the raddest thing ever and it was option 2! 

Shoutout to Siobahn for getting Lou that advantage roll because that saved his ass.

Lou just pretending to get up and leave because game over y’all.

Brennan starting to just narrate assuming failure. 

Zac being like, “Well at least try.”

Lou doing them 1 by 1 for the drama of it all, just like Fabian would want it.

Getting a ten first, exactly half of what he needed.

Then the absolute CHAOS that erupted from the table at the 20. By this point, I was pretty sure he was gonna get it because that shot from the trailer hadn’t happened yet and it was near the end of the episode but DAMN it was satisfying. Moments like this are what MAKE RPGs.

Being showered with gold coins sounds extremely painful but that’s beside the point here. 

Fabian coming back and lying that he was fighting ghosts outside and everyone totally buying and being like thanks for having our backs man.

I love how much Fig loves her two dad situation now. 

Emily and Ally evil mischievous smiling at each other when Emily requests to kill Biz.

Everyone Else: NO.

Brennan: He’s dead, bruh.

Ally like Grinch smiles when Brennan announces that Biz is dead.

“Would she be able to casually get him out of a palimpsest?”

“I still have these handcuffs.”/”Where’d you get those?”/”Uh, nevermind.”

Every time this group has to interrogate someone they escalate all the way immediately.

 But MAN Riz was doing some serious drug cartel interrogation on Biz, shooting off fingers and stuff!

Adaine REFUSING to feel bad about bullying Biz (she’s right and she should say it).

“If I were to have a morsel such as yourself stuck in a palimpsest–” IMMEDIATELY slapped by every party member. Bro, you GOTTA stop perving on Adaine IN FRONT OF HER.

Brennan full on RPing unconsious Biz.

“I’m not a bad guy.”/”YES YOU ARE!”

“Fucking Aelwen again!” Same, girl.

OK, so Biz has false memories of coming up with this idea, but what does that mean exactly? Was he manipulated Inception style or actually forced? Because I come up with bad ideas every day. Doesn’t mean I act on them.

“Blow your fuking nose!”

“You see his dick glows for a second.”

Nice of Adaine to ask for permission to do her brain jitsu, even though she didn’t have to and she had all the extenuating circumstances in the world to just break in.

Biz speaking to Penelope on the regular. Hmm.

Siobhan/Adane’s look when Biz says, “I’m cool too.”

So his memory was cut out the day before the Hudol party. Interesting. 

Adaine getting a clear threat on her family’s life: THEY CAN BURN MY FUCKING HOUSE DOWN I DON’T GIVE A SHIT.

AND THEN IT ENDS THERE

So two things:

1) Siobhan keeps getting KILLER end lines.

2) I threw a lot of plot info at the bottom without analyzing it because I’m going to look at that and the promo in another post (prob tomorrow) so stay tuned! 

[whyamihereagain23]

Your Scars Make You Beautiful

Pairing: Thor x Reader Words: 2723 Summary: You get injured during a battle and Thor insists on helping you stitch yourself up. It is then when he get to see all of the scars that you have from fighting.

Your muscles burned in exhaustion as your sword clashed with yet another from the enemy side. The fight had been going on for much longer than expected. They were putting up a greater fight than they had in their past rebellions.  

No matter how many times you bested them in battle and struck them down they never truly gave up their fight. There would be a battle nearly once every century or so, and you would always come out the victors. Though it never seemed to stick.  

Even though they fought all these times, it had never gone on for this long. By now they should have been back on their horses and running away to try and spare the lives of their remaining men. One started to wonder how they were able to continue their onslaughts after they repeatedly lost so many. While Asgardians were exemplary warriors and fought many battles, you were smart enough to know when an opponent had bested you. That ideology clearly hadn't passed over to your enemy.

Within seconds your sword was slicing through your opponent; permanently ending his fight. With a tug, you removed your sword and blocked the emotions that were evoked inside of you at the sight of his lifeless eyes. As a warrior you saw much death; you'd trained yourself to be able to handle it. Half a millenia ago you wouldn’t have been able to stomach the sight. Now that you were a seasoned warrior you were able to block them out... at least until you went to sleep. Though nightmares were a regular occurrence, they were nothing you couldn’t move past.

Your eyes strayed upwards to scan the battlefield for your companions. First, your eyes landed on Sif. She'd become your best-friend. You'd bonded over the fact that you were both women fighting for your kingdom. It didn't hurt that you were both extremely alike. If one didn’t know who you two were they'd think that you were related in some way. You were close enough.

When you were sure that she was fine, your eyes traveled to the rest of your companions. The Warrior Three. All of them were magnificent men and even greater warriors – as their names suggested. They were a rowdy and loud group of men, but that didn't lessen their abilities to fight. Asgard praised their success and had banquets in their honor. Despite all of the praise, it never went to their heads. Fandral's perhaps, but that was only to get women.  

While you and Sif may not have been included with the Warriors, you were unofficial members. Any battle or quest they went on, you and Sif were not too far behind – if not ahead. Not only were you all partners in battle, but friends. There was only one missing from your group.

As if you'd summoned him yourself. The clouds gathered and darkened. Lightning illuminated the sky and thunder boomed. You rolled your eyes with a smirk. He always had to make an entrance. The blinding flash of light that followed only further proved your statement.

You watched as Mjölnir was thrown out of the light and into one of your enemies. You chuckled to yourself as you got back into the fray. "Show off," you mumbled.

Most of your opponents changed their course to the God. In their eyes he was the biggest opponent. You couldn't argue with that logic. Despite his entrance, your opponents continued their onslaught.

You only rolled your shoulders and cracked your neck as your eyes met those of your next victim. As he advanced he'd sealed his fate. If only they knew how to surrender. No matter, you had a job to do and you were going to do it no matter the cost. You readied yourself as the male let out a war cry and charged at you. This would be too easy.

The battle didn't last much longer after Thor had made his entrance. By taking out their biggest warrior, they'd all surrendered and went without a fight. If only it could have been that easy the rest of the times.  

Hogun stayed behind to help his people recover, but the rest of you made your way back to your home. The heavens knew that you needed the rest while you could get it. There was no doubt in your mind that there would be a feast for your victory; you'd need to be prepared for it.  

Unfortunately, you hadn't come out of the battle unscathed – none of you had. This time, however, you'd come out the worst of the bunch. A group of men had come and attacked you at the same time, and you weren't enough by yourself to handle it. Before anyone could get over to help, they were already on you. One had been able to get a dagger into your bicep before you dispatched him. By then, Thor had come over to deal with the rest. Worry had been written clear across his face, but you'd shrugged it off and continued fighting. There wasn't time to focus on yourself.

Now that you were safely back in Asgard – Heimdall having beamed you up – you'd be able to tend to your wounds. Your hand was pressed tight against it as you tried to slow the blood from escaping. You only needed to make it through the obligatory check in with the All Father before you'd be free to handle it.

As you walked along the rainbow bridge, completely immersed in a review of the battle and how you could have done better, you didn't notice that your companions had gone uncharacteristically silent. Only when you felt a soft hand on your shoulder, did you look up. Sif was looking at you, and you could tell that she was ready to scold you for not being more careful. It was her own personal way of showing that she cared.  

"(f/n) are you alright?"

You nodded and gave her, what you hoped to be, a placating smile. "I am fine Sif. 'Tis nothing but a small surface wound," you lied, hoping to keep her from fretting over you. While you appreciating knowing that she cared, it could get annoying at times.

"You expect us to believe that? You're looking pale," Volstag added as he gave you a hard look. Underneath all of that hair and those I-can-beat-your-face-in-with-my-pinkie muscles, he was really a big bear cub. He cared deeply about those he kept close, and it showed in the way he was looking at you.

"Verily, I am fine. I just need a moment alone to stop the bleeding."  

"Do you not want the medics to take a look at it? They will be able to-" You stopped her, already knowing what she was going to say.

"No need. I will do it myself." You never liked going to the medic. Only when you had wounds that you couldn’t reach or your injuries were to severe for a personal remedy, did you go to them.  

She frowned at the idea of letting you do it alone. You knew she was about to offer to come and help you, but Thor beat her to it.

"Nonsense! If you will not get help yourself then I shall aid you." He saw that you were about to decline, but he shook his head to stop you and said, "I will hear none of it. I will assist you with your wound immediately.

"But the-"  

"Immediately," he insisted. You gave him a hard stare before sighing. There was no arguing with him. He was one of the most pig-headed men that you'd ever had the pleasure of knowing. It was infuriating. The worst part was that you didn't always dislike it. In fact, you actually found that it was one of his traits that you couldn't help but like about him at times. He stood his ground and didn't back down. You could appreciate that.

So, instead of arguing back – only to, inevitably, get back to where you started – you grumbled to yourself as you continued to make your way into the heart of Asgard and toward the palace.

Once there, you broke away from all of the soldiers and your friends to head to your personal quarters. Thor was by your side and moved in silence. You had no qualms about that. While it was a bit unnerving, you brushed it off as your nerves. He'd never been in your personal space before. Only Sif had done so.  

You opened the door and made a beeline for your personal medical supplies. They were always handy for situations like this. You liked to tell yourself that you did all your patch-work yourself because you didn't want to crowd the medics over something that could be easily fixed. While partially true, it wasn't the whoe truth.

For a moment, you had forgotten that Thor was in the room with you. Only when he'd come over and taken the medical kit from your hands, did you return your focus to him. His expression was soft and affectionate. Gone was the violent glare of a warrior and the prideful smirk of a God. This was simply Thor. It always floored you and made your heart kick into overdrive. Damn him.

His eyes didn't leave yours as he gestured to the seat at your small table. "Sit." As if on auto-pilot, you did what he said without a word. He placed Mjölnir on the table before pulling over a chair for himself so that he'd be able to get a better look at your wound.

You knew that you'd have to remove your armor, but you didn't want to. Underneath you were only wearing a top that left most of your arms and back bare. All of your scars from former battles would be visible for his eyes to see. That wasn't something you were looking forward to. Although, when the time came for you to remove it, you did so with little hesitation; all the while being mindful of the pain coursing through your arm as you moved. Thankfully it had been on your less dominant arm. There would be no reason for you to be kept out of battles for long as you recovered since you'd still be able to fight.

Once the pieces were removed, you kept your eyes trained on the wall in front of you, trying your best to keep yourself from looking at the man in your peripheral vision. You could tell that he was looking at all of the scars – old and new – and the bruises. They littered your skin like stars in the sky. Some were light, some were dark. Some were big, some were small. Some of them even crossed over each other in an intricate design of violence.

You hated them.

If he wanted to say something, he held it back. Maybe it was the tense way that you were holding your shoulders or something in your gaze that told him not to speak. Either way, he was silent as he focused on your arm.  

He wiped away the blood that was there before he even attempted to start stitching the skin together. You winced a few times, and after each he would apologize for making you go through the pain. Unlike on the battle field, you weren't afraid to show pain in front of him. You didn't feel like he'd think less of you if you did, so that added an extra layer of comfort.  

When the stitches were done and in place, you looked them over to make sure he had done them right. There could be some improvement, but they got the job done. Just as you were about to thank him for his help, his hand experimentally traced over a line of raised skin. You tensed in surprise as you stared at him. What was he doing?

"Do you recall how this one came about?" he asked while glancing into your eyes.  

For a moment, you were silent as you tried to figure out his motive. "It was... it was from a battle fifty years ago. A hatchet was thrown and I wasn't quick enough to dodge it completely. It never healed over fully." Your voice wavered in the beginning and you cleared your throat to right yourself. You could only imagine all of the disgusted thought circling through his mind.

He stayed silent as his hand traveled to another scar. "And this one?"

"A cutlass; thirty years ago."

This continued for a few more scars. Your voice steadily lost volume until you were only whispering your responses. If he continued to ask then he'd find that there wasn't a scar on your body that you didn't know the origin of. You kept track of every one that marred your skin like a hobby.  

Thor wasn't clueless. He noticed the way your voice had lost the false confidence that you had started out with. He figured that it was a topic that you weren't comfortable discussing. The fact that you allowed him to know despite this made him admire you more.  

"You," You lowered your eyes and prepared yourself for the inevitable insult. "are the most beautiful woman that I have ever seen." Your eyes snapped back up in shock. You were not expecting that.

His eyes pierced your soul as he looked at you with complete sincerity. It completely scrambled your mind. Did he not see you? Was he blind?

"How can you say such a thing when you see-"

"Your scars do not lessen your beauty. They tell me the story of all the hardships that you have survived. They tell me that despite all you've been through, you have come out stronger. To me, (f/n) that makes you strong; that makes you beautiful... inside," He gripped your hand tightly in his. "and out."

You turned your gase to the floor as you tried to blink back the sudden moisture in your eyes. "No one... has said that to me before. Thank you Thor, truly."  

He nodded and gave you one of the softest smiles you'd ever received. "'Tis my pleasure my lady."  

You don't really know what compelled you to do it. Maybe it was the smile. Maybe it was his eyes. Maybe it was him calling you 'my lady'. Maybe it was the way his hand gripped yours a little tighter. Whatever it was, it possessed you to lean forward and press your lips to his in a chaste kiss. For the second that it lasted, you were alive. The feeling of his lips on yours gave you the same feeling you got after drinking several pints of beer. You felt bubbly and your skin warmed.

When you realized what you were doing, you jerked back as if you'd been stung. Your eyes were wide in surprise at your own action. "Thor I apolo-" His lips pressing back to yours shut you up immediately.  

Your eyes fell closed as you returned the kiss and allowed yourself to relax. The kiss wasn't rough or forceful, but rather slow and experimental. This was your first kiss being shared and neither of you were in a rush for it to be over.  

All good things came to an end, however. The kiss slowed until your lips were simply hovering near each other; your breaths mingling. His forehead bumped against your as he moved his free hand to come and rest his hand on your cheek. His eyes were virtually sparkling as he beamed at you. "Beautiful."

{MASTERLIST}

@quicksilverbells @misshyen @lady-thor-foster @nikitaburyatia-blog

[jamaalw]

My Experiences With Sleep Paralysis Demonic Attacks And The Spiritual War We Are All In

What is Sleep Paralysis?

Many of you reading this probably have experienced it at least once in your lifetime or know someone who has experienced it. You wake up suddenly from sleep and you try to move but can’t no matter how much you exert yourself. You may manage to slightly move your toes or some other body part but it is a struggle and you still can’t move your entire body. This can go on for a few seconds or minutes but at times it can feel like an eternity. During an episode, you may perceive an evil, malicious presence. You may feel utter dread. You may also have actually seen a shadow person or a shadow person wearing a hat or some other evil, demonic-looking entity. You may have experienced some entity sitting on your chest or had an episode accompanied by an entity doing sexual things to your body. Some people have reported having someone’s hands over their neck choking them; others have had heard mocking laughter during an episode.

Lately, it has received more mainstream attention with a recent Netflix documentary and with so-called celebrity Kendall Jenner mentioning it. The phenomenon is called Sleep Paralysis. If you haven’t experienced it I can imagine the difficulty of trying to understand what it is like to experience it. Verily, it can be one of the most frightening experiences for a person and it feels very real to the experiencer.

Is it a spiritual attack or does science have a credible explanation for it?

The Christian website GotQuestion.Org always seems to come up on a Google search when you ask a question related to Christianity. Sadly, they deny sleep paralysis is a spiritual phenomenon:

….there is an entirely physiological explanation for the phenomenon known as sleep paralysis. As we fall asleep, our minds may enter a hypnagogic state. It’s what happens when the sleeper’s still-aware mind is faced with dream images. As some people wake up, they experience a hypnopompic state, which is the dreaming mind faced with stimuli from the real world. In both cases, the dreams can seem very real, taking on a vivid, hallucinatory feeling. Often these images are of black smudges, which the confused mind interprets as human figures, sometimes called “shadow people.” The hallucinations can also take the form of sounds like a loud bang or a child’s cry. These episodes frequently begin with a falling feeling followed by a “hypnic jerk” where the body’s muscles violently contract…..

Muscle paralysis in sleep is a necessary thing. People who act out their dreams on a regular basis are prone to accidental injury—even jumping out of windows. Knowing that you’re asleep and paralyzed, however, can be frightening. You tell yourself to open your eyes, just to get caught in another false awakening. One theory is that sleep paralysis affects the larger parts of the body more completely. You can try to wake up by wiggling your toes or fingers. It’s also possible to pray during this time. This will often give comfort that lets you fall back into unconsciousness. You may be able to avoid sleep paralysis by getting sufficient rest and avoiding drugs and alcohol.

In probably the vast majority of cases, sleep paralysis is just a quirk in a person’s REM cycle, not a spiritual attack.

Source

Huh, really? I have read statistics or studies that show many Christians actually don’t believe in a real, tangible devil exists. What an utter joke. Satan and his angels must be laughing their butts off at such professing Christians as it is a much more effective way for the enemy to attack and operate. It is apparent in the Bible satan and his demons are presented as real entities.

Guys, sleep paralysis is totally a demonic attack! I am 100% certain that it is. It’s not a hallucination like the secular scientists or even some self-proclaimed Christians try to rationalize it. It’s a disservice to many people looking for answers and solutions who happen to go on that site to read such nonsense. Scientists try to explain it away by saying sleep paralysis is merely the brain delaying to alert the body to wake up – our brains shut down our body so it won’t act out while we are dreaming. But just think about it, if it was merely a hallucination then how come people don’t see Mickey Mouse or Hello Kitty or Super Mario? Or how come people don’t report seeing a very beautiful woman or a handsome man? There are a zillion things a person can hallucinate but instead, it is something almost always sinister such as a shadow humanoid figure or aliens. And if you don’t know the “aliens” people have reported seeing come from the same source. More on that later.

If it was merely a hallucination then why do just about all cultures throughout the world associate it with a spiritual attack? This phenomenon is worldwide and not just a modern western phenomenon.

In China, it is known as guǐ yā chuáng which literally means “ghost pressing on body.” In Korean culture, it is called gawi nulim which means “being pressed down by something scary in a dream”. In Thailand, it is called Phi Am and believed to be caused by a ghost and can even inflict bruises. In Hmong culture, sleep paralysis is understood to be caused by a nocturnal pressing spirit, dab tsog. Dab tsog attacks “sleepers” by sitting on their chests, sometimes attempting to strangle them. Some believe that dab tsog is responsible for sudden unexpected nocturnal death syndrome (SUNDS). In Vietnamese culture, sleep paralysis is called ma đè, meaning “held down by a ghost,” or bóng đè, meaning “held down by a shadow.”

There are more examples. In Arabic culture, it is referred to as Ja-thoom which literally means “what sits heavily on something.” In southeast Africa, it is known as jinamizi which means “strangled by jinn.” In Pakistan, sleep paralysis is considered an encounter with Shaitan (satan), evil jinns or demons who have taken over one’s body. In Turkish culture, sleep paralysis is often referred to as karabasan (“the dark presser/assailer”). It is believed to be a creature that attacks people in their sleep, pressing on their chest and stealing their breath. However, folk legends do not provide a reason why the devil or ifrit does that. In Persian culture it is known as bakhtak, which is a ghost-like creature that sits on the dreamer’s chest, making breathing hard for them.

In Kurdish culture, sleep paralysis is often referred to as motakka. It is believed to be a demon that attacks people in their sleep, and particularly children of young age, and steals their breath away as they breathe heavily and keeps it out of reach. In Nigeria, it is called “the devil on your back”. In Mexico, it is believed that it is the spirit of a dead person they call it “subirse el muerto.” In Greece and Cyprus, it is believed that sleep paralysis occurs when a ghost-like creature or Demon named Mora, Vrahnas or Varypnas tries to steal the victim’s speech or sits on the victim’s chest causing asphyxiation. In many parts of the Southern United States, the phenomenon is known as a hag or “witch riding,” and the event is said to portend an approaching tragedy or accident.

My Sleep Paralysis Experiences

I will try to explain my experiences the best way I can for it is difficult to articulate spiritual experiences. Also, a lot of my experiences occurred over a span of several years so my retelling of it may be disjointed or lack cohesiveness because it all seems like a blur to me now. My apologies.

I have had sleep paralysis since I was a teenager. I think my first memory of sleep paralysis was when I went to visit my grandparents’ house in Panama in Central America. I remember I woke up paralyzed and saw flashes of light all throughout the room and it made a strange noise while it was happening. Very bizarre experience to say the least. Part of me knew it was demonic or aliens were literally trying to abduct me but another part of me didn’t know what in the world was going on.

During my teenage years, I remember I had an experience when during sleep paralysis an “alien” would act like it would be implanting something into my ear. Satan’s kingdom knew I was questioning the existence of aliens at that time and tried to use it to ruin my faith in God. I remember expecting my physician to find something inside of my ear using an otoscope but nothing would be found. I thought it was weird but I didn’t make the connection that it was really demons messing with me until I realized that aliens were really just demons masquerading.

A lot of times after a sleep paralysis attacked I would be utterly baffled about what just happened. It was until I did research on the internet I found out it was a phenomenon that a lot of people have experienced so much so it even had a name: sleep paralysis. To my surprise, I discovered it’s a common occurrence. I read testimonies online where people experienced things similar to what I experienced, especially the old hag attack. I don’t think I will ever forget this experience where I woke up with what I perceived to be a witch sitting on my chest trying to choke me to death. Even after I broke out of the paralysis I could perceive the witch flying around my room in circles.

Then about About 5 years ago, the sleep paralysis attacked reached a crescendo – meaning it ramped up in frequency and intensity. This fiery trial or ordeal went on for a period of about 4+ years. I believe it was because I repented of all my sins and totally recommitted and gave my whole life to the Lord and God Jesus Christ. I remember when I turned back to God I felt the Holy Spirit strong in me again. I was pretty shocked that God would forgive me of my sins because I have done a lot of wickedness in God’s eyes. I actually thought everything from that point on things were going to be smooth sailing in regards to my walk with my God. Little did I know the enemy was right there ready to retaliate and try to hinder my walk. It was like he pointed his infrared beam on me ready to take me out. From that point on all hell broke loose against me. Soon after I felt a threatening, evil entity stalking me but initially, I would try to dismiss it as my mind just imagining things. It felt like it desired worship from me. I know, strange. But considering satan desired worship from Jesus in retrospect it makes sense one of his angels wanted worship from me. I remember soon after I took a nap and then it happened: the sleep paralysis attack. I woke up unable to move my body and no matter how much effort I exerted I couldn’t manage to move. I felt this dark, sinister shadow envelope my being. I thought in my head “I am a dead man”. I knew this thing was going to kill me right then and there. But as it was about to “swallow me up” completely I thought in my head “Ah, don’t worry I have Jesus,” then immediately the darkness lifted off of me. Most people would probably be freaked out by it. But I was more rejoicing in the fact that I trusted Jesus even to the point of death.

You thought that was strange it gets stranger. I remember the next day or several days later I took a nap and again I experienced sleep paralysis. I barely closed my eyes to take a nap and I woke up hearing a static noise one would hear on a TV on channel 3. I broke out of the paralysis and I thought it was weird because my TV wasn’t on. I thought perhaps my brain is malfunctioning. I went back to take a nap and I barely closed my eyes then it happened again, the sleep paralysis with the same TV static sound but this time one of the most bizarre experiences I ever had (and I have had a lot of them) occurred. An evil spirit tried to enter my body through my chest while I was in paralysis. One may ask how do I know it was an evil spirit? Because it felt like the dirtiest, most unclean, evil, wicked thing. Now I know why Jesus called some spirits unclean when He expelled demons out of people. In Mark ch. 5, Jesus met a demoniac and Jesus said: “Come out of the man, thou unclean spirit.” That’s what it exactly felt like. Very, very, very unclean. I felt all yucky and disgusted as if when you see someone covered with bugs. When it tried to enter my body I “read” its thoughts or “inner voice”. It had an animal-like snarl I have never heard before and I knew the type of spirit it was. It was a spirit behind a sin that had a stronghold over my life for many years that I repented for and overcame. I knew the assignment the spirit had on me. I resisted the spirit and it left.

Afterward, I naturally got up out of my bed stunned, shocked, and disoriented. I then got out of my house and went to the gym. I walked around like I just went through trauma and as I was walking through the gym I literally wanted to scream out “the devil is real, repent and turn to the Lord Jesus Christ.” I can kind of chuckle about it thinking back but it was a very serious situation for me at that time.

From that point on I had sleep paralysis attacks every night and even multiple times a night for a long time. A lot of times I wouldn’t even sleep, I would just barely close my eyes and I would have a sleep paralysis attack. God allowed me to actually see into the spirit realm. I can recall one time where I was about to go to sleep I “saw” in the spirit realm a demon running at a very fast speed to my bedroom. I saw in the spirit realm that it stuck its head through the wall to scope me out. It was preparing to attack me because it knew I was about to go asleep.

During this period with my many experiences with sleep paralysis, I had a particular demon harass me. Even when I wasn’t sleeping I would perceive it was in my room and I would feel the most intense hatred and evil emanating from it. At times I couldn’t even stand it to be in my presence. The best way I can describe it is when you are standing in front of a very hot open oven and you want to close the door or walk away to get away from the heat. Same idea with this demon but instead of the intense heat it was intense evil, hatred, and ugliness emanating from it. I would tell it to leave in the name of Jesus Christ but it would continuously return. I resorted to fasting against this evil spirit in the name of Jesus. In Mark 9:29 and Matthew 17:21 Jesus said some spirits will not come out unless you pray and fast. This spirit wasn’t in my body but attacking me externally but I thought it was a worth a try to fast. I had nothing to lose to give it a try, right? This is when I first started getting into fasting so I really didn’t know what to do. I didn’t eat for about 4-5 days and I just said a simple short prayer to Jesus to have this fast be against that spirit. The day I ended my fast the spirit entered my bedroom to confront me and I felt the most intense anger and rage coming from the spirit. The atmosphere in the room was so thick with evil and anger that you can cut it with a butter knife. Then I perceived this evil spirit communicating to me saying angrily “why did you fast against me?” I was like “wow, so you hate fasting so then I am going to keep doing it then.” I incorporated fasting as part of my spiritual warfare arsenal. Eventually, the spirit left but the sleep paralysis attacks continued. I believe there are hosts of evil spirits assigned to Christians.

I also experienced demons literally hold me down while paralyzed. I can feel their actual hands on my body holding me down. I had experienced a demon trying to pierce me with something very sharp while in sleep paralysis. I once experienced demon or demons trying to pull me out of my body while in sleep paralysis. Even when I wasn’t asleep demons would show up. My heart would start racing and you would feel the most utter oppression, dread, fear, and evil in the atmosphere and I would feel this entity wanting to literally kill me right then and there.

I can recall a demon that entered my room while I was asleep and somehow managed to show up in my dream. The dream was pretty random but it involved music and I heard someone in the dream say to me “dance.” I said assertively “no, I only dance for Jesus!” Immediately I woke up in a sleep paralysis state. Apparently, the demon got angry I proclaimed my loyalty to Lord Jesus and retaliated.

One time I fasted for several weeks petitioning something from the Lord. After several weeks when I prayed I felt oil dripping down my head. I had a sleep paralysis attack where a demon actually took out a vacuum to try to suck it up. I know, weird.

There were times that sleep paralysis attacks would happen so frequently that I would think in my head before it happens “and here we go again.” But one night I did something differently and prayed to Jesus to send an angel to protect me. I saw in the spirit an angel standing outside my bedroom window and I didn’t get attacked that night. I never asked because I would think “who am I to ask God to send an angel on my behalf?” Thanks be to God that He would dispatch an angel for believers especially if you ask.

I can recall one night when I woke up from a dead sleep and I perceived a demon in my closet peeking at me (perhaps preparing to attack me with sleep paralysis?). And it was my inner voice rebuking it in my head but it wasn’t me who was doing it (I believe it was the Holy Spirit in me doing it). Then the demon flew right past my head as it fled. Strange.

As a person who refrains from any sexual activity (which includes masturbation) as every Christian should be doing if he or she is not married, the enemy knows at times I get tempted. I would have sleep paralysis attacks where demons would hold my body down (and I could actually feel their hands holding me down) and try to sexually stimulate my private parts. This has actually happened to me many times. It is very invasive and violating to go through this. I believe the enemy has demons observing every Christian and they study the person plotting to snare the person into sin. The enemy knows lust is one of my weaknesses.

I can recall one time after a long time of prayer I accidentally fell asleep at a park in my car where a Mormon church (which is a cult) was located nearby. I don’t know if there was a connection with the Mormon church but a dark cloud that came from the direction the church was located came over me and I was paralyzed and I tried with all my strength to scream “Jesus help me” then it lifted off me.

It didn’t matter where I slept. If I slept in the car I got sleep paralysis. If I slept at work during my break it would happen. I have had multiple people living in the same house and no one else experiences what I experience. Just about all the time I can feel or perceive the entity approaching me when I am lying down in my bed as if it is waiting for me to fall asleep to attack me.

Why did this happen to me so frequently? I believe I became a target because I turned back to God. Satan goes for the true born again Christians – those who truly seek God’s kingdom and His righteousness and to follow Jesus because they are a threat to satan’s kingdom.

By the way, not one time I was horrified or scared throughout this whole ordeal. To tell the truth I was more fascinated than anything else. It can be really mind-boggling to know with 100% certainty that demons exist. For a lot of people, it’s difficult for the natural mind to accept there are spiritual entities. But after the fascination wore off and I developed a strong hatred against them and even more determined to cling on to God and do more for His kingdom.

Possible Door Openers to the Enemy And Solutions

You may ask why does sleep paralysis happens to some and not others? I believe there are several primary reasons why it routinely happens to some people. With my experience and observation with deliverance – that is, casting demons out of people – when you practice sin you break the hedge of protection that God has around you and you unwittingly opened the passage for the enemy to come on in and attack you. I believe there are other ways that hedge protection can be broken such as your parents practicing witchcraft or occult or being involved with a person who practices such abominations.

I think stepping into the enemy’s territory can open doors. I remember one time I reluctantly went to a nightclub with a couple of friends and that same night when I went to sleep I had sleep paralysis and I perceived demons hovering above me going around in circles. Several months ago I went with a friend as he gave me a tour of some bars he frequented. I was just curious to see what it was like inside and despite not even drinking or anything of that nature that same night I got attacked.

The enemy hates when a Christian has a strong, consistent prayer life. I would tend to receive retaliation through sleep paralysis after I have engaged in heavy prayer. So it is possible that you are not necessarily doing anything wrong at all but you are just high on the enemy’s hit list because you are heavily engaged in spiritual warfare (whether it is through praying incessantly and fervently, fasting, evangelizing, etc.).

Apparently, the medical establishment has no solution for sleep paralysis because it is fundamentally a spiritual problem. The solution is to repent of your sins and give your life to the Lord and God Jesus Christ. The list of sins can include masturbation, porn watching and any other sexual immorality which is running rampant in the U.S. New Age or eastern mysticism practices can also open doorways. Not too many people are stupid enough to open doorways to the enemy by practicing satanism so the devil deceives people to open doorways through New Age spirituality or eastern mysticism. At the root of the New Age is self-centeredness. The originator of the modern New Age movement comes from Madame Blavatsky (Hitler was a fan of her) who admitted Lucifer was her god. If you are practicing meditation, black or white magic, astral projection, energy crystals, tarot cards, reiki, seeing a psychic, a palm reader or watching horror movies please repent and renounce it in the name of Jesus Christ.

Having certain objects can have demonic attachments such as ouija boards, dream catchers, idols (which can include Buddhist, Hindu, or Islamic related objects), etc. If you have such objects get rid of it as soon as possible. Get rid of any ungodly objects in your home, period. Please repent and renounce it in the name of Jesus Christ.

Here is a list of things you may be practicing or have they may be opening up doors to the enemy [Click here].

There could be generational curses. If your ancestors were involved with the occult, shamanism, witchcraft, New Age practices, etc. it could leave you vulnerable to sleep paralysis. You can try breaking those curses in the name of Jesus Christ.

If you still happen to be under attack during an episode you can even call upon Jesus Christ even in your mind during an episode (yes, God knows all of your thoughts, He is God after all). God hears when anyone calls out to Him especially in urgency and in faith.

I have played an audio Bible (you can find many uploaded on Youtube) while sleeping to prevent attacks. The Bible reads God’s word is like a two-edged sword (Heb. 4:12), like fire, and a hammer (Jer. 23:39). The enemy hates to hear the word of God. This is what I know for certain from my experience with praying for deliverance for people. I have actually heard demons scream out of the mouth of a person when reading scripture.

Just know Jesus Christ is infinitely more powerful than the devil and his minions. In fact, when Jesus was walking on the earth about 2,000 years ago demons were terrified of Him and would cry out not to send them to hell. In Luke 4:34 it reads “Saying, Let us alone; what have we to do with thee, thou Jesus of Nazareth? art thou come to destroy us? I know thee who thou art; the Holy One of God.” And in Matthew 8:29 it reads “And, behold, they cried out, saying, What have we to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God? art thou come hither to torment us before the time?”

The Spiritual War We Are All In

If you are a believer the devil doesn’t want you to know Jesus said in Luke 10:19 “Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing will injure you…“. Did you catch that? He gives AUTHORITY OVER ALL THE POWER OF THE ENEMY.

The enemy uses intimidation through deception. He’s not so scary if you have Jesus Christ and stand on His word. The enemy is not as strong as he presents himself to be. If he was so powerful then all of us would be killed right now. God has the enemy on a leash. He can only do what God allows him to do. The reason most people are not killed during a sleep paralysis attack is that God’s protective hand preventing the enemy from doing so. Remember Job? Satan could only do to Job what God allowed him to.

When I was going through my ordeal or fiery trial I visited numerous churches and told them about my problem and sadly they didn’t know what to say or do. Most Christians have no clue about spiritual warfare which is sad because they should be the ones who should have the remedy for spiritual issues, as Christians are the ones with the truth. The vast majority of Christians are what I call religious or nominal Christians – they never repented of their sins and denied themselves, fast, give up the vain things of the world, etc. for Lord Jesus. They are not a viable threat to satan’s kingdom. It seems like satan has done a number on a lot of Christian churches in America. It’s really too bad many of our churches are so filled with nonsensical, watered-down messages. Many Christians don’t have discernment and thus are blind to the seriousness of the war we are all in. The whole world is in darkness and in bondage to satan. There is a worldwide spiritual war going on for the souls of multitudes and yet the church is not equipped to address it or even acknowledge it.

I felt alone when I went through the fiery trials but I looked up and found other Christians online who went through something similar I went through so I know I wasn’t going crazy. By God’s grace, I was able to overcome the fiery trials. Thank be to God.

Whether you believe it or not we are born into a world with a spiritual dimension. The Bible reads 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.” Basically, for satan and his demons, their mission is to kill, steal, destroy and deceive and ultimately drag you to the lake of fire where he is sentenced to go in the future. The Bible reads satan is the god (lowercase “g”) of this age (2 Cor. 4:4). He is called the prince of the power of the air and the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience (Eph. 2:2). Jesus called satan the ruler of the world (John 12:31; 14:30). Indeed the Bible reads the whole world lies in the power of the wicked one (1 John 5:19). The fact satan offered Jesus all the kingdoms of the world if Jesus worshipped him testifies satan really is the ruler of this world. Jesus never denied he owned the kingdoms. The gall of the devil to tempt the Creator to worship him!

I really hope skeptics or unbelievers in Christ realize there really is a real spiritual realm. I can’t emphasize it enough there is a spiritual battle going on for your soul. Satan’s job is to keep you to repent from your sins and turn to the Lord Jesus Christ so you won’t be sealed with the Holy Spirit – the Spirit of Truth.

To all those who are skeptical you are going to have to deal with the fact your favorite musicians or actor believes in the spirit realm. Elvis Presley, Beyonce, Jay Z, John Lennon, Jimi Hendrix, Oprah Winfrey, Denzel Washington, etc. They all admit to channeling spirits [Watch Demonic Spirit Channeling By Pop “Musicians” Exposed & The Spirit Behind Hollywood Exposed (Channeling, Possession, and Satanism)].

It is crazy we were dumped into satan’s kingdom – born into darkness – a world filled with deception and lies. But there is hope! A Savior, a Person – satan has nothing in Him. A Person who overcame the world. The Light of the world. Jesus Christ of Nazareth. When He returns He’s going to put an end to satan’s kingdom. In Revelation, it reads he gets thrown into the abyss and then ultimately into the lake of fire. So there will be no more sleep paralysis or any kind of demonic attacks then! Jesus’ kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom that will come to no end (Daniel 2:44). All of this should make you reevaluate your life if you’re not a believer. Who or what are you living for? Is there really a heaven and a hell?

There is a pull on the whole world by satan to do evil and to reject the real Jesus Christ of the Bible (I say the real Jesus Christ because many people have a false Jesus that can’t save). He’s not the Muslim Jesus who is merely a prophet and never died on a cross for the sins of the world. He’s not the Mormon Jesus who is the spirit brother of lucifer. He’s not the Jehovah’s Witness Jesus who is the archangel Michael. He is not the New Age Jesus who is a mere man who attained spiritual enlightenment through occult means. The real Jesus Christ is God manifested in the flesh (John 1:1;14, Col. 2:9)!

In God’s Kingdom when a sinner repents and turns to the Lord and God Jesus Christ the angels in heaven actually rejoice over that one sinner according to Jesus. God actually grieves because of our sins. In Genesis ch. 6 it reads “Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. 6 And the Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart.” So I can easily imagine God being broken-hearted when someone refuses to turn to Him (also read Ezekiel 6:9).

But on the opposite end, there is satan’s kingdom and I have no doubt satan rejoices when a sinner dies in his sin. Satan is like that guy at a pool party who is about to fall inside the pool and tries to hold onto other people to drag them down with him. Indeed, satan is trying to drag everybody down with him to the lake of fire. But I believe satan gets furious when a sinner repents and turns to Jesus for salvation because he lost someone he once held captive. In Luke 4:18 it reads: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives And recovery of sight to the blind, To set at liberty those who are oppressed;”

All of us without Jesus are actually prisoners of the devil. In fact, we are all spiritually dead unto God until we are born again by the power of the Holy Spirit. Then we are reconciled to God.

Only by the power of Jesus can those shackles and prison bars be broken. I have never witnessed anything but the power of God that can deliver anyone from drug, alcohol or sex addictions.

When a person turns to Jesus the person actually has their name in the Lamb’s Book of Life (Revelation 3:5). Is your name written there?

If you need someone to talk to about your sleep paralysis issue or need prayer please feel free to reach out to me. Also, feel free to share your experiences with sleep paralysis in the comment section.

Have a good, peaceful sleep in the name of Jesus 🙂

“I will both lay me down in peace, and sleep: for thou, Lord, only makest me dwell in safety.” – Psalms 4:8

[thetruthseekerway]

The Power of Words

New Post has been published on http://www.truth-seeker.info/oasis-of-faith/power-of-words/

The Power of Words

By Dr. Ali Al-Halawani

Nothing can penetrate and/or conquer the human heart more than a nice phrase, a warm smile, a lenient expression, or a faithful intention.

In my Semantics class this morning, I wanted to discuss the relationship between words and meanings in human languages. It is a very important issue for those who want to do linguistics in general and semantics and discourse analysis in particular. Sammy Hagar once said, “Words have power. They work. That’s why poetry can affect people. That’s why music and lyrics and songs affect people…”

Anyway, during my regular discussion with my students, I displayed to them a short video clip titled, The Power of Words, in which an old blind beggar is seen as he was sitting stretching his hands to passerbyers in a way to ask them for help.

The old man had a sign beside him and thereon the following expression was written, “I Am Blind; Please Help”. Very few people were encouraged to help him and he only collected very few coins. As time passed by, a young woman who seemed very practical passed by him. Noticing his sign and what is written on it, she took a marker out of her purse and wrote on the other side of the sign something and she left without giving the man any money.

What happened next was amazing, as people started to throw coins, many coins, to the man and they were encouraged to help him.

Recognizing her through touching her shoes, the young woman came back after a while and the old man asked her, “What did you do? What did you write on my sign?”

She replied, “I wrote the same but with different words.”

She wrote, “IT’S A BEAUTIFUL DAY AND I CAN’T SEE IT.”

Amazingly, if you change your words, you may change your world and make it even better.

When I watched this video clip with my students, it reminded me of another old story that I once came across. The story runs as follows.

Once upon a time, a king who was aggressively ruling his people decided to prevent all women from wearing their gold, jewelry and precious ornaments.

The women’s reaction was unexpected as they decided to disobey the royal orders. Massive complaints, resentment, and protests prevailed. To add insult to injury, the women started to wear their jewels and golden ornaments excessively and exceedingly as a way of showing disobedience to the king’s tyrannical orders.

The king was so much troubled and did not know what to do to overcome these adversities and unexpected social turmoil.

Thereupon, he called for an emergency meeting to be held and called upon all his consultants to be present. The discussions began and one of the attendees proposed that the king should withdraw his orders for the sake of public interest.

A second consultant objected to that suggestion claiming that the withdrawal of the king’s verdict would be taken as an indication of weakness and fear. Whilst the king should project his authority and power and make it visible to all of his subjects. The subjects must realize who is governing whom!

The king’s consultants were divided into two parties: cons and pros.

As no one of the consultants could convince the king with his opinion, the king ordered that the wise man of the city should be summoned and the latter presented himself to the king shortly. All details of the issue were related to the wise man’s ears and he listened carefully until he started to speak addressing the king.

The wise man told the king, “People will never obey you if you think of what you want and not what they themselves want!”

The king asked, “What should I do, then? Should I retreat and withdraw my orders?!”

The wise man answered, “No! But, you should issue complementary orders that wearing gold, jewels and ornaments should be illegal for pretty women as they are in no need of such ornaments. Only the ugly ones and those who are old should wear such ornaments and golden jewels to make up for their shortcomings and defects as they need to cover their facial wrinkles and ugliness.”

The verdict was issued and the news was aired everywhere.

In few hours, all women took off their golden ornaments and jewels and each one of them started to look at herself as being so pretty and young that she does not need any of these “artificial” ornaments!

Upon that, the wise man said to the king, “When you started to think as people do, and realized their interests and appreciated their feelings, only then they obeyed your orders!”

The moral of this story is that forming expressions and using words is an art which needs to be mastered by all and a science which we need to learn and be proficient at.

Let us call upon others to do whatever we want through finding the link between what we require them to do and what they actually like to do. In a similar vein, let us consider what they do not like before we give them verdicts, decisions or instructions.

The addressee should feel and recognize the personal fruit he is going to reap if he conforms to the instructions and obey the orders you give. Nothing can penetrate and/or conquer the human heart more than a nice phrase, a warm smile, a lenient expression, or a faithful intention.

Allah the Almighty says in His Ever-Glorious Qur’an what means,

“So by mercy from Allah, [O Muhammad], you were lenient with them. And if you had been rude [in speech] and harsh in heart, they would have disbanded from about you. So pardon them and ask forgiveness for them and consult them in the matter. And when you have decided, then rely upon Allah. Indeed, Allah loves those who rely [upon Him].” (Al ‘Imran 3: 159)

Prophet Muhammad (Peace and blessings be upon him) said in one of his hadiths, “It is also charity (sadaqah) to utter a good word.”

The noble companion, Abu Hurairah, narrates that the Messenger of Allah (Peace and blessings be upon him) said, “Verily a person utters a word, that he deems harmless, but it results in his falling into the depths of the Hellfire.” [Al-Tirmidhi; Ibn Majah]

This means that this person does not think about what he says and, furthermore, does not fear the consequences which may arise because of it. Concisely, he is a reckless person who cannot calculate or anticipate the consequences of neither his actions nor words. To me, this is an encouragement to hold one’s tongue and to only speak when there is some benefit in doing so; otherwise, one should keep silent.

This can be understood from the saying of Prophet Muhammad (Peace and blessings be upon him) who said, “Whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day should say the good or remain silent.” [Nawawi, Sharh Sahih Muslim]

Finally, do not forget to occasionally put yourself in the shoes of others. This will help a lot! Believe me!

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Dr. Ali Al-Halawani is Assistant Professor of Linguistics and Translation, Kulliyyah of Languages and Management (KLM), International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM), Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. He was Assistant Professor and worked for a number of international universities in Malaysia and Egypt such as Al-Madinah International University, Shah Alam, Malaysia (Mediu) and Misr University for Science & Technology (MUST), Egypt; Former Editor-in-Chief of the Electronic Da`wah Committee (EDC), Kuwait; Former Deputy Chief Editor and Managing Editor of the Living Shari`ah Department, www.islamOnline.net; Member of the International Union of Muslim Scholars (IUMS); and member of the World Association of Arab Translators & Linguists (Wata). He is a published writer, translator, and researcher. You can reach him at alihalawani72@hotmail.com.