Jaedin & Sofia Howard Wedding

Unplugged Wedding Announcement

Friends and family, before we begin, the bride and groom have one special request. They have chosen to have an unplugged ceremony.

This means that we ask you to please silence your phones and put away all cameras and devices during the ceremony. The couple has hired a professional photographer to capture these special moments, and they would love for you to be fully present as they exchange their vows.

By keeping your phones tucked away, you'll help ensure that their photographer can capture every moment clearly, and you'll be able to experience this beautiful occasion with your own eyes rather than through a screen.

Thank you for helping make this moment even more meaningful for Jaedin and Sofia.

Welcome and Declaration of Intent

Family and friends, we are gathered here today in the sight of God to join together as one, Jaedin Howard and Sofia Elizondo.

As I met with this wonderful couple, I reminded them that today is about more than the audience of family and friends, more than the decorations, the food and celebration, or even the tax benefits that will follow.

Today, the spotlight rests on this couple and the spiritual covenant—the deeply held promise—they are making with one another before God.

This lifelong unity is a sacred commitment, made before the One true God, who has paved the way for the love they share.

_____________

As God has loved us, and as Christ loves His Church, we pray that these six qualities of Christlike love will be evident in Jaedin and Sofia's marriage:

An Unwavering Love

A Resilient Love

A Selfless Love

A Forgiving Love

An Intimate Love

A Missional Love

May this kind of love serve as the foundation of their marriage and may it shape their life together for the rest of their lives.

Let’s pray.

(You May Be Seated)

Scripture Reading

1 Corinthians 13:4–8

“Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.”

Wedding Message

You have probably heard or spoken many times the phrase, “I’m in love.”

Love is a joyous thing when it enters our lives and we share it with one another. In the Scripture we just read, we heard many different things God tells us love is. One thing that’s not on that list is “a feeling.”

Love is not a feeling, although feelings ought to accompany it at times.

Even though, to quote The Lion King, we can indeed “feel the love tonight,” this feeling will not always be there. There will be days when the feelings of love seem distant, and the stressors of life lead to frustrations that can be used as ammunition that we aim toward our spouse.

There will be days when love feels like just another household chore, like doing the dishes or making the bed. And when love no longer feels like it does today — that’s okay. Because real godly love is built upon something deeper, something greater, something stronger. As Song of Solomon 8:7 says,

“A huge torrent cannot extinguish love; rivers cannot sweep it away.”

This love is a deeply held commitment and a promise between two imperfect people. It is, as Colossians 3:14 says,

the perfect bond of unity.

Because we are imperfect, we are prone to making a lot of mistakes in our marriage. There are days where you will:

Say the wrong thing

Respond with an attitude

Or even intentionally press your spouse’s buttons, just because things have been too quiet around the house.

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But this is where love steps in, and as the glue which binds our marriage together, this perfect bond of unity calls us to give something to one another.

You see, lasting love requires us to show one another grace — even when our spouse doesn’t deserve it.

When our spouse rushes us, we give grace by showing patience.

When our spouse speaks with a harsh tone, we give grace by responding with kindness.

When our spouse does the dishes in a weird way, we show grace by keeping our comments to ourselves and enjoying the fact that they’re doing the dishes.

Grace reminds us that we didn’t marry our spouse for their perfections, so we cannot expect perfection from them. True, grace-filled love protects our spouse from these false and burdensome expectations. When our imperfections show, a grace-filled marriage, bound together by love, will not come unglued. _____________

When love is central, your imperfections, only stand to strengthen the commitment you will make today, as two imperfect people, saved by the grace-filled love of God.

In the midst of our imperfection, and despite our tendency to love ourselves more than Him, God’s love never stopped.

Scripture tells us in Romans 5:8 that:

God proves His own love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Christ came to cleanse us of our imperfection and to show us grace, something we could never earn or deserve.

So Jaedin and Sofia, as you have committed your lives to Christ, His grace-filled love covers you. You can find security and comfort in knowing He will never let you go. His love will last forever.

_____________ And because you have experienced His love personally, God calls you to extend this love to one another, and in it you both can be certain that the covenant you make today cannot be easily broken.

Simply put, the commitment you make today models the commitment Jesus made with us as believers. As He loved you and showed you grace, may you do the same for one another.

Explanation of Vows and Covenants

Now, From the beginning of time, God has related to His people through covenants. These covenants came from the depths of God’s heart and were empowered by His love and faithfulness toward His people.

He fulfilled all of these covenants through Jesus Christ, who established a new and lasting covenant of grace with us.

Marriage, in the same way, reflects this covenant. So again, as you make your covenant today, may it come from the depth of your heart, and may it endure, because of your faithfulness to daily extend love and grace to one another.

Personal Vows

Friends and Family, Jaedin and Sofia have chosen to share personal vows with one another. These words come from their own hearts and reflect the unique love, friendship, and commitment they share.

Jaedin, you may share your vows with Sofia.

(Jaedin reads vows)

Sofia, you may now share your vows with Jaedin.

(Sofia reads vows)

Exchange of Vows

In addition, the couple has chosen to share in traditional vows before God and these witnesses.

And since it is your desire to enter into this covenant.  Will you now join hands and make the following vows.

Jaedin, do you take this woman who’s hands you now hold to be your lawfully wedded wife?

-Response, I Do.

Then as you look into her eyes, I will ask that you repeat after me.

“I, Jaedin, before God and these witnesses, take you, Sofia, to be my lawfully wedded wife. I promise to love you as Christ loved the church — to give myself for you, to lead you with humility, and to serve you with faithfulness. I promise to cherish you, to pray with you, and to grow with you in the grace of Christ. I promise to be faithful to you, and to walk with you in love and truth, as long as we both shall live.”

_____________

Sofia, do you take this man who’s hands you now hold to be your lawfully wedded husband?

-Response, I Do.

Then as you look into his eyes, I will ask that you repeat after me.

“I, Sofia, before God and these witnesses, take you, Jaedin, to be my lawfully wedded husband. I promise to love and respect you as the church submits to Christ — to support you in prayer, to walk beside you in faith, and to honor your leadership in the Lord. I will seek to encourage and strengthen you, showing grace and kindness in all things. I promise to be faithful to you, and to walk with you in love and truth, as long as we both shall live.”

Explanation or Rings

Now as you have made your vows to one another, we come the sign or symbol that will serve as a lasting reminder of your covenant with one another. Rings have long carried deep meaning. In ancient times, kings used rings to seal official laws and documents, marking their authority and commitment. Today, these rings symbolize the sealing of your vows — a visible symbol of your love and a reminder of the vows you have made before God and these witnesses. As you wear them, let them remind you that your love is pure, enduring, and precious in the sight of God. As you exchange these rings, remember: they are more than something you bought; they are lasting symbols of the holy covenant you have made with one another.

Exchange of Rings

And so I ask you, Jaedin, do you give this ring to Sofia as a token of your love for her?

-Response, I Do.

Sofia do you promise to continually wear this ring as a token of Jaedin’s love for you?

-Response, I Do.

Jaedin, will you place the ring on Sofia’s left hand and repeat after me.

“With this ring, I give you my love and my life. I promise to stand with you in joy and in sorrow, in strength and in weakness, in every season of life, until the Lord calls us home.”

_______________

Sofia, do you give this ring to Jaedin as a token of your love for him?

-Response, I Do.

Jaedin do you promise to continually wear this ring as a token of Sofia’s love for you?

-Response, I Do.

Sofia, will you place the ring on Jaedin’s finger and repeat after me.

“With this ring, I give you my love and my life. I promise to stand with you in joy and in sorrow, in strength and in weakness, in every season of life, until the Lord calls us home.”

Final Charge

Jaedin and Sofia, in just a moment you will walk down the aisle as husband and wife. That is when the real marriage begins. This ceremony is just a small moment in all the experiences you will share together as you continue your journey.

On that journey, I want these final words to serve as a reminder of the great purpose that God has for your marriage.

Your marriage is not only a covenant between the two of you and God — it is also meant to shine with purpose in the world around you.

Jesus called His Church to be salt and light, and to make his name known everywhere. In the same way, your marriage is meant to reflect Christ and to point others to him.

_____________

So with that purpose in mind, I give you a final piece of advice: Stand Firm Together!

In a society where marriage is no longer valued as it once was — Stand Firm Together!

When it feels easier to give up, rather than to press on — Stand Firm Together!

Stand Firm Together in your love and in your commitment to one another.

Stand Firm Together through every trial and difficult circumstance that may come.

Stand Firm Together with purpose — serving God and others, not just yourselves.

Stand Firm Together so that your life and love might leave a lasting legacy.

And most importantly, Stand Firm Together in Christ Jesus.

Colossians 2:7 says,

“Let your roots grow down into Him, and let your lives be built on Him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness.”

_____________

Jaedin and Sofia, May your commitment to Christ and to each other be what keeps you Standing Firm Together each and every day.

And just as you here today, Standing Firm Together, may you never forget the impact and the ripples your marriage can make wherever God leads you.

Pronouncing Husband and Wife

Since you have made these vows, by the authority of the state of Texas and as a minister of the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, I now pronounce you Husband and wife. What God has joined together, let no man separate.

Jaedin, You may now kiss your bride.

Presentation of couple

Friends and Family, it is with great honor that I now present to you, Mr. and Mrs. Jaedin Howard.