Response

Weddings are wonderful events. With flowers and ribbons strung all over the room, people are bustling around trying to make everything perfect. It is a carefully planned chaos that produces an enjoyable experience for everyone in attendance and for two of the people it will be life changing. Up to the last second, there is usually at least one person still tufting this or that arrangement, ensuring every detail is just so. Family and friends begin to arrive wearing their best. Weddings usually transform into an impromptu family reunion and emotions that were already elevated will overflow into hugs and squeals and the occasional cheek pinching from one’s aunt. As the moment approaches, conversations swell and the excitement climbs. The pastor or officiate enters and people start to find their seats for the main event. Men adjust their ties and straighten their jackets for the last time and the women smile and wave at friends from across the room as they smooth out the wrinkles on their laps.

The music strikes up and the conversations begin to die down. The groom and his groomsmen march in single file to the front and center of attention. All of them nervous that they will be the one to faint in front of everybody. But the attention on the front of the room is short lived because everyone there knows what happens next.

Before the miles of tulle were being strung from the rafters and before the guests arrived, the bride was preparing herself. She is not only preparing herself to look composed enough to parade in front of everyone she knows. She is preparing herself for her groom. When those doors open and he sees her there, it will be a moment remembered by both of them for the rest of their lives. She will work to make herself the most beautiful she has ever been. Hair, nails, dress, makeup, something old, new, borrowed, blue and every piece must be perfect. She wants so badly to present herself at her very finest to the person she longs to be with for the rest of her life. She is anxious but confident of the groom’s reaction. He knows her better than anyone else. He has seen her on her best day and has stuck with her through the rough ones. The relationship between them is not determined by her appearance but she desires to impress him nonetheless.

The music swells and the doors swing wide to reveal the bride in all of her splendor. The crowd in attendance rises and stands in reverence. As she steps forward into the light, she locks eyes on the one person that she is there for, the groom. His eyes instantly swell up but he pulls back the tears. He promised he wouldn’t cry but more importantly, he doesn’t want to miss a single second of her procession. She walks slowly as the details of her appearance are taken in by all around her. Her countenance is regal as she glides toward the front of the room. His palms are sweaty as the severe reality strikes him. She is soon to be his and he, hers. The moment they have been waiting weeks, months and in some cases, years has finally arrived.

Weddings are also just an event. It is a public declaration of a personal relationship that has already been established. Nothing changes between the two people meeting on the stage. They came together loving each other and when they leave they will still love each other only now they have a signed piece of paper stating it. They will share their vows to one another out loud in front of everyone declaring the level of commitment they have for the other, but those vows were made long before that moment with a quiet whisper of resolve in their hearts.

The ceremony itself is an outward display of what the two people are promising to each other. It might involve a candle lighting or a rope braiding or a walk together around the altar. In some cases, poems or songs are exchanged together with rings and vows. If you have been to more than one wedding, you have probably noticed some similarities in the service. One or more of three verses from scripture will be read. The officiate will announce several statements that will sound familiar almost to the point where you know what they will say next. The order of services is very similar and if you were to see a picture or watch a video of a wedding taking place, it wouldn’t take you long to know what was happening because weddings, for the most part, all look somewhat the same too. The special part of a wedding is what can not be seen. Two people promising themselves to each other before the people present and before God. The outward display of an inward emotion toward another is the reason we celebrate.

But our celebration takes on an interesting form at a wedding. While everyone one present is excited and hearts are fluttering, we sit still and listen. We watch and we reflect on our own relationships and remember the promises we have made perhaps to the person sitting next to us. As a single person at a wedding, it might cause you to look forward with hope to a similar future with someone special or to look around with contentment at the life you have created for yourself. Tears of happy reflection and quiet joy flow as the vows are repeated. No one shouts. No one stands up and draws the attention to themselves. Although you have been invited to participate, this event is not just about you. It is about all of us sharing in something special.

When we gather to worship, whether it be in song or giving or any other type of corporate worship, the response should be similar. There are places and events that we should absolutely dance and shout for Jesus, but when we gather together we should be mindful of those around us. Perhaps they do not have such a close and familiar relationship with God. Maybe they have never heard, let alone studied, about the spiritual gifts sometimes expressed in church services. We should be taking the time as a body to reflect inwardly on our relationship with God and our commitment to Him. We should be reverent of the members of the body leading us through worship. We should feel welcome to participate not just individually but as a body. We should sing together, give together, pray together, confess together, encourage together. There is a tone of formality that goes along with a church service or a worship time, but that is there as a structure to help guide us to closer worship and eliminate distractions not to box us in.

We are the bride and our focus should be on the bridegroom and the promise we made in our hearts to Him. We have dedicated our lives to Him, and He has given His life for us. Our response to Him should be one of celebration, respect, sincerity, and joy.