#The Messiah of the Backbreaker

[bisexual-kane]

I'm not sure I've ever actually heard Roddy refer to himself as the Messiah of the Backbreaker? It's always a thing that commentary or others refer to him as.

[wrestlingarsenal]

My man Roderick Strong had to teach his old pal and stable-mate Kyle O'Reilly some respect at AEW Dynasty on Sunday, April 21st. Check out what Roddy said to his opponent before the match:

"Kyle, your comeback was sweet, and I swear to you, I smiled, and I cried because I was so happy to have you back. But I want you to know this. When we step into the ring, I am gonna break you, and I am gonna end you forever.”

Yikes. That's hot talk. Remind me to always respect Roderick Strong and consent to anything he asks of me.

The audience was solidly behind Kyle O'Reilly, but I've been into Roderick Strong, the Messiah of the Backbreaker, since his earliest days in Ring of Honor. I mean, how could I not love a wrestler who claims the Backbreaker as his signature move?!

I believe I first blogged about Roderick in July 2005 when I recapped a match where he punished Jamie Noble (another long-time ROH Man-Crush). At that time 19 years ago, I referred to Roderick as a "cocky kid" but nowadays he is all hard-ass veteran, willing to beat some respect into the younger generation.

[mith-gifs-wrestling]

El Generico makes a strategic error when fighting the Messiah of the Backbreaker, Roderick Strong, in 2005.

[westofessos]

I really don’t get the Roderick Strong hype. He’s good, I guess, but I don’t really think much of him other than that. I think the “The Messiah of the Backbreaker” thing is dumb too. Idk, that’s just me

[cmgirlie]

saw somebody call roddy strong backbreaker messiah and misread it as BAREBACK messiah

[mayhemproduces]

Rodrick Strong vs Joshua Bishop- Chaos Cup Round 1

One great thing about the Chaos Cup is it gives us so many first time, never before seen matchups, just like the one we’re about to see. Messiah of the Backbreaker against The Intense Icon. For the first time ever, Rodrick Strong and Joshua Bishop are set to lock horns! You can’t see action like this anywhere but in MPW, as this clash of styles dream match is set to get underway! 

The two men began to circle one another, before locking up in a collar and elbow tie up. Bishop quickly got the advantage and pulled Strong into a headlock, which Strong quickly got out of by sending Bishop off the ropes. Bishop came back and knocked Strong down with a shoulder tackle, being the larger of the two men, one would assume he would have the power advantage in this one. Bishop waited for Rodrick Strong to get back up again, and ran off the ropes, looking for another shoulder block, but Strong dropped down, and Bishop hit the ropes again, this time on the rebound Rodrick tried to leapfrog Bishop, but Bishop stopped short before he could, before attempting to throw a clothesline, which Strong ducked, before Strong ran off the ropes, and caught and dropped Bishop with a shoulder block! We were all even here in the early going! 

Strong ran off the ropes again, and this time it’s Bishop who drops down, mirroring what Strong did before. Strong stepped over and on the rebound, just like how Strong had done, Bishop tried to leapfrog, but rather than stop short, Rodrick caught Bishop in midair, before driving him to the mat with a powerslam! Bishop got up clutching his back, and Rodrick hit the ropes again, before charging Bishop and sending him over the top rope and to the outside with a clothesline! Strong didn’t stop his momentum, hitting the ropes again all without stopping, and dove underneath the middle rope, taking Bishop out with a low suicide dive to the outside! Rodrick Strong launched himself like a missile and took Bishop right into the guardrail! Strong was quick to get back to his feet, and grabbed Bishop by the hair, pulling him back up as well, before leaning him against the steel guardrail. “You asked for this, kid.” Strong taunted, before blasting Bishop with a chop to the chest, putting so much force behind it that he nearly knocked Bishop back over the guardrail and into the laps of our fans! Rodrick Strong went to try and climb over the guardrail, but Wes Barkley comes up from behind and tries to grab Rodrick. Rodrick spins around and catches Wes with a couple of right hands, dropping Maserati Wes! 

Rodrick turned back to Bishop, but the momentary distraction cost him, as Bishop had recovered and blasted Strong with a chop to the chest of his own! Rodrick fired back with another chop, and Bishop answered back in earnest, and now we had these two men trading chops on the outside! The chop fest continued until Strong decided to break it up with a headbutt, sending Bishop stumbling backwards. Rodrick then grabbed Bishop and whipped him right into the steel guardrail again, Bishop’s spine connecting right with the solid steel bars! 

Rodrick walked over and gave Bishop another chop to the chest, before telling all of the fans sitting behind where Bishop was right now that they’re going to want to move. All of them made the smart choice and grabbed their shit, moving out of the way, before Strong began to back up, giving the ring apron a few rhythmic pounds to work the crowd up into a clap, before raising his arm in the air, measuring Bishop….

Rodrick gave his fist two pumps before charging at Bishop, looking for a Runaway Train Clothesline, trying to send Bishop over the rail with it, but Bishop managed to instead turn it into a backdrop, sending Rodrick Strong over the guardrail, and crashing and burning onto the chairs sitting at ringside! Rodrick may have just had his entire spinal column rearranged! Joshua Bishop gets back up, and drags Rodrick Strong back into the ring, before Bishop got back into the ring himself, and took a moment to stretch out and crack his neck before going after Strong again. However, when he tried to pick Rodrick back up, Rodrick suddenly came to life and slipped behind Bishop, before tossing Bishop overhead with a release German Suplex! Bishop folded over and rolled to the corner, where Wes hopped on the apron and helped Bishop get back to his feet. Strong charged Bishop again, but Bishop got the boot up and Rodrick ran right into it. Rodrick stumbled away, and Bishop grabbed Rodrick, before tossing Rodrick overhead with a release Belly to Belly suplex! The strength of the Intense Icon was unreal! Bishop hooks the leg!

1….2… Kickout!

Rodrick Strong out at two. Bishop tries to get Strong back to his feet, but Rodrick Strong answers by peppering Josh Bishop with a couple of chops to the chest. Bishop answers with a chop of his own, and Rodrick actually walks to the corner, and lets out a very visible “OW!” in response to that chop. Bishop catches Rodrick with an axe handle to the back, causing Rodrick’s knees to buckle, but Rodrick turns around and catches Bishop with a boot to the gut to get Bishop to back up. Rodrick grabs a handful of Bishop’s hair and slams it into the turnbuckle, causing Bishop to stumble back into the ropes. Rodrick tries to go after him, but Bishop catches Rodrick with a boot to the gut. He follows it up with an elbow to the back of the neck, dropping Rodrick to his knees! Bishop tries to pick Rodrick back up, but Rodrick responds with two stiff forearms, before Bishop tries to send Rodrick into the ropes, but on the rebound Rodrick manages to spin and drop Joshua Bishop with a Rolling Elbow, taking the champ down and knocking him out of the ring! Rodrick hits the ropes as Bishop gets back up, and takes Bishop out on the outside with a Suicide Dive! Rodrick Strong has the Atlas Champion reeling! 

Rodrick grabs Bishop and rolls him back into the ring, before trying to pick the massive Atlas Champion up for what looks like a Doctor Bomb, but Rodrick can’t even get Bishop up off his feet! Perhaps an ill-advised attempt as Rodrick grabs at his back, perhaps having strained something in his attempt at lifting Josh Bishop. Bishop grabs Rodrick around the waist, but Rodrick drops down and rolls Bishop forward into a surprise pin!

1….2… Kickout!

Bishop out at two! He almost just lost the Atlas Championship again! The crafty veteran Strong pulling out all the stops tonight! Bishop gets up to a knee, only to be blasted by several forearm shots by Rodrick, before Rodrick mimes shooting a pistol at Bishop, before spinning for another Rolling Elbow, only to spin around and get BLASTED by a Pump Kick from Joshua Bishop! Rodrick might have just gotten knocked out!

Bishop falls into the ropes and takes a few seconds to compose himself here, as Rodrick still hasn’t moved. Bishop goes over to retrieve Rodrick, sRodrickping on him as he does. Bishop forces Rodrick into the corner, before nailing him with a back elbow, and then a stiff right, before Biel Throwing Rodrick all the way across the ring! The air time Rodrick got on that was astonishing! Rodrick tries using the ropes to help himself up, but Bishop comes over and uses his knee to choke Rodrick with the ropes. As Carr pulls Bishop off and reprimands him for this.  Bishop comes back over and catches Rodrick with a boot to the gut, and then a knee lift to the gut as well, sending Rodrick stumbling into an adjacent corner, just trying to get away from Josh Bishop’s onslaught. Bishop walks over and peppers Rodrick with a right hand, and then a chop to the chest, but Rodrick answers back with a forearm of his own! Bishop stumbles back but kicks Rodrick back into the corner, before nailing Rodrick with an elbow over the top of the neck, once again dropping Rodrick! Bishop signals to Wes to throw him a door, that he’s gonna “Put the old man down”, and Wes Barkley goes under the ring, looking for a door. He produces one, and Josh Bishop sets it up in the corner, before picking Rodrick up, looking for a Choke Toss Suplex, but as Bishop goes to lift Rodrick, Rodrick catches The Intense Icon right on the nose with an elbow shot! Rodrick quickly rolled through, and rolled Bishop up, but before referee Rodrick Dunn could drop down to register a count, Rodrick pushed Bishop through the pin, and quickly grabbed him, going for that powerbomb again! Bishop this time managed to counter with a backdrop, before grabbing Rodrick Strong in a fireman’s carry, charging the door and looking to put Rodrick through it with a Death Valley Driver, but Rodrick managed to slip off of Bishop’s shoulders! Bishop turned and tried to catch Rodrick with a clothesline, but Rodrick Strong ducked it, slipped behind Bishop, before tossing Bishop right through the door with a Release German Suplex! The door exploded in two as Bishop’s head and neck were driven right through the door! 

Rodrick Strong got back up to his feet and grabbed the other door, only to turn around and release that Bishop was already up on his feet! Bishop was already up after being suplexed through a door! Rodrick swung the door at Bishop and caught him in the head, causing Bishop to stumble back into the corner, and for there to be a hole the size of Bishop’s skull in the door. Rodrick propped the door against the opposite corner and turned around, only for Bishop to launch himself at Rodrick Strong and drive him through the door with a Spear! 

Both men struggled to get back to their feet, and Rodrick Strong had to resort to rolling out onto the apron. Bishop followed him out there, and the two men used the ropes to help themselves back to their feet. Bishop caught Rodrick Strong with a chop to the chest, before trying to lift him up for a Death Valley Driver, but Rodrick managed to escape it, catching Bishop with a chop of his own, before attempting to drop Bishop with a Piledriver on the apron, which Bishop managed to block. Bishop tried to lift Rodrick up into the Death Valley again, but once again Rodrick slipped off his shoulders, and back into the ring. Bishop turned around, only to be caught by a Rolling Elbow from Strong, knocking Bishop off the apron and right into the guardrail! Rodrick Strong hit the ropes, going for the low suicide dive again, but this time Bishop moved out of the way, and Rodrick crashed and burned into the guardrail! Rodrick might have gone into the steel head first! 

Bishop grabbed Rodrick and quickly tossed him back into the ring, looking to seize the opportunity! Bishop gets back up, and looks to put Rodrick away, trying to set up the Bishop Bomb, but Rodrick manages to wiggle off of Josh’s shoulders! Rodrick waits for Bishop to turn around, before stunning Bishop with a forearm, before Rodrick turns and hits the ropes, looking for a Lariat, but on the rebound, Bishop catches Strong, spins him, and PLANTS Rodrick into the mat with a Black Hole Slam! Josh Bishop quickly gets back to his feet, and brings Rodrick Strong up with him, lifting Rodrick Strong high up into the air, before putting him down with a Bishop Bomb! Bishop folds Rodrick Strong up, good night Roddy!

1….2….3!

“Here is your winner, Joshua Bishop!”

[hellopopculture]

Top 20 Wrestlers of 2021 (Part 4)

Description: 2021 was one of the strangest years in recent memory as far as Pro Wrestling is concerned. The pandemic era in general has seen a lot of changes and to a certain degree the business and the products produced in it have not completely gotten back to normal. If you had told me in 2019 we would have Bryan Danielson & CM Punk at the same company and a heel Roman Reigns would be one of the most over guys in the WWE, I would've argued it down, I wouldn't have been able to fathom it but here we are.

17. Bryan Danielson-While Bryan hasn't won any major titles in the pandemic era; he has been a notable main eventer since his return to the ring in 2018. Bryan is another guy on this same list that we didn't think we would see again in an in-ring capacity but after years of training and testing he would finally be medically cleared. He was still under contract when he went on his "either I'm going to wrestle for WWE again or I'll wrestle somewhere else" campaign; he was an on-screen general manager..so the timing of his comeback is a little suspicious, but I digress.

In 2021 Bryan made his run at the Universal Championship which was held hostage by Roman Reigns at the time. Bryan would give hints that this may be the road to his last WrestleMania and apparently it wasn't a work. He won the Elimination Chamber match but the stipulation this time wasn't that he gets a title shot on SmackDown or at the next pay-per-view or at WrestleMania but that he gets his shot immediately following the match. Bryan put up a good fight but ultimately Roman was victorious. WrestleMania 37 would in fact be his last WrestleMania. He would leave the company after putting his career on the line against Roman and he was banished from SmackDown in defeat.

Onward to AEW, Bryan made his presence felt immediately going after the AEW Champion, Kenny Omega and then his successor Hangman Page. The trio would have some of the best matches in company history. Bryan, win or lose seems to be "living his best life". It appears that at this stage in his career, he just want to chase his dream matches and get in the ring with guys he respects, even if it's just to put them over and make them look good.

16. Adam Cole-Adam had kind of a rocky 2021 but that's probably because he has such a monster 2019-2020 during his NXT Championship reign. He defeated NXT's golden boy, Johnny Wrestling at NXT: Takeover XXV and that opened up his path to becoming the face of the brand. The Undisputed Era had been pretty dominant since the team first formed so it was only a matter of time that the leader and head of the stable would become the top guy. After Cole was done consistently tearing the house down with Gargano, he moved on to his best friend, Tommaso Ciampa. Those three, may be the greatest champions the Gold belt has ever seen.

After Ciampa almost killed him at WarGames, he went on to Survivor Series (the first time NXT was a part of that event) to have a brutal singles match against The Bruiserweight, Pete Dunne. In September, Roddy Strong had defeated Velveteen Dream for the North American Championship and Fish & O'Reilly were already the Tag Team Champions so by the time the World's Collide event rolled around, Undisputed Era held all the male titles on the brand. That feeling would be short lived as Fish & O'Reilly would lose their tag titles to Imperium at World's Collide and Keith Lee would get his first title reign at Roddy's expense on an episode of NXT. Adam collided with Lee at the Great American Bash in the Summer of 2020 where he would also lose his title, ending historic reign at 403 days and making Lee the first double champion on the brand.

When 2021 came around it felt like Undisputed Era had overstayed their welcome in NXT. While they were still over with the fans as a unit, they kind of began to drift apart but it also started feeling like it was time to move on from the brand. NXT is developmental, after all. After a feud with Pat McAfee & The Kings of NXT, Cole would turn on Kyle O'Reilly which would result in the last days of The Undisputed Era. As Cole remained "The man to beat" on the brand, the Triple H era of the brand was coming to a close and the Adam's future became uncertain. He entered a tug of war between WWE and AEW that AEW ultimately won.

Cole debuted for AEW at the All Out pay-per-view that year and although The Elite "killed him off" and sent him on his way to WWE in the first place, he reunited with The Young Bucks to reform "SuperKliq". When Adam was a member of Bullet Club, SuperKliq was their trio drawing inspiration from their admiration for Shawn Michaels. The Kliq was kind of a secret alliance between Shawn Michaels, Sean Waltman, Kevin Nash & Scott Hall. When their contracts were up, Fish & O'Reilly joined Adam in AEW which marked the beginning of the tension between SuperKliq and what used to be known as Undisputed Era.

We don't know what 2022 holds for Adam but Tony Khan made it very clear when he came in, how valuable he is and how much him signing meant to the company. He's been a mainstay at the top since he showed up so I can imagine big stories and championships are in his future.

15. MJF-Maxwell Jacob Friedman-Max epitomizes the concept of a wrestler that does not need a title to validate him. In his early 20's he's already main evented PPVs and solidified himself as not just a consistent ratings draw but one of the most talented heels in the professional wrestling business. In 2021 he formed his own stable known as "The Pinnacle" with FTR, Shawn Spears and his right hand, Wardlow, with Tully Blanchard as their manager and continued his reign of terror over the company that he started by himself.

The Pinnacle came as a surprise as Max was trying to force his way into Chris Jericho's Inner Circle at the time. When it was revealed that Sammy Guevara was right all along and that he was trying to destroy the group from the inside, that's when his new villains club emerged.

MJF makes his presence felt by picking the biggest babyface in the company and claiming his head. In some instances, those babyfaces are never the same after. Jericho & Cody being the most notable at this point in his career. He was almost successful at destroying the Inner Circle and even as we speak Jericho is still trying to keep the pieces of his family together. He cost Cody his ability to challenge for the AEW Championship as a member of the Nightmare Family by throwing in the towel, then proceeded to humiliate Cody night after night.

Toward the end of 2021, he didn't pick the biggest babyface in the company, the biggest babyface in the company chose him. CM Punk set his sights on Max after his feud with Darby Allin. Punk would have his undefeated streak ended by MJF in his hometown of Chicago in 2022 which shows that even if he doesn’t win every battle, he usually wins the war. 

AEW has something special with him. He understands his role in the company and his role in his feuds. No one has gotten people to rally around babyfaces the way he has. When he starts winning championships and accomplishing more, he will be an even bigger asset. Ric Flair wasn't a 16x World Champion for nothing. Beating him had to mean something for the babyfaces, it had to be a big deal and nothing says "I've arrived", more than knocking down the biggest bully on the playground.

[sashabanksss]

[undisputedroddy-blog]

I’ll be good by the weekend. 💥

[criticalwinking]

ML Kennedy explains NXT WarGames!

Your guide to Saturday’s NXT: Takeover Chicago WarGames!

 Currently, only four matches are listed. Survivor Series is also this weekend, which is all about (ugh) brand supremacy and hangs over everything like a wrestling Sword of Damocles. It’s Raw vs. Smackdown vs. NXT and is basically like the wrestling pro-bowl. You know, if in the NFL a team of Bears and Packers had to pretend to like each other in order to interrupt a game between the Jets and Dolphins to show the superiority of the NFC North over the AFC East?

 Match one – Standard Match: Matt Riddle vs. Finn Bálor

Matt Riddle is a stoner dude-bro who wears flip flops to the ring and wrestles barefoot. Somehow he is likable enough to be the good guy here. Riddle is also a legit MMA guy who is freakishly strong and has a twitter feud where he dunks on former WCW champ Goldberg.

 Finn is a skinny Irish guy who looks like he has never touched a carb in his life. He’s a former Universal Champion on the main roster who has come back to NXT to get his mojo back. Somehow, this process involves being a dickhead to everybody. You know he’s officially a bad guy because he performed the bad guy NXT ceremony (i.e. beating the shit out of Johnny Gargano.)

 They are fighting because Finn says that NXT has been overrun with children since he left. Man-child Matt Riddle takes umbrage to that statement.

 Match two – Triple Threat: Pete Dunne vs. Damian Priest vs. Killian Dain

Pete Dunne is an Englishman who likes nothing more than to break people’s fingers. He is a tough guy and weighs less than 15 stone, therefore he is called the Bruiserweight.

 Damian Priest is a tall, tattooed, and lanky Latino. His gimmick is that he looks like a vampire and shoots invisible arrows (question mark). He’s relatively new to the brand and trying to make a name for himself despite being the oldest guy in the match.

 Killian Dane is basically a human/grizzly bear hybrid from Northern Ireland. He was part of an Anarchist group called Sanity that got called up to the main roster and promptly forgotten about. He likes to hang out in dark rooms and project movies.

 Priest and Dunne have had some matches where each one has won by hitting the other in the dick. Dunne passed Dain on the ramp once, didn’t like how he looked at him, and broke Dain’s fingers. Dain and Priest hate each other because each of them wants to murder Dunne and they are. . . bad at sharing, I guess.

 Match three – WARGAMES: Rhea Ripley, Candice LeRae, Tegan Nox, and Mia Yim vs. Shayna Baszler, Io Shirai, Bianca Belair, and Kay Lee Ray

 This is the first Wargames match. Wargames is like a tag team match, but with no tags. There are two rings next to each other with one oblong cage covering the whole thing.

 The first team are the goodies and the second team are the baddies.

 Rhea Ripley is the team captain of the goodies. She’s a badass, kinda butch lady who wears a leather jacket to the ring. She’s the tallest one of these ladies at 5’9” and has a pair of shoulders like Captain America. (It’s a trick though, she’s Australian.) She was the women’s champ on NXT UK, which is a thing, and now she is on NXT USA which is just called NXT. She wants a shot at Shayna’s NXT women’s title.

 Candice LeRae is a blonde lady and a very good wrestler. She’s finally been allowed to be a character on the show aside from Johnny Gargano’s concerned wife. She’s a white meat babyface who likes to stand up to bullies or whatever. LeRae was helping out Io Shirai when Shirai was feuding with Shayne Baszler. Io lost that feud and snapped, which lead to Io beating the hell out of Candice and turn full supervillain. Candice had a shot at Shayna’s title, but came up a little short.

 Tegan Nox is recently back from a long-ish injury. She’s Welsh, likes to kick, and has an infatuation with Kane. She is friends/ partners with a fellow kick enthusiast named Dakota Kai. (Kai was not invited onto the team because Shayna Baszler always eats her lunch and has done some sort of long term psychological damage to her psyche. Nox’s response to this was basically, “sorry your mom wouldn’t let you go to the prom, anyways here is my dress.”)

 Mia Yim is a black and Asian lady with blue hair. She calls herself HBIC and pretends the B stands for Baddie. Yim basically took Dakota Kai’s spot by not being afraid of Shayna Baszler. Yim came close to beating Shayna a few months ago by taking every short cut in the book and basically cheating her ass off. Shayna has previously offered Yim a job as one of her flunkies. (Shayna has two flunkies, neither of which she trusts enough to put on her WarGames team.)

Shayna Baszler is the captain of the baddies. She’s a badass, kinda butch lady who wears a leather jacket to the ring. Shayna is Ronda Rousey’s friend and basically better than her. She has been champion forever now, and hasn’t really lost a match to anybody that is still in NXT. Shayna is my birthday twin and sounds like Binky Barnes (1) when she talks. She’s the best.

 Io Shirai, the genius of the sky, is a tiny Japanese lady who is basically the most dangerous person on the show. She will murder you. She hates Candice LeRae because Candice tried to be her friend. She recently busted up Mia Yim’s nose with a ladder. She and Rhea have been in each other’s faces a lot as both think they deserve to be number one contender to Shayna’s title. I would not expect her to work well with others.

 Bianca Belair is the E S T of NXT. She calls herself this as she proclaims to be the greatest, strongest and other words that end with those three letters. She is incredibly strong and athletic, and she will whip you with her long ass braid if you get on her nerves. She also thinks she should be the number one contender to Shayna’s title and came as close to beating Shayna as anybody not named Kairi Sane. She’s egotistical but not really malicious.

 Kay Lee Ray is the NXT UK women’s champ. She doesn’t even go to this school. She is Scottish, skinny and a third thing. She wants to be on the baddies team for reasons.

 Match four – Men’s WarGames: The Undisputed Era (Adam Cole, Bobby Fish, Kyle O'Reilly and Roderick Strong) vs. Tommaso Ciampa, Keith Lee, Dominik Dijakovic, and TBA

 Individually, the second team (the goodies) would seem to have the advantage. However, the Undisputed Era (the baddies) have an edge due to the power of scumbag friendship. (Friendship is a bad guy quality in WWE for some reason.)

 The Undisputed Era is a team of 4 different kinds of douchebags. They currently have all the men’s championships in NXT. I’ve heard them described as Millennial nWo. But unlike the original, each member of the Undisputed Era seems to both enjoy wrestling and be good at it.

 Adam Cole is their leader and the heavyweight champion. He’s skinny, has long hair, and says “baby.” He’s the sort of guy who would bring a signed photo of himself to the Christmas party’s pirate exchange.

 Fish and O’Reilly are the tag champs. O’Reilly is basically a white version of Genan Shiranui (2) from Samurai Shodown minus the Freddy Kreuger glove. He likes to strum his belt like an air guitar and is affectionately (?) referred to as Scumbag Kyle. Fish has a hipster mustache. . . and. . . is also a member of Undisputed Era.

 Roderick Strong has the look and personality of a K-mart ripoff version of a 1980s action figure, and is almost as tall. He wrestles like an annoying AI in a WWE video game. He does 100 different versions of a backbreaker and is thus called the “Messiah of the Backbreaker” which is a nickname that I think is part of the war on Christmas.

  Leading the good guy team is Tommaso Ciampa, evil made flesh. But, he’s recently back from an injury and is thus a good guy. He’s bald, has a beard, and loves violence more than god, family or country. I believe if you shot him with a cannon, he would still kick out at 2.

 Keith Lee used to play defensive end for Texas A&M. Picture a guy who used to play defensive end for Texas A&M, now make no changes to that image. He’s 6’2” over 300lbs, can do just about anything in a wrestling ring, and by all rights should be able to toss any member of the Undisputed Era into the upper balcony any time he wants.

  Dominik Dijakovic is Keith Lee’s blood rival. He’s 6’7” 270lbs and is basically Sagat (3) from Street Fighter if Sagat from Street Fighter was from Worcester, Massachusetts.  

 The fourth member of the team is as yet unannounced.

 ***

There you have it! No titles are on the line, every match is people who dislike each other are going to settle their differences through violence, even if they have to team up with people they hate.

 Also, there are two other rosters worth of wrestlers in town ready to fuck shit up for no reason other than brand supremacy.

 What could go wrong?!

 (notes:

1.  https://arthur.fandom.com/wiki/Binky_Barnes

2. https://snk.fandom.com/wiki/Genan_Shiranui

3. https://streetfighter.fandom.com/wiki/Sagat

[dfroza]

A story is how our Creator often related to the real lives of people.

to teach. to illuminate spiritual and eternal truth.

Today’s reading of the Scriptures from the New Testament is the 16th chapter of the book of Luke:

Jesus taught his disciples using this story:

“Once a very rich man hired a manager to run his business and oversee all his wealth. But soon a rumor spread that the manager was wasting his master’s money. So the master called him in and said, ‘Is it true that you are mismanaging my estate? You need to provide me with a complete audit of everything you oversee for me. I’ve decided to dismiss you.’

“The manager thought, ‘Now what am I going to do? I’m finished here. I can’t hide what I’ve done, and I’m too proud to beg. I have an idea that will secure my future. It will win me favor and secure friends who can take care of me and help me when I get fired!’

“So the dishonest manager hatched his scheme. He went to everyone who owed his master money, one by one, and asked them, ‘How much do you owe my master?’ One debtor owed twenty thousand dollars, so he said to him, ‘Let me see your bill. Pay me now and we’ll settle for twenty percent less.’ The clever manager scratched out the original amount owed and reduced it by twenty percent. And to another who owed two hundred thousand dollars, he said, ‘Pay me now and we’ll reduce your bill by fifty percent.’ And the clever manager scratched out the original amount owed and reduced it by half.

“Even though his master was defrauded, when he found out about the shrewd way this manager had feathered his own nest, he congratulated the clever scoundrel for what he’d done to provide for his future.”

Jesus continued, “Remember this: The sons of darkness interact more wisely than the sons of light. Use the wealth of this world to demonstrate your friendship with God by winning friends and blessing others. Then, when it runs out, your generosity will provide you with an eternal reward.

“The one who faithfully manages the little he has been given will be promoted and trusted with greater responsibilities. But those who cheat with the little they have been given will not be considered trustworthy to receive more. If you have not handled the riches of this world with integrity, why should you be trusted with the eternal treasures of the spiritual world? And if you’ve not proven yourself faithful with what belongs to another, why should you be given wealth of your own? It is impossible for a person to serve two masters at the same time. You will be forced to love one and reject the other. One master will be despised and the other will have your loyal devotion. Your choice between God and the wealth of this world is no different. You must enthusiastically love one and definitively reject the other.”

Now, the Jewish religious leaders listening to Jesus were lovers of money. They laughed at what he said and mocked his teachings, so Jesus addressed them directly. “You always want to look spiritual in the eyes of others, but you have forgotten the eyes of God, which see what is inside you. The very things that you approve of and applaud are the things God despises. The law of Moses and the revelation of the prophets have prepared you for the arrival of the kingdom announced by John. Since that time, the wonderful news of God’s kingdom is being preached, and people’s hearts burn with extreme passion to receive it. Heaven and earth will disintegrate before even the smallest detail of the Law will fail or lose its power.

“It is wrong for you to divorce your wife so that you can marry another—that is adultery. And when you take that one you lusted after as your wife, and contribute to the breakup of her marriage, you commit adultery again.”

Jesus continued. “There once was a very rich man who had the finest things imaginable, living every day enjoying his life of opulent luxury. Outside the gate of his mansion was a poor beggar named Lazarus. He lay there every day, covered with boils, and all the neighborhood dogs would come and lick his open sores. The only food he had to eat was the garbage that the rich man threw away.

“One day poor Lazarus died, and the angels of God came and escorted his spirit into paradise.

“The day came that the rich man also died. In hell he looked up from his torment and saw Abraham in the distance, and Lazarus was standing beside him in the glory. The rich man shouted, ‘Father Abraham! Father Abraham! Have mercy on me. Send Lazarus to dip his finger in water and come to cool my tongue, for I am in agony in these flames of fire!’

“But Abraham responded, ‘My friend, don’t you remember? While you were alive, you had all you desired. You surrounded yourself in luxury, while Lazarus had nothing. Now Lazarus dwells in the comforts of paradise and you are in agony. Besides, between us is a huge chasm that cannot be bridged, nor can anyone cross from one realm to the other, even if he wanted.’

“The rich man continued, ‘Then let me ask you, Father Abraham, please send Lazarus to my relatives. Tell him to witness to my five brothers and warn them not to end up where I am in this place of torment.’

“Abraham replied, ‘They’ve already had plenty of warning. They have the teachings of Moses and the revelation of the prophets; let them hear them.’

“ ‘What if they’re not listening?’ the rich man added. ‘If someone from the dead were to go and warn them, they would surely repent.’

“Abraham said to him, ‘If they wouldn’t listen to Moses and the prophets, neither would they be convinced if someone were raised from the dead!’ ”

The Book of Luke, Chapter 16 (The Passion Translation)

Today’s paired chapter of the Testaments is the 24th chapter of the book of Job that rightly coincides with the above:

[An Illusion of Security]

“But if Judgment Day isn’t hidden from the Almighty,

why are we kept in the dark?

There are people out there getting by with murder—

stealing and lying and cheating.

They rip off the poor

and exploit the unfortunate,

Push the helpless into the ditch,

bully the weak so that they fear for their lives.

The poor, like stray dogs and cats,

scavenge for food in back alleys.

They sort through the garbage of the rich,

eke out survival on handouts.

Homeless, they shiver through cold nights on the street;

they’ve no place to lay their heads.

Exposed to the weather, wet and frozen,

they huddle in makeshift shelters.

Nursing mothers have their babies snatched from them;

the infants of the poor are kidnapped and sold.

They go about patched and threadbare;

even the hard workers go hungry.

No matter how backbreaking their labor,

they can never make ends meet.

People are dying right and left, groaning in torment.

The wretched cry out for help

and God does nothing, acts like nothing’s wrong!

“Then there are those who avoid light at all costs,

who scorn the light-filled path.

When the sun goes down, the murderer gets up—

kills the poor and robs the defenseless.

Sexual predators can’t wait for nightfall,

thinking, ‘No one can see us now.’

Burglars do their work at night,

but keep well out of sight through the day.

They want nothing to do with light.

Deep darkness is morning for that bunch;

they make the terrors of darkness their companions in crime.

“They are scraps of wood floating on the water—

useless, cursed junk, good for nothing.

As surely as snow melts under the hot, summer sun,

sinners disappear in the grave.

The womb has forgotten them, worms have relished them—

nothing that is evil lasts.

Unscrupulous,

they prey on those less fortunate.

However much they strut and flex their muscles,

there’s nothing to them. They’re hollow.

They may have an illusion of security,

but God has his eye on them.

They may get their brief successes,

but then it’s over, nothing to show for it.

Like yesterday’s newspaper,

they’re used to wrap up the garbage.

You’re free to try to prove me a liar,

but you won’t be able to do it.”

The Book of Job, Chapter 24 (The Message)

my personal reading of the Scriptures for Saturday, may 1 of 2021 with a paired chapter from each Testament of the Bible along with Today’s Proverbs and Psalms

A post by John Parsons about knowing God from a new True nature:

What is the goal of your relationship with God? Is it the hope of paradise where pleasures abound and all your desires are fulfilled? Yeshua taught that the purpose of a relationship with God was to discover divine life by knowing the truth of God revealed in him. He said to his disciples: "This is eternal life (חַיֵּי עוֹלָם) that they may know you the only true God, and Yeshua the Messiah whom you have sent" (John 17:3). Knowing God in this way means understanding his heart and character, and learning to become "mature" (i.e., τέλειον, “complete, whole, finished”) through your union with the Messiah (Col. 1:28; Eph. 4:13). Practically speaking we "put on" a new spiritual nature (our "new self") which is created after the likeness of God (כִּדְמוּת אֱלהִים) in true righteousness and holiness (Eph. 4:24). We know and believe who we are as God's beloved children (Rom. 8:29). This is a matter of faith, indeed, but it is also a matter of the will. We must line up our attitudes and emotions in light of the truth of reality...

Immature emotions are out of alignment with what is real, evidencing disordered affections based on illusions. "Putting away childish things" (1 Cor. 13:11) means surrendering or letting die (καταργέω) self-centered emotions and desires, letting go of self-pity or bitterness, and refusing to blame others. Spiritual maturity implies humility, denying yourself, a word that means to stop thinking about yourself (from α-, "not," +ῥέω, "to speak"), and living the truth by sharing God's redemptive vision and mission for others. We must be careful, however, not to drift away, since it is possible to "forget" the truth that once guided our way; and it is possible to become dull of hearing, shortsighted, and to stop growing in relationship with God (Heb. 2:1). Spiritual truth is not merely intellectual but existential: we must earnestly pursue (διώκω) our heavenly calling (Phil 3:14) and this requires the daily and ongoing decision to live before the LORD our God (Psalm 16:8). The invitation to "choose this day whom you will serve" (Josh. 24:15) implies that is your choice - and your responsibility - to draw near to God (James 4:8). We can do this by studying and memorizing Scripture, meditating, praying, and sharing our hope with others. Above all we must ask God for the gift of the Holy Spirit to "bear us up into maturity" (i.e., ἐπὶ τὴν τελειότητα φερώμεθα, Heb 6:1) so that we may learn from our Master who calls us to be joined to his yoke and learn from him (Matt. 11:29). [Hebrew for Christians]

4.30.21 • Facebook

Today’s message from the Institute for Creation Research

May 1, 2021

Bruising the Devil

“And the God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.” (Romans 16:20)

This is an intriguing promise, suggesting that believers can somehow inflict bruises on the devil, who is perpetually seeking to “devour” them (1 Peter 5:8). This promise is a clear allusion to the primeval assurance of Genesis 3:15, when God promised that the unique “seed” of “the woman” would eventually “bruise” (actually “crush”) the head of the old serpent, the devil. This prophecy will finally be fulfilled in Christ’s ultimate victory, when Satan first will be bound for a thousand years in the bottomless pit and then confined forever in the lake of fire (Revelation 20:2, 10).

In the meantime believers, who also in a sense are the woman’s spiritual “seed” (Revelation 12:17), can repeatedly achieve local and temporary victories over Satan and his wiles by resisting him “stedfast in the faith” (1 Peter 5:9). If we resist him as Jesus did with relevant Scripture, then God promises that he will “flee from you” (James 4:7). Such local victories can be obtained over these dangerous teachers whom Satan is using (note Romans 16:17-19, just preceding today’s text) “shortly” in this manner, but we need to be continually alert against his recurrent attacks. The ultimate victory over Satan, of course, will be won only by the Lord Jesus when He returns, and we must “be sober, be vigilant” (1 Peter 5:8) until that time.

Whether we are aware of it or not, we must perpetually “wrestle...against the rulers of the darkness of this world” (Ephesians 6:12), who will be casting “fiery darts” (v. 16) against each believer. Finally, with the sword of the Spirit that is the Word of God (v. 17), we can even by God’s grace inflict spiritual wounds on Satan himself! HMM

[mith-gifs-wrestling]

There's a reason Roderick Strong is known as the Messiah of the Backbreaker and not the... Messiah of the Witty Repartee, I guess.

[biggoldbelt]

Roderick Strong def. Velveteen Dream to win the NXT North American Championship

Roderick Strong def. Velveteen Dream to win the NXT North American Championship

Prophecy fulfilled.

Some nine months after The Undisputed ERA guaranteed that all four of its members would be “draped in gold” within the year, Roderick Strong turned the bold prognostication into reality, defeating Velveteen Dream to capture the North American Title. The Messiah of the Backbreaker, however, didn’t do it alone.

The champion and challenger tore into each other with vigor — the…

[mayhemproduces]

And his opponent! Fighting out of Tampa, Florida, making his MPW debut, he is the Messiah of the Backbreaker, Rodrick Strong!

[tylerbatenet]

WWE Worlds Collide Results - May 1

Roderick Strong won the Men’s Battle Royal

Undisputed ERA have experienced their share of setbacks lately, but Roderick Strong made sure Worlds Collide wasn’t one of them. Strong’s world-renowned ring conditioning helped push The Messiah of the Backbreaker past 19 of NXT UK, 205 Live and NXT’s best and brightest to prevail in the Men’s Battle Royal.

Just as Strong’s victory cannot be disputed, the mayhem that took place before his hand was raised cannot be ignored. The action erupted from the opening bell and rarely let up. The highlight-reel moments came in rapid succession and ranged from the convivial (Eric Bugenhagen gifting Matt Riddle an air guitar so they could rock out together at ringside) to the daring (Dominik Dijakovic inviting the rest of the field to “come and get some” after he eliminated Fabian Aichner and Akira Tozawa).

Superstars from opposing brands came into conflict, creating intriguing standoffs, such as when Riddle and Dave Mastiff plastered each other with strikes. The Forgotten Sons and Joe & Mark Coffey found strength in numbers, while other alliances were strained, as Rinku Singh found out when he was eliminated by his own teammate, the massive Saurav Gurjar. The bodies continued to fly until only four Superstars remained: NXT’s Strong, Riddle and Gurjar and NXT UK’s Tyler Bate.

Collectively identifying the 6-foot-8, 300-pound Gurjar as the next obstacle to be removed, Strong, Riddle and Bate all went after the big man. Gurjar shook them off and even booted The Original Bro over the ropes and out of contention, before Bate channeled his inner Big Strong Boi and muscled Gurjar out of the ring, ending the Indian Superstar’s impressive WWE Network debut.

From there, it was a mad dash between Bate and Strong. Both Superstars tapped into their reserves and clobbered each other with their signature offense as the WWE fans chanted “This is awesome.” After several close calls, Bate, who was on the apron, tried springboarding his way back into the ring, only to be drilled by Strong’s knee strike. The Undisputed ERA member quickly capitalized on the predicament and dropkicked Bate to the floor.

While it’s doubtful that Strong would consider the result a victory for NXT so much as a win for The Undisputed ERA, such semantics matter not. Strong once again shocked the system, but this time the jolt reverberated through the black-and-gold brand and beyond.

Gallery Links: • Screen Captures: View • WWE.com Digitals: View

WWE Worlds Collide Results – May 1 was originally published on TYLER BATE NETWORK