One explanation for violence in the home is feelings of inferiority in the offenders. Anything that threatens to expose these feelings is often met with anger that transforms into aggression. Aggressive acts of family violence are actually attempts to cover fear of loss of control and power.
For most people, authority is made obvious by the person’s natural gifts and talents, their leadership skills as well as being someone who can be trusted and respected. Feelings of inferiority are identified by low self-esteem, low self-worth, not measuring up, and fear of being subordinate to others.
The perpetrator of family violence may or may not recognize these markers. The big lie is, “I am strong and I will prove it through anger and violence.” Proverbs 4 gives this advice: “Be careful how you think; your life is shaped by your thoughts.” You can change the lies you tell yourself by substituting the truth of God’s word.
__________
This is what the Lord
says: “Let not the wise boast of their wisdom or the strong boast of their strength
or the rich boast of their riches, but let the one who boasts boast about this:
that they have the understanding to know me, that I am the Lord, who exercises
kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight,” declares
the Lord.
