The roots of FamilyLife go back as far as 1951, with the beginning of Campus Crusade for Christ. In 1976, Campus Crusade began Family Ministry to provide pre-marriage seminars for its staff members. Following our success in meeting the needs of pre-marrieds, married staff couples began asking for encouragement through marriage seminars. Community leaders and pastors soon found out about the seminars and said they were exactly what couples needed -- the blueprints on how to build strong homes. Family Ministry, now called FamilyLife, opened the FamilyLife Marriage Conference to the public in 1978.

Family Priorities, Inc. exists to serve marriages and families. The ministry focus is to equip and partner with you for your marriage and family to enjoy maximum success. The sequence for success moves from...

          Healing Hurts...

                    ...to Health and Happiness.

Since God established marriage and family for His purpose, this ministry depends upon Him and His Word for solutions. We examine real life issues and find real life answers. We recognize that the Lord Jesus Christ is very much alive and is the hope of marriage and family. Only God’s ways work. He is relevant. He is loving. He heals. God's plan works.

The Family Research Council (FRC) champions marriage and family as the foundation of civilization, the seedbed of virtue, and the wellspring of society. FRC shapes public debate and formulates public policy that values human life and upholds the institutions of marriage and the family. Believing that God is the author of life, liberty, and the family, FRC promotes the Judeo-Christian worldview as the basis for a just, free, and stable society.

Core Principles

• God exists and is sovereign over all creation. He created human beings in His image. Human life is, therefore, sacred and the right to life is the most fundamental of political rights.
• Life and love are inextricably linked and find their natural expression in the institutions of marriage and the family.
• Government has a duty to promote and protect marriage and family in law and public policy.
• The American system of law and justice was founded on the Judeo-Christian ethic.
• American democracy depends upon a vibrant civil society composed of families, churches, schools, and voluntary associations.

FOCCUS is an internationally used inventory designed to provide engaged couples and those working with them a PERSONALIZED PROFILE of what is needed in their marriage preparation process. It is both a starting place for couple discussion and a map of what issues need time and attention, affirmation or problem solving.

• 156 basic questions plus additional questions for remarried, interfaith and/or cohabiting couples.
• Not a test but the source of the FOCCUS REPORT which shows patterns of strengths and challenges in 19 categories for couples to use independently with a trained facilitator or as part of other preparation processes.
• User friendly for diverse populations: five editions in ten languages, with five options for scoring,a broad range of facilitator training options and supporting materials, suitable for administration to individual couples or groups of couples.
• Strong psychometric characteristics: high reliability with content, construct and predictive validity.

BUILDING THE FOUNDATION, DEFINING A CHRISTIAN MARRIAGE AND PROVIDING THE TOOLS AND RESOURCES TO FORTIFY YOUR MARRIAGE.

Any marriage can become strong to withstand the storms that will come against it. It can become a flourishing, growing marriage fulfilling to both husband and wife.

OUR PURPOSE: To be used by God to fortify marriages. To make a difference in lives, marriages and families.

OUR VISION: To see marriages become healthy, productive, able to withstand the storms of life and used by God to strengthen other marriages.

OUR MISSION: To provide direction and education through resources and training to individuals, couples and churches in order to help them define and build a solid foundation for a Christian marriage.

Friends of the Family Ministries offers counseling services, refers to other Christian counselors, and facilitates marriage mentoring. Ken & Mary Himes also lead seminars on marriage, family, and relationship issues.