Resources on Domestic Abuse

I'm posting a followup at Theology for Girls with a list of resources on Domestic Abuse. I've also added a tab at the top of my blog with the same list which I will be updating as time goes on.

I also want to highlight how we define abuse. We may assume that abuse is conflict that requires compromise or one party acquiescing to the other. However, this is not the case. As I was compiling resources, I came across this concise and clear definition:

Domestic abuse is persistent or recurrent behavior by an intimate partner that causes physical, sexual or psychological damage, or causes the victim to live in fear. It is not just marital conflict over particular issues (which can be conflict between equals). Abuse is about power. One party exerting power to control the other. [1] 

But even in the face of this sin, God is greater. Here is a word of encouragement:

The gospel does miraculously change lives, but this is not a "quick fix" for family violence. The gospel truth sets us free by exposing our sin and by bringing us to the end of ourselves. Thus, the mandate of the church is to proclaim the all sufficiency of Christ in our weakness and brokenness, not in our beauty and perfection (2 Cor. 4:7–18). Christ came for the sick not for the healthy (Matt. 9:9–13). The church is for broken sinners who have the same problems and needs as the rest of the fallen world. We are all in constant need of the grace of God (1 Cor. 15:10). Ministry to survivors and perpetrators of DV (domestic violence) is living out the truth of the gospel in a pure and beautiful manner...

We evangelicals showcase the beauty and power of the gospel when we actively face the reality of abuse in all its ugliness. Many of us have, at times, ignored the truth and failed to respond to family violence in a godly and redemptive manner. Thankfully, by God's grace, this can change. [2]

1. Are You Walking on Eggshells? by Barbara Roberts
2. Calling the Church to Truth: Domestic Violence and the Gospel by Steven R. Tracy, Professor of Theology and Ethics, Phoenix Seminary