Monday, October 7, 2013

Wuv, twue wuv...

Ignore my expression and look at Becky, Steven and the beach
About ten days ago, I had the pleasure of conducting a wedding ceremony for my daughter, Becky, and her husband, Steven. They were officially married on 12/12/12, but wanted something more meaningful to share with their friends and family. The ceremony was at the beach and both it and the participants were amazingly photogenic as these pictures attest.

Becky asked that I read 1 Corinthians 13 and allowed me to say a few words after doing so. Here are the portions of that chapter that I talked about in the context of marriage:

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
Love never fails.
And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

Susie and the happy couple
I told them (and everyone else there) that the love Paul describes must be an action, a verb, not just a feeling, or a noun. Love is something we must choose to do. Every day.

I said that on that day Becky was beautiful and Steven was handsome. They fervently meant their vows, their “I dos.” But, that will not remain always true. Beauty fades. “I dos” and “I wills” become “I don’ts” and “I won’ts.”

I explained that both of them (and all of us) need to put Paul’s words into action. The love he describes is not the natural outcome of the love they had for each other that beautiful day. We aren’t always patient, kind, trusting, hopeful, or truthful. Indeed, human love does fail.

Everyone is jumping for joy!
Human ability is not sufficient to do what Paul describes. He describes agape love, the sacrificing love that God has for each of us. We need God’s help to love each other, even in a good marriage.

I prayed for them (and everyone at the ceremony) that they would allow God’s love for each of them to assist them in loving their spouses.

The muttonchops that almost appeared 
Steven had asked me if I would conduct part of the ceremony like the bishop in Princess Bride. I had planned to do so and went so far as to get fluffy, muttonchop sideburns like in the movie. They were, however, a bit too difficult to get on without being too hard to get off! So, this picture will have to suffice. I did conclude the ceremony by saying, “May wuv, twue wuv fowow you foweva.”

I continue to pray that Becky and Steven (and other married couples, including Susie and I) will put in the effort to experience twue wuv. 

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