Building A Marriage
Sermon
Wedding Sermons And Marriage Ceremonies
(for a couple fixing up a house)
Listen to these words from the First Letter of Paul to the Corinthians, chapter 13 (NRSV):
Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices in the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
Love never ends... When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child; when I became an adult, I put an end to childish ways. For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then we will see face to face. Now I know only in part; then I will know fully, even as I have been fully known. And now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; and the greatest of these is love.
Congratulations, (Bride) and (Groom)! A few years back, would you ever have guessed that your acquaintance with each other would grow into a friendship and your friendship would grow into love? Now here you are, ready to let your love grow into a lifelong commitment. God does work in amazing ways!
Congratulations, also, on being new homeowners. In many ways, buying your first house is a lot like beginning a marriage. For one thing, it is not a matter of starting from nothing. You will be moving into a house that already has a history behind it. There are probably things that you really like about its design. There are probably other little aspects of your new home that you wouldn't have chosen to include if you had been in on the original planning and building. But you will learn to work around those things, because you appreciate having a house to make into a home.
Just so, the two of you come into this new marriage relationship with different histories, different ways of being in families, different personalities. In the context of your love for one another, those differences can be interesting and exciting. They can add a lot of spark to your life together. Looked at in a positive way, you will be amazed as you continue to discover new bits and pieces about each other's background that help you put together another part of the puzzle that your partner will sometimes seem to you. Be sure to let each other know what things you love about one another as you learn to work around the little imperfections you discover. Stop often and appreciate the wonder of sharing your love and lives with one another. Not everyone has that.
Another similarity between making a home and making a marriage is that both take time. You probably have some ideas about how you want to paint, furnish, and decorate your new home. The temptation is to want to do it all now. Your impatience may lead to frustration, especially if you think your partner isn't cooperating the way you think he or she should. I've heard more couples say they have just about ended their marriages over trying to wallpaper the bathroom together.
Either the Apostle Paul had also tried decorating a house with others, or he just understood human nature very well. His love reminders are worth remembering: love is first of all patient; then kind; it doesn't rejoice when the other person makes a mistake (the old "I told you so" trap), but rejoices in the truth. Give to one another these gifts of love: time, kindness, forgiveness, and honesty.
Do you know what makes a house into a beautiful home and a marriage into a lifelong commitment? It is the love. Ultimately, it doesn't matter whether your house is furnished in early Salvation Army or in priceless antiques. Friends will want to come to your home when they sense that it is filled with love.
Love that lasts is not something any of us can create on our own. It is a gift which God gives us to nurture and develop. Take care of the gift, (Bride) and (Groom). Remember to thank and honor the Giver. And may God give you the power and joy to keep sharing your love in a marriage built to last for all time.
Listen to these words from the First Letter of Paul to the Corinthians, chapter 13 (NRSV):
Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices in the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
Love never ends... When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child; when I became an adult, I put an end to childish ways. For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then we will see face to face. Now I know only in part; then I will know fully, even as I have been fully known. And now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; and the greatest of these is love.
Congratulations, (Bride) and (Groom)! A few years back, would you ever have guessed that your acquaintance with each other would grow into a friendship and your friendship would grow into love? Now here you are, ready to let your love grow into a lifelong commitment. God does work in amazing ways!
Congratulations, also, on being new homeowners. In many ways, buying your first house is a lot like beginning a marriage. For one thing, it is not a matter of starting from nothing. You will be moving into a house that already has a history behind it. There are probably things that you really like about its design. There are probably other little aspects of your new home that you wouldn't have chosen to include if you had been in on the original planning and building. But you will learn to work around those things, because you appreciate having a house to make into a home.
Just so, the two of you come into this new marriage relationship with different histories, different ways of being in families, different personalities. In the context of your love for one another, those differences can be interesting and exciting. They can add a lot of spark to your life together. Looked at in a positive way, you will be amazed as you continue to discover new bits and pieces about each other's background that help you put together another part of the puzzle that your partner will sometimes seem to you. Be sure to let each other know what things you love about one another as you learn to work around the little imperfections you discover. Stop often and appreciate the wonder of sharing your love and lives with one another. Not everyone has that.
Another similarity between making a home and making a marriage is that both take time. You probably have some ideas about how you want to paint, furnish, and decorate your new home. The temptation is to want to do it all now. Your impatience may lead to frustration, especially if you think your partner isn't cooperating the way you think he or she should. I've heard more couples say they have just about ended their marriages over trying to wallpaper the bathroom together.
Either the Apostle Paul had also tried decorating a house with others, or he just understood human nature very well. His love reminders are worth remembering: love is first of all patient; then kind; it doesn't rejoice when the other person makes a mistake (the old "I told you so" trap), but rejoices in the truth. Give to one another these gifts of love: time, kindness, forgiveness, and honesty.
Do you know what makes a house into a beautiful home and a marriage into a lifelong commitment? It is the love. Ultimately, it doesn't matter whether your house is furnished in early Salvation Army or in priceless antiques. Friends will want to come to your home when they sense that it is filled with love.
Love that lasts is not something any of us can create on our own. It is a gift which God gives us to nurture and develop. Take care of the gift, (Bride) and (Groom). Remember to thank and honor the Giver. And may God give you the power and joy to keep sharing your love in a marriage built to last for all time.
