Poured Out

Did you know that Jesus' first miracle was at a wedding? Recorded by John in the second chapter of the gospel, he tells of his first-hand observance where Jesus turns water into wine at a wedding reception. Everyone is having a grand time drinking wine at the wedding feast, and it runs out. His mom, Mary, sees that there's no more wine and goes to her son, whom she knows is God, to tell Him about it. And Christ's response is classic. He says in verse 4, "What concern is that to you and me? My hour has not yet come." It's like He's saying, "Seriously, you are asking Me to do a miracle for this? I am just starting this ministry, just now gathering disciples and you want Me to get more wine or even make it? That is not why I'm here. It's not my job. It's not my time." (Makes you wonder what she observed Him do prior to this event.) But here's the beautiful part. This story is bathed in symbolism, literally. First, the jars Christ asks the servants to fill with water are stone jars used in ritual washing for the Jews. This ceremonial washing was to cleanse and purify the Jews prior to meals and worship. And these jars were big, holding upwards of 30 gallons of

water. Christ asks for six of these to be filled. Then He just asks the servant to draw some out and take it to the chief steward. Imagine the bravery of the servant carrying a cup of what was originally water to his boss for a taste. Then imagine his surprise that is was the best wine ever. Think about the number of people that day who learned what happened there. You can hear the whispers: "Psst, I heard Mary's son, the carpenter, magically transformed this water into wine. Not even kidding." Christ, in this one act, was announcing to all the people at that wedding (many who were probably drunk with wine at this point), "Hey, look what I can do" with a more poignant "See Who I Am." The fact that He used jars for ritual cleansing and changed it into wine, you can see the symbolism and preview of His saying at the Last Supper (recorded in Luke 22:20), "This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for many." They would not need stone jars for ritual cleansing anymore. Christ had it covered.

We know you both love wine (and have the cork collection to prove it). As cuisiniers, you know what wines enhance other foods to make them taste even better. And obviously Christ loved it, too, enough to make it an example and symbol of His great sacrifice for all time. We love that Christ chose (even if his mom nudged Him to do it) a wedding, a sacred event and union symbolic of His marriage to the church, to introduce Himself as Savior. And it was this first miracle that convinced the men who recently decided to follow him (John, Andrew, Peter, Nathaniel and Phillip in John 1) that they were following the right Rabbi. John 2:11 says, "Jesus did this, the first of His signs, in Cana of Galilee, and revealed His glory; and His disciples believed in Him."

Christ has revealed His glory, and we believe. Pouring His life out for ours and rising from the dead, glory to Him.

Now don't count on Christ changing any water into wine at your wedding reception. But you can count on this: no matter what you do in this life, no matter what mistakes you make in your relationship together, He has it covered.

Discussion: What impresses you most about this first miracle at the wedding in Cana? Just for fun, what kind of wine do you think Christ turned it into? How important is the symbolism of wine to Christ's blood to you? Is communion a possibility at your wedding? What kinds of wine will you have at your reception?

Prayer: Father, we thank you for your Son, for His sacrifice for us and most importantly that He conquered death that we can be brought to you pure and holy. Thank you for Him and the beautiful symbol of the wine at the wedding in Cana. In name of the True Vine (John 15:5), Amen.

In Sickness and In Health

Before Brad and I got married, Pennsylvania law required that all couples have a physical before marriage. I am not exactly sure why that law was created, but we complied. It was there in September 1987 at your Daddy's physical that the doctor said, "Oh I didn't know you were diabetic," to which your Daddy responded, "Neither did I." Brad's blood sugar was apparently high. The doctor commented that maybe it was nothing, but to keep a lookout for certain symptoms of diabetes: excessive thirst, exhaustion.

So fast forward to after the wedding at the end of the year: We had just gotten back from celebrating Christmas with Brad's family in Cape Girardeau, MO. We had feasted on any number of cookies and chocolates. On New Year's Eve we were planning to go to a party in Indiana with friends. Brad noticed the symptoms above and scheduled a doctor's appointment for that day. He came home that morning, woke me up and said, "Jill, I have to go to the hospital," to which I responded, "You can't! We have a party tonight." Chalk that one up to sleep stupor. Brad's blood sugar was over 500. We learned, of course, he was most definitely diabetic and more specifically, Juvenile or Type 1. He would need to inject insulin to live for the rest of his life.

Brad did not like shots. And now he was being told at the age of 22 that he needed to learn how to inject himself and check his blood sugar upwards of six times/day. We were warned of potential future problems with eyesight, touch, feet, kidneys and the like. We were scared to death. Especially when the nurse said to us, "If you do as I instructed, I can't guarantee that you won't have the problems I've just explained to you. But if you don't, I can guarantee you will. Without insulin, he will be dead in two years."

I remember leaving my husband that night in the hospital, going home and doing a whole lot of crying and praying. I also inhaled a bunch of chocolate. I think I thought we could never have sweets in the house again. Diabetes, of course, changed our lives forever. There have been scary moments for sure - and thousands of dollars spent in medical care - but Brad has been meticulous about caring for himself. His A1c (average blood sugar levels) are near normal.

I don't ever remember thinking that just two months prior I'd said "in sickness or in health," but we were certainly getting a true test of those vows quite quickly. And I'm grateful to God that, for the most part, "health" is what we've dealt with throughout our marriage.

Years ago when Brad and I lived in Wisconsin, we attended a marriage seminar called "Laugh Your Way To A Better Marriage" by Mark Gungor. Friends gave us tickets to attend. It was hilarious. He gave us both incite into how the female and male minds worked. We learned and laughed a lot.

Mark started this ministry in 2003. He is the senior pastor at Celebration Church in Wisconsin and started the marriage seminar because no else in the area was. He has spoken all over the country, is one of the most requested speakers for the military, has a radio show and internet show and has authored several books. He married his high school sweetheart Debbie who has been married to for over 40 years.

The other day, Mark posted that his wife had stage 4 breast cancer that had spread to her bones. She is in so much pain, that medication cannot touch it. Here is a man who has helped make countless marriages stronger now watching his beloved wife struggle through an unfair, ruthless disease. In sickness ...

It is not a fair part of life, but it happens. You will face many things throughout your marriage that will test the "in sickness" portion of your vows. Some as simple as a paper cut or cold. Some not so simple. But you will do it together, through prayer, through grace, in strength, with God. Take good care of yourselves. I can't guarantee bad things won't happen if you do, but I can guarantee they will if you don't. So be good to your bodies. Give the rest to the Father.

Discussion: Do you know of married couples who have had to deal with sickness? How have they handled it? What are ways you both would approach changes in health?

Prayer: We thank you, Father, that we are tenderly in your care. Give us strength and courage to deal with whatever health concerns may come our way. We pray for health in our marriage, spiritual, mental and physical, that we may be at our best to serve you. And pray in sickness we continue to glorify your Holy Name. In Jesus, Amen.