Certified biblical counselor and long-term missionary Dr. Anne Dryburgh describes in biblical terms what secularists refer to as 'emotional abuse'. From her long experience she explains how an abusive parent relates to a child, and the effects on the child. Her book will assist you in discovering how you can live out the profound truth that in Christ you have everything, including everything for dealing with your childhood experiences.
From the Foreword
'Emotional abuse is a term that can be easily misunderstood and as a result, misused....Anne Dryburgh is an excellent person to address this issue and help us see with the clarity of Scripture what emotional abuse is, how to perceive it, and how to respond to it in a healthy and God glorifying way. Combined with her command of Scripture, Scottish wit, and abundant experience helping people navigate these troubling circumstances, Anne provides us with a sympathetic, compassionate, and hope-giving resource to help people rightly understand and respond to their experiences of emotional abuse' - Dr Andrew Rogers.
How this book can help you
The aim of this book is to help you realize that if you have suffered parental emotional abuse, you can live in the truth that in Christ you have everything you need for life and godliness (2 Peter 1:3; Ephesians 1:3). In Christ, you have everything, including everything for dealing with your childhood experiences. That sounds crazy when you think of the suffering you may have endured as you were growing up. It also sounds crazy when the lasting effects clearly impacted who you are, but this book will help you discover how you can live out this profound truth. We will learn what secularists refer to as emotional abuse, how to understand it biblically, what it looks like in how a parent relates to a child, and at the effects on the child. As we look at these effects, we will also look at what is true about being in Christ and how you can live on the basis of who you are in him. We will also meet Laura in several of the chapters, hear about what she suffered, and how she learned to see who she is in Christ and deal graciously with her parent.
What this book is not
Since this is a short book not every question concerning parental emotional abuse could possibly be addressed. It cannot cover every practical issue you may be facing, nor does it present all the Bible teaches on the subject since that would take a much longer book.