The wedding took place in a very small Justice of the Peace office in El Paso, Texas.  It was a Saturday afternoon.  The official performing the ceremony was wearing black slacks and a T-shirt.   We were in our jeans.

I’ve often told young people who are planning their wedding that it doesn’t matter where you get married, who attends the ceremony, or who does the service.

Don’t get me wrong.  Weddings, big and small, with all the things that go with them, and there can be many, are wonderful.  They can be expensive, even smaller ones, but, if that’s what the couple wants, and they can afford it, more power to them.

I have officiated at many, many weddings, in sizes from less than 10 to over 500.  I’ve performed weddings in living rooms, hotel ballrooms, and even on the beach.  All of them, in their own way, have been very special.

Here’s The Point

The point I want to make is that regardless of who performs the wedding ceremony, where the location is, and how many attend, none of that is any guarantee that the marriage will last.  For a marriage to last it is going to take the love and commitment of both the bride and the groom.

On that Saturday afternoon in El Paso, Texas, Kathy and I made a commitment; it was a lifetime commitment.  Four years after we got married, we began to study the Bible.  We have tried to base our marriage on biblical principles ever since.

Love is a choice; you choose to love.  Thankfulness is a choice; you choose to be grateful.  Forgiveness is a choice; you choose to forgive.  I think those three are all very important keys in a successful marriage.

Today Is Our Day

Today, our wedding anniversary again falls on a Saturday.  I am filled with memories of the drive in our VW van from Carlsbad, New Mexico (where we lived) to El Paso, Texas. We had supper that night at McDonald’s, and spent the night in a Motel 6. We drove back to Carlsbad the next day as happy newlyweds.

I’m thankful to God for the most wonderful woman I know, a woman full of love, thankfulness and forgiveness.  She is still the girl of my dreams and the love of my life.

And while we don’t have a wedding album of pictures to look at, or a piece of frozen wedding cake in the freezer, or a wedding dress packed away in a box, we have each other!   So, on this, our 39th anniversary, I just wanted to say, “Happy Anniversary, Kathy, I love you!”

Mike

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