Kelsey Gilbert & Blaine Snyder Wedding
Notes
Transcript
Seating
(Left side of the Church is the Brides side)
(Right side of the Church is the Groom’s side)
Processional
Pastor & Groom
Parents
Groom & Best man
Groomsmen
Bridesmaids
Maid of Honor
Flower Girl
Ring Bearer
Bride (On the left of her father) (Bride is on my right)
Welcome
Dearly Beloved, we are gathered here today in the presence of these witnesses, to join Kelsey and Blaine in Holy Matrimony; and On behalf of the families of the bride and groom, we welcome those of you 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 into this service, we 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 Kelsey and Blaine as they enter their new life together. Above all else, we thank you for Jesus, who gives meaning, direction, and hope. We pray this 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.
Here we read of God’s love for his people, of the love that sent Christ to the cross, The redeeming love for the sinner, The 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.
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. Amen!!! LOL
God can lead us to our life’s companion. And we are excited that God has guided Kelsey and Blaine to this moment...
He has blessed their love and brought them together to enter into the holy union of marriage.
I’ve spent a lot of time with them over the last couple months and we discussed a lot of things. And I’ve seen the Love between the two.
So it is now time for the two to become one.
Declaration of Consent
To Groom: Blaine, 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: Kelsey, 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.”
Sermon
Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor.
I challenge you to honor one another and outdo one another in showing your love.
No Reservations! No Retreats! No Regrets!
There is a story of a man named William Borden. The year was 1904 and he was the heir to the Borden Dairy Estate, he graduated from High School in Chicago.
As a graduation gift, his parents gave him a trip to Europe and Asia.
It is reported that he had a million dollars available to him on this trip.
The trip turned out much different from what he or his parents expected. He saw the needs of people in different parts of the world. And to everyone’s surprise, he wrote home informing his parents that he was going to live his life in China as a missionary.
In the back of his Bible he wrote these words:
No Reservations! No Retreats! No Regrets!
He was making a commitment too God and to the people of China: no reservations, no retreats, and no regrets.
The commitment that you are making to each other today is just as significant...
1) No Reservations.
When you say, “I take you Kelsey, to be my wife”; “I take you Blaine, to be my husband,” you are saying, “I take you without reservation.”
You are willingly entering into a marriage covenant where every area of your life will be joined together. Your lives—legally, physically, emotionally, financially, and spiritually—will be joined together.
Scripture says that two shall become one.
and said, ‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’?
No holding back. No reservations.
2) Secondly, when you say, “For better or for worse; for richer or for poorer; in sickness and in health,” you are saying, “No retreats.”
You are saying, “I chose to love this person regardless of what the future holds.”
If your future is like most of ours, it will be full of good days as well as some hard ones. That’s life.
Most of the time we think of love as a warm feeling that pulls two people together. However, that feeling is actually romance; but love is a decision.
When you share your vows in a moment, you will be saying, “I choose to love you.” “I will love you during good days—days of contentment, days of companionship, days of happiness, days of sexual fulfillment. Those are good days!!!
But I also choose to love you during days of heartache, days of confusion, days of frustration, and days of stress.”
No Retreats!
3) And finally: No Regrets!
Kelsey and Blaine, don’t look back. Don’t look over your shoulder and wonder “What if?”
Only look ahead as you walk through life hand and hand, heart to heart.
Enjoy life together.
Enjoy each other.
Do special things for each other.
With No Regrets!
And let me tell you honestly everyone who has ever stood where you are standing right now today, knows that “no reservations, no retreats, and no regrets” is good advice.
As you begin to establish a home together, remember those three things.
The Marriage Vows
Kelsey and Blaine, please join hands and express your vows of love and devotion.
The couple holds hands and faces each other.
To the Groom: Blaine, repeat this vow to Kelsey after me: I, Blaine, take you, Kelsey, 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, Kelsey, repeat this vow to Blaine after me: I, Kelsey, take you, Blaine, 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.
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.)
Though small in size, these rings are very large in significance. Made of precious metal, they remind us that love is neither 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 the promises that you are making today.
To Groom: Blaine, will you take your ring and place it upon Kelsey’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, “Where you go, I will go, and where you stay, I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God.” I honor you; in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
To Bride: Kelsey, will you take your ring and place it upon Blaine’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, “Where you go, I will go, and where you stay, I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God.” I honor you; in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
The partaking of Holy Communion
We are partaking in Holy Communion today, where Kelsey and Blaine are inviting God into their first meal together.
For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread,
and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, “This is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.”
(Have groom feed the Bride bread/then the Bride feed the Groom)
In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.”
(Have groom serve the cup to the Bride/then Bride serve the Groom)
For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.
Kelsey and Blaine, I tell you to proclaim the Name of Jesus in your lives, in this marriage, and in everything you do.…
God's Knot
Today, Kelsey and Blaine have chosen to braid three strands together into a single cord. The Cord of Three Strands symbolizes the joining of one man and one woman by God into a marriage relationship.
The White strand represents God, His majesty, and purity.
The Brown strand represents Blaine and his life.
The Pink strand represents the Kelsey and her life.
In braiding these three strands together, Kelsey and Blaine are demonstrating that their marriage is more than a joining of two lives together. It is a unity with God as well.
They have chosen to allow God to be at the center of their marriage, and woven into every aspect of it.
Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil.
For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow. But woe to him who is alone when he falls and has not another to lift him up!
Again, if two lie together, they keep warm, but how can one keep warm alone?
And though a man might prevail against one who is alone, two will withstand him—a threefold cord is not quickly broken.
The bride and groom braid the Cord of Three Strands together. The groom holds a small metal ring with three attached strands. The bride then braids the strands together, symbolizing the union of God, husband and wife.
Marriage takes three; you, your soon to be spouse, and God. It is only through God that we know true love.
By keeping Him at the center of your marriage, His love will continue to bind you together as one throughout your marriage.
Prayer for the Bride and Groom
Our Father, we come today as family, friends, 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 protection for Kelsey and Blaine.
When joy comes, may they share it together.
When sorrow threatens, may they bear it together.
In good times and bad times, may they ever draw closer to each other and nearer to you.
Grant them patience, gentleness, forbearance, and understanding.
Protect their home from those forces that would try to break it apart.
We ask for health, for long life, for the fulfillment of every good dream.
May their love continue through life and, 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.
What God has joined together, let no man separate. Amen.
Blaine you may kiss your bride!
By the authority given to me as a representative and a minister of the gospel, It is my privilege to present to you Mr. and Mrs. Blaine Snyder!