This past weekend I and my husband got invited to attend the wedding of one of my best friend's firstborn.
What a handsome groom. What a beautiful bride!
It was a gorgeous day, and the sunset was magnificent as my husband and I left the reception.
Another child I watched grow up is married.
Yesterday my son's Intended came for the afternoon, and it was a sweet time of quiet fellowship, campfire, games, and good food.
I've got romance on my mind!
But not just romance. Ceremony and commitment is all a part of this tender subject.
Weddings are ceremonies. They are seals of pledges made by two human beings, (opposite sex, I must add) to become one flesh.
Weddings are for the observers: the participants and guests, as much as for the bride and groom.
When you attend a wedding you are approving the match, you are committing to helping the match endure, to praying for them, to help "make it work." It's a responsibility and a privilege.
You are a piece of the lives of the couple.
A Christian wedding is holy. There are few times we are called upon to make vows, and this is one of the big ones. For some it might be the only vow one ever makes!
People often forget that in a Christian wedding the vows are made not only to each other, but to God Himself. The bride and groom are making a promise to God to stay in a marriage until one of them dies.
And a blessing is spoken.
Vows are not to be broken. God hates it when they are. Because He never breaks His promises His example is for us. He asks us to be holy, perfect, becoming more like Him. He asks us to keep our promises. Always. (Yes, he has a few caveats for rash vows or vows made with youthful exuberance). Generally, though, He holds us to our promises, and when we break them (and most people do) there are always negative consequences.
I just read the Biblical account of Jephthah. Perhaps we could learn something from this story about a rash vow, and the seriousness of keeping it.
In light of this seriousness, I think it should be a frequent reminder that wedding ceremonies really should be SERIOUS.
That it is a time of celebration is a given, but the service itself is a time of contemplation. It is a time of commitment. Silliness shouldn't play a part, but joy is a main character.
I loved looking back to the meaning of the symbolism of many western wedding traditions. I found many interesting ideas about white dresses, giving of the bride, rings, and wedding cake.
If you are interested, look up some of these! It makes a traditional wedding so much more meaningful.
Marriage is the product of the wedding, and of course it has infinitely more importance. Whom you marry can make all the difference in the world, and how you work out your existence on earth will be ultimately affected by your marriage.
Therefore step into it with great caution!!
(Please remember that my audience is my own offspring, primarily!)
Marriage takes work. Marriage is working out your promise to God, to serve another human with either love or respect, and sometimes both. :)
Marriage can be a great way to spend time with your best friend, or provide a secure environment to raise the next generation of humans. It can be a building-block of society, and a financial boon. It can provide a healthy and safe outlet for fulfilling human behavior, love, and affection. Marriage provides male and female role models for children. Sometimes it creates a team better equipped for serving others, the husband doing the heavy lifting and leading, and the wife filling in with the smaller or feminine (multi-tasking) details!
It is a lovely tradition, and it would be sad to see it go in our society.
I know it will not pass from Christian tradition in the Biblical interpretation of faith, and that is comforting.
Marriage is all these things.
As the world changes we will rely on the power of God to keep our lives pleasing to Him. He has given us His blueprint in His Word, and the power to keep His commands.
I know that so many say there is change afoot, that we cannot hold to old things like the Bible and its claims and admonishments, that we must morph its meaning to our new culture (whatever that means!).
I think that God will faithfully allow those of us who still hold to Scripture the power to stand for Godly things. I think marriage fits exactly in that genre.
My friend has 10 children. We figured that it could be about 20 years of weddings for her and her husband ahead!
That's a whole bunch of fun ahead!
What a handsome groom. What a beautiful bride!
It was a gorgeous day, and the sunset was magnificent as my husband and I left the reception.
Another child I watched grow up is married.
Yesterday my son's Intended came for the afternoon, and it was a sweet time of quiet fellowship, campfire, games, and good food.
I've got romance on my mind!
But not just romance. Ceremony and commitment is all a part of this tender subject.
Weddings are ceremonies. They are seals of pledges made by two human beings, (opposite sex, I must add) to become one flesh.
Weddings are for the observers: the participants and guests, as much as for the bride and groom.
When you attend a wedding you are approving the match, you are committing to helping the match endure, to praying for them, to help "make it work." It's a responsibility and a privilege.
You are a piece of the lives of the couple.
A Christian wedding is holy. There are few times we are called upon to make vows, and this is one of the big ones. For some it might be the only vow one ever makes!
People often forget that in a Christian wedding the vows are made not only to each other, but to God Himself. The bride and groom are making a promise to God to stay in a marriage until one of them dies.
And a blessing is spoken.
Vows are not to be broken. God hates it when they are. Because He never breaks His promises His example is for us. He asks us to be holy, perfect, becoming more like Him. He asks us to keep our promises. Always. (Yes, he has a few caveats for rash vows or vows made with youthful exuberance). Generally, though, He holds us to our promises, and when we break them (and most people do) there are always negative consequences.
I just read the Biblical account of Jephthah. Perhaps we could learn something from this story about a rash vow, and the seriousness of keeping it.
In light of this seriousness, I think it should be a frequent reminder that wedding ceremonies really should be SERIOUS.
That it is a time of celebration is a given, but the service itself is a time of contemplation. It is a time of commitment. Silliness shouldn't play a part, but joy is a main character.
I loved looking back to the meaning of the symbolism of many western wedding traditions. I found many interesting ideas about white dresses, giving of the bride, rings, and wedding cake.
If you are interested, look up some of these! It makes a traditional wedding so much more meaningful.
Marriage is the product of the wedding, and of course it has infinitely more importance. Whom you marry can make all the difference in the world, and how you work out your existence on earth will be ultimately affected by your marriage.
Therefore step into it with great caution!!
(Please remember that my audience is my own offspring, primarily!)
Marriage takes work. Marriage is working out your promise to God, to serve another human with either love or respect, and sometimes both. :)
Marriage can be a great way to spend time with your best friend, or provide a secure environment to raise the next generation of humans. It can be a building-block of society, and a financial boon. It can provide a healthy and safe outlet for fulfilling human behavior, love, and affection. Marriage provides male and female role models for children. Sometimes it creates a team better equipped for serving others, the husband doing the heavy lifting and leading, and the wife filling in with the smaller or feminine (multi-tasking) details!
It is a lovely tradition, and it would be sad to see it go in our society.
I know it will not pass from Christian tradition in the Biblical interpretation of faith, and that is comforting.
Marriage is all these things.
As the world changes we will rely on the power of God to keep our lives pleasing to Him. He has given us His blueprint in His Word, and the power to keep His commands.
I know that so many say there is change afoot, that we cannot hold to old things like the Bible and its claims and admonishments, that we must morph its meaning to our new culture (whatever that means!).
I think that God will faithfully allow those of us who still hold to Scripture the power to stand for Godly things. I think marriage fits exactly in that genre.
My friend has 10 children. We figured that it could be about 20 years of weddings for her and her husband ahead!
That's a whole bunch of fun ahead!
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