Chanta and Eugene's Wedding

Welcome

On behalf of the families of the bride and groom, welcome those who have come to witness this wedding.

Prayer

Our Father, we come before you on this holy occasion with our hearts filled with the spirit of love and thanksgiving. We praise and worship you as the giver of life and creator of all good things. As we enter this service, we most particularly give you thanks for the holy union of marriage, the most sacred of all human relationships. We pray for your presence here today and your blessings upon Chanta and Eugene as they enter their new life together. Above all else, we thank you for Jesus, who gives meaning, direction, and hope to all human relationships. We pray in his name. Amen.

Please be seated.

Statement of Purpose

God is the author of love. The Bible teaches that God is love, and that love comes from God. From beginning to end, the Bible is a love story. There we read of God’s love for his people, of the love that sent Christ to the cross, of redeeming love for the sinner, of abiding love for the redeemed.

We read also of the love of man and woman: of Jacob’s love for Rachel, of Mary pledged to Joseph, of the Shulammite and her beloved.

In the beginning, when the Lord God formed man from the dust of the ground and placed him in the Garden of Eden, Adam was lonely. So the Lord God made a companion and helper for him. When Adam saw Eve, he was no longer lonely.

God can lead us to our life’s companion. Abraham prayed that God would find a wife for his son, Isaac, and God answered that prayer. When Abraham’s servant found Rebekah, the servant bowed and worshiped, praising God.

Then he brought her to his master’s son. The Scripture says Isaac loved her and was comforted.

God has guided Chanta and Eugene to this moment, has blessed their love and brought them together to enter into the holy union of marriage.

Declaration of Consent

To Groom: Eugene, will you have this woman to be your wife, to live together in the holy covenant of marriage? Will you love her, comfort her, honor her, and keep her in sickness and in health and, forsaking all others, be faithful to her so long as you both shall live? If so, answer, “I will.”

To Bride: Chanta, will you have this man to be your husband, to live together in the holy covenant of marriage? Will you love him, comfort him, honor and keep him in sickness and in health and, forsaking all others, be faithful to him so long as you both shall live? If so, answer, “I will.”

Giving Away of the Bride

Who is giving this woman to be married to this man?

Bride’s father answers: “Her mother and I.”

The Marriage Vows

Please join hands and, to each other, express your vows of love and devotion.

The couple holds hands and faces each other.

To the Groom: Eugene, repeat this vow to after me: I, Eugene, take you, Chanta, to be my wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish until death do us part; as God is my witness, I give you my promise.

To the Bride: Likewise, Chanta, repeat this vow to after me: I, Chanta, take you, Eugene, to be my husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish until death do us part; as God is my witness, I give you my promise.

Scripture

The Word of God tells us what love is like and what love does:

“If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing.

“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

“And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love” (, ).

The Exchange of Rings

Having this kind of love in your hearts, you have chosen to exchange rings as the sign and seal of the vows you are making today. (Take rings from best man.)

While holding the ring(s), say:

Though small in size, these rings are very large in significance. Made of precious metal, they remind us that love is not cheap nor common; indeed, love may cost us dearly.

Made in a circle, their design tells us that love must never come to an end; we must keep it continuous.

As you wear these rings, whether together or apart for a moment, may they be constant reminders of these glad promises that you are making today.

To Groom: Eugene, will you take your ring and place it upon Chanta’s left hand, and repeat after me this promise: I give you this ring as a symbol of my vow, and with all that I am, and all that I have, I honor you; in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

To Bride: Chanta, will you take your ring and place it upon Eugene’s left hand, and repeat after me this promise: I give you this ring as a symbol of my vow, and with all that I am, and all that I have, I honor you; in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Prayer for the Bride and Groom

Let us pray.

Our Father, we come today as family, friends, those who are physically present and those whom we love who are now with you, asking your blessing upon these two lives and this home being established. You have made us so that we are incomplete without the other so that we yearn for someone whom we can love and whose love we can receive.

We are thankful for the love we see here, and even more, for the love we feel from you. May we never take your love for granted.

We pray that your love will be the shield and stay for B and G. When joy comes, may they share it together. When sorrow threatens, may they bear it together. In gladness or in tears, in sunshine or shadow, may they ever draw closer to each other and nearer to you in that eternal triangle.

Grant them patience, gentleness, forbearance, and understanding. Protect their home from those forces that would break it apart.

We ask for health, for long life, for the fulfillment of every good dream. May their love continue through life and, finally, blend into the life eternal.

We pray these things in confidence in the strong name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Pronouncement of Marriage

You have come before us and before God and have expressed your desire to be husband and wife. You have shown your love and affection by joining hands, have made promises of faith and devotion, each to the other, and have sealed these promises by the giving and receiving of rings.

I, therefore, pronounce that you are husband and wife. May God bless you and keep you and give you his peace. Amen.

What God has joined together, let no man separate.

Eugene, you may kiss your bride!

“Where you go, I will go, and where you stay, I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God.”

Ladies and gentlemen, It is my privilege to present to you Mr. and Mrs. Chanta and Eugene Jackson!