| Verbal abuse is inflicting emotional or psychological | | | | 3. Learn to pay compliments; it will enable you to see |
| pains on your family members through the use of | | | | the good side of your family members who are |
| words. It may involve partners using abusive words | | | | working hard to please you. |
| against each other or parents using abusive words | | | | 4. You may need professional counseling or spiritual |
| against their children. Whatever the situation may be, | | | | deliverance if you failed repeatedly in your effort to |
| this evil is played out in so many families everyday | | | | turn a new leaf; it simply means that the habit is so |
| and all over the world. Words are powerful and could | | | | deeply ingrained that you need outside help to |
| destroy a person's self esteem over time. In fact the | | | | overcome it. |
| Bible in Proverbs 18:21 says: Death and life are in the | | | | 5. Learn new behaviors about relating to your family. |
| power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat | | | | Spend more time on family activities that engender |
| its fruit. | | | | closeness and build trust. Learn to relax with your |
| Words have power to build or destroy because | | | | family. |
| human beings were made in the image and likeness | | | | 6. Change your environment. If your work place |
| of God. God created the world by His spoken word | | | | environment is such that puts so much stress on you |
| as recorded in the book of Genesis and He sustains it | | | | that when you get home, you start spitting fire, it will |
| with His powerful word. Because we are made in his | | | | be worth changing jobs to promote family harmony. |
| image, we share in His creative power and so we can | | | | 7. Attend a Church that promotes strong family |
| do a lot of good with our words when we choose to | | | | values. This has a way of reinforcing your plan to |
| or cause a lot of destruction when we are careless | | | | stop verbally abusing your family members. |
| with our words. Since verbal abuse is a learned habit, | | | | 8. Keep the company of persons who do not |
| it can be unlearned through behavioral change. | | | | verbally abuse their family members. The bible says |
| Overcoming verbal abusive starts with: | | | | bad company corrupts good morals; therefore seek |
| 1. A change of heart. Reject violence as a way of | | | | good company. |
| dealing with your family; the bible in Proverbs 10:6 | | | | 9. The bible in Colossians 4:6 admonishes that your |
| says violence covers the mouth of the wicked. The | | | | words should be filled with grace and seasoned with |
| heart of man of man is desperately wicked so says | | | | salt. Your words should be such that empower, |
| Jeremiah 17:9. Ask the Lord Jesus to come in to your | | | | encourage and transform members of your family |
| life and bring about change that will make you | | | | for good. Deliberately build a new vocabulary of |
| appreciate your family members. | | | | words that deliver blessings on your family members. |
| 2. Develop the right attitude to your family members. | | | | 10. Train yourself to be an optimist. When you try to |
| Wife, accept your husband as your head and honour | | | | see the brighter side of situations, positive words and |
| him in your words and actions. Husband, love your | | | | actions would spring from you. People will love being |
| wife as a person sent by God to complement you | | | | in your company because you no longer find faults |
| and treat her with respect. Psalm 127 verse 3 says | | | | with how they look and what they do. People will not |
| children are a heritage from the Lord; do not use | | | | have to be self-conscious once they are in your |
| words to destroy your heritage from the Lord. | | | | company, they will be more relaxed in your presence. |