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Previous Challenge Entry (Level 3 - Advanced)
Topic: Write for the SUSPENSE and/or THRILLER Genre (10/23/14)
Quicksand - Hades Bound

Heart racing almost as fast as my flying feet, I seek the familiar swamp to escape the webs clouding my tortured tangled thoughts. I find some comfort watching the life of the swamp. It is not working its soothing magic tonight.

Helplessly, sodden and entangled in my grief, my inability to forgive myself, I cannot concentrate on what I must do. It is so difficult to. I cannot think straight. I actually don't want to think, I think.

Gasping, totally undone, I seek the peace of the swamp, the finale - the giver of death known as quicksand. I slide in, forcing myself to relax. Smothering, suffocating, I find myself sinking and shriveling to unforgiving oblivion.


Desperate, I flail at the hideous relentless darkness, carelessly, hopelessly slipping, sucked slowly into the fetid welcoming swamp, fleeing the rapacious demons savaging me.

Quicksand will hide me, cover me, free me, finish me.

No self-respecting, triumphantly punishing spawn of Satan will need to torture, punish me here. I choose to yield, to drown in my chosen mire of misery, alone but not quite defeated. I choose my agony and grief - a merciful break from hellish reality as my pain turns to primal fear of something as incredibly mundane as physical death.

It's a mystery to me how Satan's dark angels select us miserable souls to torment, flooding us with unspeakable horror and shame - how do they know we are most vulnerable to their tempting hissing whispers of sweet promises, blatantly fictional and insubstantial as they are?

This tempest raging within me finds me disillusioned, empty, drained of all self-worth, self-respect, leaving me full of self only. Oh Lucifer, how could you? Dear God, how could you let him do this to your faithfully professing child?

Allowing myself to calmly float, I do not hasten my inevitable demise. Slowly sinking, inch by horrible inch, dragging me, claiming me - but I will not succumb to the wiles of the devil.

I pray, trembling, anxious and frightened, that this evil will shrink from me physically, mentally and emotionally. Spiritually I feel I am still a warrior in God's Army, but I am so weak, so devastatingly depleted.

I am questioning my fear of succumbing to the quicksand sucking me down to Hades - wouldn't that be giving permission, yielding to Lucifer my soul, my very being?of God? I knew that Satan's minions are always looking for razor-sharp arrows.

Yes, anger is pushing me to this. Hatred of my inadequate position, a rebellious wife not seeing the word obey in obeisance? Why did I insanely rush out the back door without giving thought to donning the full armor to pierce our self-assumed armor. Why did I forgo God's armor which is impervious to all the godlessness the enraged devil frightens and hideously dishes out?

Please infuse me with Your Holy Spirit, dear Father. Please forgive me for not trusting You to protect me. Please, oh please send Jesus to lift me from this morass of evil I find myself so helplessly enduring.

I am starting to breathe without choking now, relaxing as my thoughts return to You.

Thank you Lord for hearing my prayer. I am gratefully grasping Jesus' Hand as we walk across the now victimless quicksand, safely balancing on His sturdy cross, ablaze with His Grace, healing and forgiveness . . .

Hallelujah. I learned at least one thing from this spiritual warfare. I cannot put my trust in myself - I must trust Him and never forget to clothe myself in His Body of Armor.
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This article has been read 1072 times
Member Comments
Member
Date
C D Swanson 
10/30/14
That was intensely sobering...and well written. The choice of words to bring this piece to life was excellent. Powerful message at the end.

God bless~
Shelley Ledfors
11/02/14
That was a very powerful piece. Thank-you for sharing it.
Ellen Carr 
11/02/14
This is gripping and thought provoking. You've taken a creative approach to this topic. Well done.
Nancy Sullivan 
11/02/14
Beautifully written and so right on with your description of the spiritual warfare we all face. Jesus is our only hope. Great job!
Myrna Noyes
11/03/14
Spiritual allegories are among my favorite stories both to read and to write, so this was very intriguing to me. The tone was definitely intense and suspenseful, too! I appreciated the victorious ending and this line in particular: "I am gratefully grasping Jesus' Hand as we walk across the now victimless quicksand, safely balancing on His sturdy cross".
Clyde Blakely
11/03/14
Wonderfully worded as apart from Christ and then to His might and grace. Thank you.
Judith Gayle Smith-Owens Vitouswykegardinerclark
11/04/14
Please note that this particular area became confused during the previewing stage - and I cannot fathom how it became so convoluted!

Thank you all for your encouragingly warm thoughts and spiritual hugs . . .

"Why did I insanely rush out the back door without giving thought to donning the full armor of God? I knew that Satan's minions are always looking for razor-sharp arrows to pierce our self-assumed armor."

Makes more sense?