Threats to Discipling the Home: Priorities

The so-called dominance hierarchy. This idea is that a higher-ranking animal is within a given social order. (1) Alpha wolves, for example, lead the pack. Same with domestic hens. One member of a specific species has the capacity and power to dominate others. How funny would it be to imagine an emaciated, mangey wolf leading a pack filled with lean, robust, and healthy members? 

Would you believe it though, that priorities have a pecking order? It’s baked right into the name, after all. A priority is “something that is considered more important than other matters.” (2) If you had to evaluate what was most important in your life, what would it be? What would be your measuring stick? What if I told you that what we prioritize is what we do? Our values might be internal, but the things we most cherish come out in the physical. (3) What we think matters most gets our best—our money, time, and emotional bandwidth.

Do our priorities match God’s priorities? After all, the Great Commandment and the Great Commission are intimately tied together. “Make disciples” is an application of “love the Lord your God…and love your neighbor as yourself”. (4) I miss the mark here more often than I would like to admit. Even more, loving people by making disciples is not always on my mind when working, reading, gaming, or, most importantly, when I am at home. One of the greatest threats to discipleship in the home is that our priorities are not God’s. We can be awesome parents and amazing spouses but still miss God’s heartbeat for your home by degrees. 

Can we course correct? Friend, you can! Let me encourage you to act in a few ways:

  • Discipleship priorities privilege God’s desires for the home. The Spirit leads us in truth, but the vocabulary He uses to do that is Scripture. He will never lead you to do something contrary to the Bible. And He longs to show you God’s heart for Himself, yourself, and the world around you. The primary way He does that is through the inspired Word! Do you know what God thinks of your home? Deuteronomy 6:6-8 echoes out of the pages of the Hebrew Bible to us today, highlighting the critical importance of family—and discipleship in your family. Prioritize discipleship in your home, above all else, in everything you do.

  • Discipleship priorities are fed in prayer. We need spiritual help to prioritize spiritual discipline. Not only do we follow Jesus, our Master. We are also helping others do the same. Imagine Jesus—filled with the Spirit, healing the sick, calming storms…that Jesus—went to pray. (5) Regularly and often. He would pray for his friends; He even prayed for us. (6) If Jesus prayed for those He discipled—including us—then we join him. Not only for our good but also for their good

  • Discipleship priorities are planned in advance. “Proper preparation prevents poor performance.” A family gathering around the Word and prayer frantically or poorly is still a family being discipled. Could it be done better? Absolutely. Spending just a couple of minutes selecting a passage to read, assigning who can pray, and what time y’all are going to do it communicates worth. 

  • Discipleship priorities require participation. Execute. All that is left is to do the thing. This is hard for career-driven workaholics who naturally prioritize income and provision as a significant priority. And while parents must provide for kiddos, don’t buy the hype! The most important thing you can do is teach your kids to follow Jesus! Husbands, give your wives the Word! (7) Wives, pray for and over your families.

I’m praying for you right now, asking God to move love for him and your family to its most at-home place in your life. You’re planned up, prayed up, and Worded up. Demonstrate Jesus’ priorities to your families.

Timothy Bitz 

Lead Pastor | Hazelwood Baptist Church

  1.  “Dominance Hierarchy - an Overview | ScienceDirect Topics,” accessed July 26, 2023, https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/biochemistry-genetics-and-molecular-biology/dominance-hierarchy.

  2. “Priority,” July 26, 2023, https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/priority.

  3. Matthew 6:21

  4. Matthew 28:18-20; 22:37-38

  5. Matthew 14:23; Luke 5:16

  6. John 17

  7. Ephesians 5:26

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