Uniquely God's

I wept a few times yesterday. I was putting together a binder of the wedding ceremony for your Daddy. While reading through the vows, exchanging of the rings, declaration of marriage and introduction of the newlyweds, I kept wiping away tears. I could hear my daughter and her fiance reciting the words and kept getting choked up. But that didn't get me nearly as much as a decision Ayla made. I asked her what she wanted to walk down the aisle to, and she said she was thinking about using a segment of the song "Your Hands Are Cold" from Pride & Prejudice by Dario Marianelli. This is one of my favorite songs of all time. To me it is the perfect blend of piano and violin in a breathtaking crescendo that is euphoric. Plus, cinematically, Darcy is walking through the fog in the wee hours of the morning to the woman who bewitched him body and soul. Ahhh, so romantic. The same piece of music is used earlier in the film when Elizabeth stands precariously on the edge of a jutting rock over a cliff in the Peak District of the United Kingdom, the wind blowing through her hair and whipping back her coat as she thinks about Darcy. But to top that all off, that portion of the song has been the ringtone on my cellphone for Ayla for the last three years. When that song plays, I think of my daughter. So to hear that is what she wants to walk down the aisle to her beloved got me all teary eyed again. How will I ever get through this service?

Special touching moments like this make your wedding ceremony yours. While the service itself is about worship of the Almighty and professing sacred vows before him, adding individual touches unique to the couple make it even more distinct and personal. Themes, colors, decorations and music mold the worship service into a microcosm example of what each couple is as a God-selected team, made up of two gifted, talented, crafted souls.

I am so looking forward to celebrating this wedding day with my daughter and future son-in-law in just 16 days. And looking forward to celebrating an equally unique celebration with Anton and Kayla next June. I am proud of these couples and what they are selecting to do in their ceremonies and receptions. But mostly grateful that though they are each very different personalities, each are created in God's image and will be glorifying Him in every aspect of their marriage celebrations. Praising Him for Who He is and thanking Him for what He has made ... especially the musical talent of Marianelli and a song that has multiple, precious meanings for us and now yet a new one to come on this most important of days.

Discussion: What are some unique aspects of your wedding that are representative of you as individuals and as a couple? How do those moments glorify the Lord?

Prayer: Lord God, you are so amazing and we proclaim your name and lift our holy hands in praise to you. Thank you for the uniqueness in each of us. We pray we reflect your character as we go about our daily lives. And we pray the personal touches of our weddings, reflect you as well. In Jesus, Amen.

The Greatest Romance In History

So I'm putting on my overalls and tank top to go outside and do some yard work right before your Daddy was heading off to work, and he walks in the bedroom to get a kiss good-bye, "Oh, you look sexy!" he says. That could be, right there, one of the greatest love quotes of all time. Here I am in my scuzzy clothes - the non-figure defining fashion faux pas #57 - and my beloved husband thinks I am sexy. It sure put a little skip in my step as I went out to wash windows and water the flowers.

Two days ago at lunch, I was watching the movie City of Angels. A fictitious story about an angel named Seth (played by Nicolas Cage) who falls in love with a doctor named Maggie (Meg Ryan). He falls from grace to become a human to be with her. Just days later she dies in an accident. Visited by an angel after she dies, Seth is asked if he had known what was going to happen to Maggie, would he still have fallen. He responds, "I would rather have had one breath of her hair, one kiss of her mouth, one touch of her hand, than eternity without it. One." That is a great love quote. Another great one from that movie, is when Maggie is dying. "I'm not afraid. When they ask me what I liked the best, I'll tell them, it was you." Cue the waterworks.

Both quotes speak of the depth of their love. Quotes like "You complete me," from Jerry Maguire. and "You have bewitched me, body and soul, and I love, I love, I love you. I never wish to be parted from you from this day on" from Pride and Prejudice. You don't question that kind of love. It's deep, and profound, and real. When you are deeply in love with someone that is what you feel. You see them in the grungy clothes, and think they are sexy. Good heavens, I think your Daddy is sexy when I spontaneously throw a ball of fresh mozzarella cheese to him at the grocery store and he catches it. I think he is sexy when he's on his knees in prayer. I think he's sexy when does the dishes. Let's face it, I am hopelessly, deliriously, excitedly, wholeheartedly in love with this man.

That is the kind of love we want for our children. We want you to feel that completeness. We want you to have the greatest romance in history. To be able to tell your children one day, "I love your Daddy/Mommy 3,000 times more than I did on our wedding day." To see your beloved at their worst and yet only see the best. To know that their heartbeat is one of your favorite sounds. That when you cuddle close, their smell is one of the most captivating you've ever breathed in. How do you feel about your beloved right now? We want that for you for your lifetime, compounded and multiplied. So love and be loved. Don't ever take it for granted. Cherish it and nurture it. It is absolutely worth it.

Discussion: Write down a statement that describes how you feel about your beloved. Do you have a favorite love quote?

Prayer: Father God, we thank you for this love of our life. We pray, Father, we never forget to show how much we love our spouse. Lord we thank you that you showed us first and foremost what love is. In Christ we pray, Amen.