2018 October Project

Greetings

We are approaching October, the month in which the masses are educated on being aware of and preventing domestic violence.

The approaching of the “And He Restoreth My Soul Project” will be no different. Our project will take you on a walk through the home to see first hand the effects of violence on the family and it will explore some of the tools available to aid in healing.

Family violence defined

From the National Criminal Justice Reference Services:

Family violence covers a broad range of acts that can include emotional, financial, physical, and sexual abuse. Family violence not only harms the victim, but it also poses dangers for and impacts immediate family members as well.

The goal of violence

The goal is to give the hearts of men and women in the family an excuse. Violence creates reasons to live and to breathe. The reasons fuel violence, and given the slightest chance, violence will change the look of men and women until they become unrecognizable. It won’t look as if anything can be salvaged from their hearts. This is what violence is capable of when it grips the heart.

Violence doesn’t care

Remember violence is not prejudiced. Violence does not care about the neighborhood you live in or how influential you are. Violence doesn’t care about the amount of money you have or your social position in society.  Violence only cares about a place to live, incubate, and grow. Violence wants to dwell in safety, yet have the ability to spread like an infectious disease. Guess what? The heart is the chosen dwelling place.

A few men and women come out of violent families with only a few scars, but other men and women aren’t so fortunate. Their scars are deep, scary, and tender because the infection injected goes deep. The tragedy continues as these men and women give life to other hearts. Thus, the cycle of violence begins and violence speaks, “Aah I’m safe because they won’t get help.”

Violence, at its best, is wild and believed untamable in the perpetrator’s heart. It is demonstrated in the cycle of violence.

Helpful discussions

The “And He Restoreth My Soul” October Project will include topics, facts, and data about family violence, survivor stories, forgiveness from a moral and from a biblical purview, the essential art of listening, poetry, and so much more! I applaud all of the contributors for their contributions to the 2018 October Project.

2018 October goal

Throughout October, the information shared is meant to educate our minds, elevate our thinking, and encourage us to change. As a reader and follower of the “And He Restoreth My Soul” October Project, you will be challenged to make a decision. Will you remain in bystander mode or will you become a force directed toward helping someone who has been exposed to violence?

PLEASE ADVISE: If at any time you are triggered by any of the information presented please call 1-800-799-SAFE (7233) or TTY 1-800-787-3224 to reach the Domestic Violence Hotline, or reach out to your counselor.

Please remember, HOPE… A LIGHT to PEACE.

With A Sincere Heart,

Darlene J. Harris

Serving at the Pleasure of God

Resources

https://www.ncjrs.gov/family-violence/