Be a Happy Family
Sermon
ROSES, RINGS & REJOICING
____ , this is the third time that you have stood before me in a unique relationship. When you were nearly four months old, your parents held you as I baptized you in the Christian faith. Thirteen years later, at this altar, you stood alone as I placed my hand upon your head and confirmed you in the Christian faith. Today you and ____ stand together, and I stand before you again, this time to unite you in marriage.
If I could summarize the words of Scripture concerning marriage, the prayers of your parents, the good wishes of your friends, and the blessing of your pastors, it would be in three simple but profound truths.
First, be lovers all your life. We all know that marriage is not merely an adventure of romantic love. Only fools believe that marriage is an endless series of emotional thrills. Yet as you go about your daily tasks, keep romance alive by the little things you do throughout the day. Be courteous to each other at all times. Respect each other's feelings and thoughts, ideas and dreams. Express appreciation freely. Build one another up. Never let a day go by without saying "I love you." Say it not only in words, but with a wink in public when no one is looking, a squeeze of the hand, or a loving touch as you are hurrying about the house.
A happy marriage never develops by accident. It is cultivated from the day you are married until the day that God calls one of you to his eternal home. Work as diligently and persistently for "togetherness" as you have during your engagement. Be lovers all your life.
Second, be honest with each other. Avoid that day when you cannot be open and frank, honest and truthful with one another. When there are lies between husband and wife, when there is unfaithfulness, and when there is deceit, the bloom of marriage begins to fade. Live one life together and make that an open book which you both share.
Being honest means also listening to each other. You may not always agree, but each should respect the other's right to their own thoughts. Hear what the other person is trying to say. We need to talk to each other, but we also need to listen to each other. We grow in an honest relationship not only by being truthful ourselves, but also by letting the other person be truthful. Don't wear masks before each other; let your partner be the person God wanted him or her to be. Respect each other's right to fulfill God's intended destiny.
Third, be one in worship. I am always troubled when a couple shares a common home, when they sleep, eat, work, bank, shop, and play together but cannot worship God together. There is unity in worship. Together, you need the blessings of God more than anything else in the world. How beautiful it is when husband and wife worship together on the Lord's Day.
The poet said that we need to hitch our wagon to a star, but I say that we need to link marriage with God. Ask God to come into your home. Make God a part of all that you do. Let God be the senior partner in your marriage. When you do that, your marriage which is now being made on earth, will be sealed in heaven. May God bless you richly in your years together.
— O. Garfield Beckstrand, II
Trinity Lutheran Church
Rockford, Illinois
If I could summarize the words of Scripture concerning marriage, the prayers of your parents, the good wishes of your friends, and the blessing of your pastors, it would be in three simple but profound truths.
First, be lovers all your life. We all know that marriage is not merely an adventure of romantic love. Only fools believe that marriage is an endless series of emotional thrills. Yet as you go about your daily tasks, keep romance alive by the little things you do throughout the day. Be courteous to each other at all times. Respect each other's feelings and thoughts, ideas and dreams. Express appreciation freely. Build one another up. Never let a day go by without saying "I love you." Say it not only in words, but with a wink in public when no one is looking, a squeeze of the hand, or a loving touch as you are hurrying about the house.
A happy marriage never develops by accident. It is cultivated from the day you are married until the day that God calls one of you to his eternal home. Work as diligently and persistently for "togetherness" as you have during your engagement. Be lovers all your life.
Second, be honest with each other. Avoid that day when you cannot be open and frank, honest and truthful with one another. When there are lies between husband and wife, when there is unfaithfulness, and when there is deceit, the bloom of marriage begins to fade. Live one life together and make that an open book which you both share.
Being honest means also listening to each other. You may not always agree, but each should respect the other's right to their own thoughts. Hear what the other person is trying to say. We need to talk to each other, but we also need to listen to each other. We grow in an honest relationship not only by being truthful ourselves, but also by letting the other person be truthful. Don't wear masks before each other; let your partner be the person God wanted him or her to be. Respect each other's right to fulfill God's intended destiny.
Third, be one in worship. I am always troubled when a couple shares a common home, when they sleep, eat, work, bank, shop, and play together but cannot worship God together. There is unity in worship. Together, you need the blessings of God more than anything else in the world. How beautiful it is when husband and wife worship together on the Lord's Day.
The poet said that we need to hitch our wagon to a star, but I say that we need to link marriage with God. Ask God to come into your home. Make God a part of all that you do. Let God be the senior partner in your marriage. When you do that, your marriage which is now being made on earth, will be sealed in heaven. May God bless you richly in your years together.
— O. Garfield Beckstrand, II
Trinity Lutheran Church
Rockford, Illinois
