What should be the order of priorities in our family?

Question: "What should be the order of priorities in our family?" Answer: The Bible does not lay out a step by step order in a single passage. However, we can still look to the Scriptures to determine the order of our priorities. God obviously comes first: Deuteronomy 6:5 (NLT) "And you must love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength."

If you are not married and do not have children, parents come next: Colossians 3:20 (NLT) “You children must always obey your parents, for this is what pleases the Lord.” If you do have children, it would be children then parents.

If you are married, your spouse comes next after God. 1 Corinthians 7:32-35 (NIV) “I would like you to be free from concern. An unmarried man is concerned about the Lord’s affairs-how he can please the Lord. But a married man is concerned about the affairs of this world-how he can please his wife-and his interests are divided. An unmarried woman or virgin is concerned about the Lord’s affairs: Her aim is to be devoted to the Lord in both body and spirit. But a married woman is concerned about the affairs of this world-how she can please her husband. I am saying this for your own good, not to restrict you, but that you may live in a right way in undivided devotion to the Lord.”

Next come children (Proverbs 22:6), and then parents (Ephesians 6:1-4). Being that a husband and wife are one flesh (Ephesians 5:31), parents and parents-in-law are together in the “order of ministry.” After parents come the rest of one’s family, loved ones, and fellow believers (Galatians 5:13-15), then, finally, the rest of the world (Matthew 28:19-20). In conclusion: God > Spouse > Children > Parents > Extended Family > Friends > World.

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