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encouragement and exhortation.
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Monday, August
19, 2019
Susquehanna
River from the Lauxmont Farm in York County PA
"A
Consideration Of Marital Vows"
(Part
1)
Message
summary: God calls
us to take our vows
seriously.
Listen to our message on your audio player.
"Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh" (Genesis 2:24). "I will fulfill my vows to the LORD in the presence of all His people" (Psalm 116:14). "Again, you have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'Do not break your oath, but keep the oaths you have made to the Lord'" (Matthew 5:33). "Marriage should be honored by all" (Hebrews 13:4).
On Saturday I
officiated at a
wedding ceremony for
a young couple named
Joe and Taylor. The
event was held at
Lauxmont Farm
overlooking the
Susquehanna River in
York County, PA.
Joe and Taylor made solemn vows between themselves in the presence of God and in the presence of those attending their wedding. A vow is defined as a "solemn promise" with synonyms "oath, pledge, bond, covenant, commitment". We make a number of vows through life but our wedding vows are the most important vows exchanged between humans.
The vital foundation of the marital vow is established in the Bible when God declared, "Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh". The Hebrew word translated "cleave" means "to cling to" or "adhere".
Couples enter into a marriage covenant so starry eyed, convinced that nothing could ever lessen the degree of their commitment or intensity of their love. But, over time the children come along, trials multiply, job responsibilities and stresses increase, financial challenges lurk, and other difficulties are thrown into the daily grind. During their aging process old love may be altogether different than young love.
We now live in a generation where for so many vows are viewed as a meaningless formality and easily broken. Several months ago I shared a message on my satire blog describing how too many see the wedding as "a brief ceremony with some religious-sounding words they had to endure before the real party began with all the food and drink".
Indeed
so many in our age
place little value
on the vows of
marriage. Yesterday
we were on the
beltway around
Harrisburg and, on
the west side of the
Susquehanna River,
saw a huge
billboard. A law
firm was advertising
their divorce
services and had
reduced the breaking
of solemn vows of
marriage to nothing
more than an
"OOPS".* What a sad
trivialization for a
rather tacky
marketing attempt.
But God calls us to take our vows seriously. As I searched through the Scriptures I am struck by just how much emphasis there is in the Word on this subject. I just selected several verses that deal with this matter.
"I will fulfill my vows to the LORD in the presence of all His people." That's a powerful commitment. The Psalmist made a solemn pledge to fulfill the vows he had made. Surely, apart from our commitment to God, our marital vows are the most serious vows we make. In a Christian ceremony our vows are made to the Lord but they're also witnessed by many others and we see the seriousness of making a vow in Numbers 30:1,2: “This is the thing which the Lord has commanded: If a man makes a vow to the Lord, or swears an oath to bind himself by some agreement, he shall not break his word; he shall do according to all that proceeds out of his mouth."
The Bible says, "Marriage should be honored by all" (Hebrews 13:4). Today we challenge each of you to consider the vows you have made, particularly in regard to your marriage. If your marriage is going well then you realize it is one of the greatest blessings in life. If you're in a troubled marriage take the needed steps to strengthen your marriage commitment and restore it to wholeness. Reaffirm your marital vows regularly so that your commitment is absolute and, in union with one another, you will properly respond to any troubling ordeal you face. God is honored when we do so.
Be encouraged today,
Stephen & Brooksyne Weber
Daily
Prayer: Father, we
pray for those of us
who are in a
marriage
relationship, that
You would strengthen
our marital bond and
increase our love
and commitment year
by year. Help us to
be quick to forgive,
the first to say,
"I'm sorry" and
looking not only to
our own interests
but also to the
interests of our
partner. Help us to
practice forbearance
and persevere daily
as we build healthy
relationships with
our spouses. In this
world of instability
with frequent
divorces and broken
families may our
children and those
who look on see us
being faithful to
our vows in the good
times as well as the
bad. We can do this
in the power and
strength of the Holy
Spirit through our
Lord Jesus Christ in
whose name we pray.
Amen.
* The OOPS billboard photo is not exactly the same as we saw yesterday since we passed by too quickly to take a photo. The billboard we saw yesterday had the same photo with the rings spelling OOPS like the billboard we feature today! The only difference was their domain was divorce.com rather than divorce attorneys. Interestingly the OOPS concept in sales seems to initially have been used for dropped cell phones with broken screens. See here.
Listen to our message on your audio player.
"Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh" (Genesis 2:24). "I will fulfill my vows to the LORD in the presence of all His people" (Psalm 116:14). "Again, you have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'Do not break your oath, but keep the oaths you have made to the Lord'" (Matthew 5:33). "Marriage should be honored by all" (Hebrews 13:4).
On Saturday I
officiated at a
wedding ceremony for
a young couple named
Joe and Taylor. The
event was held at
Lauxmont Farm
overlooking the
Susquehanna River in
York County, PA.Joe and Taylor made solemn vows between themselves in the presence of God and in the presence of those attending their wedding. A vow is defined as a "solemn promise" with synonyms "oath, pledge, bond, covenant, commitment". We make a number of vows through life but our wedding vows are the most important vows exchanged between humans.
The vital foundation of the marital vow is established in the Bible when God declared, "Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh". The Hebrew word translated "cleave" means "to cling to" or "adhere".
Couples enter into a marriage covenant so starry eyed, convinced that nothing could ever lessen the degree of their commitment or intensity of their love. But, over time the children come along, trials multiply, job responsibilities and stresses increase, financial challenges lurk, and other difficulties are thrown into the daily grind. During their aging process old love may be altogether different than young love.
We now live in a generation where for so many vows are viewed as a meaningless formality and easily broken. Several months ago I shared a message on my satire blog describing how too many see the wedding as "a brief ceremony with some religious-sounding words they had to endure before the real party began with all the food and drink".
Indeed
so many in our age
place little value
on the vows of
marriage. Yesterday
we were on the
beltway around
Harrisburg and, on
the west side of the
Susquehanna River,
saw a huge
billboard. A law
firm was advertising
their divorce
services and had
reduced the breaking
of solemn vows of
marriage to nothing
more than an
"OOPS".* What a sad
trivialization for a
rather tacky
marketing attempt. But God calls us to take our vows seriously. As I searched through the Scriptures I am struck by just how much emphasis there is in the Word on this subject. I just selected several verses that deal with this matter.
"I will fulfill my vows to the LORD in the presence of all His people." That's a powerful commitment. The Psalmist made a solemn pledge to fulfill the vows he had made. Surely, apart from our commitment to God, our marital vows are the most serious vows we make. In a Christian ceremony our vows are made to the Lord but they're also witnessed by many others and we see the seriousness of making a vow in Numbers 30:1,2: “This is the thing which the Lord has commanded: If a man makes a vow to the Lord, or swears an oath to bind himself by some agreement, he shall not break his word; he shall do according to all that proceeds out of his mouth."
The Bible says, "Marriage should be honored by all" (Hebrews 13:4). Today we challenge each of you to consider the vows you have made, particularly in regard to your marriage. If your marriage is going well then you realize it is one of the greatest blessings in life. If you're in a troubled marriage take the needed steps to strengthen your marriage commitment and restore it to wholeness. Reaffirm your marital vows regularly so that your commitment is absolute and, in union with one another, you will properly respond to any troubling ordeal you face. God is honored when we do so.
Be encouraged today,
Stephen & Brooksyne Weber
Daily
Prayer: Father, we
pray for those of us
who are in a
marriage
relationship, that
You would strengthen
our marital bond and
increase our love
and commitment year
by year. Help us to
be quick to forgive,
the first to say,
"I'm sorry" and
looking not only to
our own interests
but also to the
interests of our
partner. Help us to
practice forbearance
and persevere daily
as we build healthy
relationships with
our spouses. In this
world of instability
with frequent
divorces and broken
families may our
children and those
who look on see us
being faithful to
our vows in the good
times as well as the
bad. We can do this
in the power and
strength of the Holy
Spirit through our
Lord Jesus Christ in
whose name we pray.
Amen.* The OOPS billboard photo is not exactly the same as we saw yesterday since we passed by too quickly to take a photo. The billboard we saw yesterday had the same photo with the rings spelling OOPS like the billboard we feature today! The only difference was their domain was divorce.com rather than divorce attorneys. Interestingly the OOPS concept in sales seems to initially have been used for dropped cell phones with broken screens. See here.
After the
wedding kiss and the
pronouncement of
husband and wife,
Joe and Taylor
joyfully walk down
the aisle amidst
their family and
friends.
These
beautiful roses
hanging upside down
were stunning as
they accented the
beauty of the
glass, light-filled
rotunda, a circular
building overlooking
360 degrees of
breathtaking views.
The food
was plentiful and
delicious. The
rotunda is not very
big so seating is
rather snug giving
attendees
opportunity to say
"Excuse me" quite
often as you squeeze
in between the
chairs. You also get
to meet a lot of
people since you're
sitting so closely
together.
Since it
was a 90 degree
afternoon fans were
available for those
needing a little
more moving air.
Thankfully, there
was a light breeze
which saved the day,
heat wise.
Brooksyne
visiting with
several of the
bridesmaids
following the
ceremony.
Lastly, we
decided to stand
under the wedding
arch, and reminisce
the day we exchanged
vows, saying "I do".
That was over 43
years ago so we
don't look the same
and certainly don't
feel the vim and
vigor we did as
youth. But now we
stand under the arch
declaring that our
love has been tested
through the years
and our vows are
unbroken. We will
love and cherish
each other, through
the good and the
bad, until God calls
us to our glorious
eternal home.
Today's
Suggested
Music and
Supplemental Resources
"I Will Be
Here" Video
Steven
Curtis Chapman
Finally today:
Our neighborhood
Amish school (construction
began the 2nd week in July)
is nearing completion and
they expect to begin having
class in the next several
weeks. They installed
fencing around the school
and are working on the lawn.
The work is mostly done by
the Amish fathers and
extended help. Eli who grows
food commercially owns the
property and you can see the
partial greenhouse in the
left foreground.
Send a message to Stephen & Brooksyne
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