Cup Of Faith Daily Devotional 29 October 2022 – Extortion In Family Relationships

OPIC: Extortion In Family Relationships

BIBLE TEXT: “…You extort unjust gain from your neighbors. And you have forgotten me, declares the Sovereign LORD.” – Ezekiel 22:12

One of the prominent areas where extortion is prevalent is in family relationships. In many homes, this evil occurs between husbands and wives and between parents and their wards. The marriage relationship is a two-way street that requires communication and honesty. While many actions can destroy a marriage, like abuse or infidelity, other non-subtle behaviors are just as toxic and can also damage your marriage and relationships. Most family dynamics involve some degree of manipulation.

Extortion in relationships occur when one party either holds something ‘hostage’ from the other or obtains something through coercion. Coercion can include threats of abuse or violence, but it does not need to be physical; it can be emotional. This is what is psychologically referred to as emotional extortion or emotional blackmail. Family ties evoke a lot of strong emotions and some people make deliberate use of these feelings. They might, for example, exploit a weakness when they want you to do things you’d rather not do — including things that cause you pain.

A family member using emotional blackmail will make a deliberate appeal to your feelings to try to convince you to do what he wants. This tactic follows a clear pattern: when any of the parties involved makes a demand from the other and there is resistance or outright refusal, he or she mounts pressure to force the other party to give in. This often involves flattery or threats designed to engage his or her emotions or sense of obligation.

There are wives who see their husbands as ATMs and vice versa. Some wives manipulate their husbands and extort money. They tell lies and overshoot budgets unnecessarily. To such women, it is just a game of love to double the original cost of stocking the house with foodstuffs in order to satisfy some other personal needs. This is nothing but stealing by style. In like manner, we have husbands who, in the name of love, extort their wives. They deliberately borrow money from their wives without the aim of refunding it. Such men fake emotional stories to manipulate their wives into vomiting money by fire by force.

Children are not left out in the game of extortion. There are children who rob their parents by style. They tell lies to make financial demands without any remorse. It is common to hear of students making requests for fund to pay fees, bills or dues that are non-existent. Even where it exists, they deceitfully add certain percentage to the actual amount. There are those who collect money for books and other school materials that they don’t really need and that they will never buy.

Beloved of God, it is a bad habit to manipulatively extort unjust gain from your husband, your wife or any of your parents. It is ungodly, unethical and morally unacceptable. Those who do it cannot claim to know God.

PROPHETIC PRAYER

I pray for you today:

1. May the Lord uproot the seed of extortion in your home in the name of Jesus.
2. He will help you to repent before it boomerangs.
3. You will not continue to betray the trust of your partner.
4. This weekend, the Lord will send help to you.
5. He will do the impossible in your life.

So shall it be in Jesus name. Amen.

Nice weekend.

CHRIST IS THE ANSWER.

Yours in Christ,
Revd Dr. Bayo Sola Aremu
Church pastor
Yaba Baptist Church
Sabo-Yaba, Lagos

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