In all seriousness, Alice and I are both excited and pleased. Caroline is marrying a nice young man named Shane. He and his parents lived nearby; they are a great family. As a bonus, Shane and Caroline will be living only a few minutes away (so we can bother them a lot). It is a good situation all around.
Although I hope the wedding goes well, the much more important thing is the marriage. I pray that God will bless them with many, many years together. After salvation, being married may be God's greatest gift to humanity. I've been married to Alice for almost 25 years now. I wouldn't trade any of it for anything.
Ultimately, marriage is picture to us of Christ's love for His church. Paul tells us in Ephesians 5:
Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, 26 that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, 27 so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. 28 In the same way husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29 For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church, 30 because we are members of his body. 31 “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” 32 This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church. 33 However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband (Ephesians 5:25-33).
Now, I just have to remember my one line for the wedding. It's something like, "Her mother and I do."
1 comment:
Eric,
You have brought back memories that are now thirty-five years old when our eldest (a daughter) married. Emotions are high when one of ones "babies" fly the nest, but as I was the celebrant I had great difficulty keeping the emotions under control.
By by the way,that would not be the case now as I hold far different views regarding both 'pastors", as you no doubt realize, as well as "pastors" acting as agents of the state.
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