Deus Misereatur

  LORD God, to whom even the darkness is not dark; the night is bright as the day, for darkness is as light with you. Who formed our inward parts; knitted us together in our mother's wombs. We praise you, for we are fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; our soul knows it very well (Psalm 139:12-14). We remember those of our children and grandchildren who are still being formed by your skillful hands in their mother’s wombs (…). Smile on their gestation and may they each come forth always trusting in you and your goodness. But we also remember before you those who never saw the light of day, as well as those who quickly passed away (…). Thank you for the little moment their mamas and daddies had with them. Thank you for the brief kick or movement in their mother’s womb. We believe your Son when he said the kingdom of heaven is heavily populated with brephas , with pre-born and newborn children. Give soothing stillness and healthful wholeness to their mothers and ...

  Someone recently asked me if I have a prayer for situations of domestic abuse. This person helps to counsel abused persons, and explained they were needing a hand as they pray with and for them. I thought about it and couldn’t recollect one, though it is on my mind often, and it arises often in my private prayers. So, I pointed this individual to Psalm 146 and gave some pointers. That short discussion has stayed with me, and so I have decided to present one possible prayer. The biblical text is Psalm 146 .  Oh LORD God of Jacob, in whom alone we can trust. It is you who are our help and our hope. It is you who made heaven, earth, sea, and all that is in them. It is you who keeps faith forever, who executes justice for those oppressed, and gives food to the hungry. It is you who sets prisoners free, opens the eyes of the blind, lifts up those bowed down, loves the righteous, watches over sojourners, and upholds widows and orphans. And it is you who will bring ruin to the wi...

  Is It Abuse? A Biblical Guide to Identifying Domestic Abuse and Helping Victims Darby Strickland P&R Publishing Prpbooks.com ISBN: 9781629956947; 16 September 2020; $19.99   Domestic abuse has been an important subject to me as a man, as a Christian, and as a Presbyterian minister, for several years. Therefore, I was delighted when Darby Strickland, a counselor and teacher at Christian Counseling and Education Foundation (CCEF), and Presbyterian and Reformed Publishing asked me to be part of a “launch team” for Strickland’s new 360-page paperback coming out in a few days: “Is It Abuse? A Biblical Guide to Identifying Domestic Abuse and Helping Victims”. As soon as I received the electronic galley copy, I jumped in with both feet and was not disappointed. It is written in a comfortable style easily digestible by anyone who will take it up and read. But it is written primarily for those who desire to stand beside and help victims of domestic abuse. Therefore, t...

Emotional Abuse Recovery: Healing Your Heart after Codependent and Emotionally Abusive Relationships: How to Handle Narcissists, Controlling, Manipulative, Toxic People and Take Your Life Back by Martha McDowell My rating: 5 of 5 stars Here we are in the middle of the COVID-19 outbreak. The numbers of infected are piling up, and restrictions on human movement is mounting. Some States are even imposing a “shelter-in-place” restraint. It’s all for the purpose of flattening out the growing infection rates and is meant for our good. But it’s in the middle of such hunkering down that another potential problem can rise. Strapped to homes and secreted away behind certain closed doors, there is a perfect environment for abusive people to rain down hurt on their victims with little to hold them back. That’s what makes Martha McDowell’s 128-page paperback, “Emotional Abuse Recovery” a well-timed and worthy read. The material is presented simply, and without technicalities. Anyone from 16 to ...

As I read Exodus this morning in my devotional time, Exodus 2:23-25 struck a nerve and evoked a prayer for someone being emotionally, financially, psychologically, and religiously oppressed and abused. LORD God, Almighty, All-knowing, All-present: you are the God who heard Israel's groaning under oppression; you are the God who remembered your covenant; you are the God who saw what was happening to your people; you are the God who knew ! Look upon XXXX and XXXX and XXXX. O God who heard - hear our prayers and cries to you, hear their groans and the fear in their voice. Hear, O God, the threats, accusations and manipulative verbal assaults! Hear, O God! O God who remembered - remember the covenant ratified by your Son, Jesus Christ, and how XXXX is part of your covenant, as are their children. Remember that they are yours and you have promised them your aid; that you are for them and they have nothing to fear (Psalm 56:9c-10). Remember, O God! O God who saw - see what...

Why Me?: Comfort for the Victimized by David A. Powlison My rating: 5 of 5 stars Forty-four pages of grit and goodness! That's the best way to describe this booklet by David Powlison, executive director of Christian Counseling and Education Foundation and senior editor of the Journal of Biblical Counseling! Powlison writes this manuscript for those who have truly been vandalized and victimized by others. He doesn't lessen their anguish or make light of their angst. What he does do is walk the reader through Psalm 10, showing how to use the Psalm, the ways this Psalm draws us to Christ, and propels us to trust the good God, since faith "finds God in suffering, producing endurance, love, and hope" (23). Christian sufferers (the raped, abused, falsely accused, abandoned, etc.) should read this with open hearts, open journals, and ready pens. You will want to jot down notes as you become familiar with this God-given song. In the first part of the pamphlet Powlison s...

Why Does He Do That?: Inside the Minds of Angry and Controlling Men by Lundy Bancroft My rating: 5 of 5 stars "Why Does He Do That?: Inside the Minds of Angry and Controlling Men" is 432 pages of empowering enlightenment! Here is a volume written by an author who has over 20 years working with abusive men and domestic abuse. Bancroft provides the reader with very simple-to-grasp concepts of abuse, what is happening in an abusive relationship, and the goals of an abuser. Through the numerous chapters Bancroft leads readers into the different facets of power, control, manipulation, entitlement, and others, to expose how abusers think. The author gives many examples of the ways victimizers minimize their own wrongdoing, shift the blame, retaliate and punish, and never truly take responsibility for their particular faults. As he notes, the abusive mindset is fueled by the attitudes and values of ownership (he owns you); entitlement (he is entitled to you, and to have his way);...

Domestic Abuse: Help for the Sufferer by Darby A. Strickland My rating: 5 of 5 stars You find out that your loved one is being berated by their spouse, verbally and emotionally beat into submission. Your Christian neighbor comes over to talk, and begins to pour out their heart describing how their spouse demands their submission, even quoting the Scriptures that talk about male headship, spiritually pounding them into shame. What help can you give, if any? Maybe you find yourself in a cycle of physical, verbal, or emotional violence that comes around after a season of apologies, flowers and sweets. You start noticing that the next stage is the increase of blame from your significant other - "If you hadn't have burned the toast, I wouldn't have exploded like that," or some-such. All of these situations and more are covered in Darby Strickland's "Domestic Abuse: Help for the Sufferer." This small booklet is crammed full of helpful information, heartfel...

The Heart of Domestic Abuse: Gospel Solutions for Men Who Use Control and Violence in the Home by Chris Moles My rating: 5 of 5 stars The signs are clear. He shouts at her often, sometimes smashing holes through the walls with his fists, then blaming her nagging ways for his outburst. He demands to know her every move, even placing tracking apps on her cell phone. He limits her "alone-time" with her friends because they're bad for her. Recently he took control of the family finances, even mandating that all earned income be turned over to him. Not only does he threaten to leave her and take the kids, but she found out recently that he tells the children he can't trust their mother and they need inform him whenever she does something they know he won't like. These are a few of the indications of domestic abuse. They may not be physically violent, but they are threatening, oppressive, and suffocating. If you are this family's pastor or elder, do you ignore i...

Domestic Abuse: Recognize, Respond, Rescue by Darby A. Strickland My rating: 5 of 5 stars Wow! Just plain wow! Darby Strickland, a Christian Counselor who teaches Counseling Abusive Marriages,through CCEF's School of Biblical Counseling, has penned a potent and profitable manuscript, and packaged it in this 52 page mini-book. The subject is serious, the content constructive, and the tone is tutorial. Strickland begins with an opening scene where "Clint" and "Ashley" are sitting in her office beginning counseling...actually, she's the sixth counselor they've seen. The author is caught completely off guard by the tactics "Clint" uses to cover up his own oppressive conduct and actions. It took several sessions before she realized what was happening and the danger "Ashley" was in. I almost fell out of my chair as I was reading this scene, because it followed a pattern I too had experienced a few short years ago. Then I sat up and st...