Vows

5 years ago today I made vows. Sometimes they have been really easy to keep and other times it's been difficult. 5 years ago my life long partner and I drank out of two glasses....one glass of red wine representing the bitter and a glass of white representing the sweet. We drank together, knowing we would go through bitter and sweet moments in our life together but vowed to go through them with the Lord at our center and each other to hold on to.

In 5 years we have had our fair share of trials and hardships that have tested us as individuals and us as a couple. In 5 years we have seen each other through seizures, bone tumors and other medical issues. We've starting and almost completed our graduate work. We bought our first house. We created and are learning how to parent a child. We have laughed together and shed many tears together. It has been a wild ride but one with many rewards. 5 years ago, we participated in this service of the covenant way: a wedding service built on promises to each and to God. I still go back and read them as a reminder....here they are for you all to read as well along with the corresponding Scripture passages.

Here's to a wonderful 5 years together and many more to come.

The Way of Creation/Re-Creation- Genesis 2:18-25

Here at last is bone of my bones, flesh of my flesh, divine help in a form I understand. You are the image of God for me. God speaks to me through your voice. God looks at me through your eyes. God touches me through your hands. And in my love for you, I too may reflect God.

The Way of Surrender/Denial- Ephesians 5:21-33

I take you today to be my husband/wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish until death parts us. Nothing else will have the power, for today I turn away from all other options. Forsaking all others, I commit myself to you. I will seek to serve you with tenderness and respect, energy and intelligence, imagination and love.

The Way of Renewal/Resurrection- Matthew 12:46-50

I take you to be my brother/sister in Christ. Let our love be lived within the community of this church, and our home be embraced as a household of faith. However much our love for one another deepens, I promise to love God more than I love you. I ask you to love God more

than you love me, that our growing love for him will draw us closer to one another.

The Way of Service/Spirit- Romans 12

I take you to be my partner in Christ's service. I will help you develop God's gifts in you and work with you for the coming of God's Kingdom. I will listen with you for God's call in our lives, that our house may be a place where the good news is proclaimed, where justice and mercy are lived, where God's children are welcomed, and where His name is honored. May our marriage bring honor and joy to the Lord!