Carrie and me going over her vows on her wedding day.
It took more than 25 years, but I finally met Jesus at a wedding. And when I did, I made peace with weddings in general. I’d like to tell you how.
For years I have made the statement that I’d rather do a funeral any day than a wedding. Yeah, yeah, I know that sounds twisted, vile, and patently un-American. But from a ministry perspective, there’s no comparison. Unlike weddings, at the funeral:
- The family will actually listen to what I have to say.
- Nobody has spent years fantasizing and obsessing about how this will be the perfect day.
- The cost, even with caskets and cemetery plots, is usually less.
- Long-term success is assured – deceased persons don’t have a 50/50 chance of changing their minds at a later date.
- Prospective candidates aren’t inundated with supermarket magazines modeling the latest casket fashions.
- There are no attendants who are required to buy swishy dresses or rent tuxedos.
- People don’t “experiment” by cohabitating with the casket for a year or two to see if there’s a fit.
- Photographers don’t roam freely about the service, or dominate the entire reception.
- Expenses can be offset by life insurance. (Try telling your insurance agent you need wedding coverage.)
- People actually give some thought to life after the ceremony.
Simply put, marriage is made in heaven, but weddings (aka American Idolatry) are made in hell.
An Idea Born of Necessity
All that changed a couple of years ago, however, when I was doing premarital counseling with two couples who had a similar problem. [click to continue…]
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