Joshua and Sam were getting married. It was a lovely ceremony and all was going smoothly when suddenly Amanda, the officiant, turned to Joshua and asked:
Joshua, will you hurt and anger Sam?
and Joshua replied,
I will.
You could feel the tension on the hill. What? No, wait, that's not what is supposed to be said.
And then she asked,
Is that your intention?
and Joshua replied,
No.
Oh - phew. You could feel us all relax as we realized where this was going. Back and forth between the two of them, the questions were asked, the answers were given, reminding us all that marriage is not some blissful, dreamlike state of existence, but rather the hard, caring work of living together and sharing life with all its complexities.
I have attended a Lot of weddings in my life as bride, mother, and wife of a pastor for 36 1/2 years. I do believe this one was the most "real" of any of them. Yes, we say "for better or worse" but I am not sure the couple ever really understands what "worse" means. Somehow, facing these very real questions about what their real life will be like no matter what their intentions, seems to me a very good way to start a marriage.
May they be generously blessed on this rocky, frustrating, delightful, exciting, loving, intentional journey called marriage!
2 comments:
A very good way to start a marriage indeed. Thanks for sharing this. Keeping it real is a Good Thing.
Yes it is, Mike.
Post a Comment