The following is the wedding sermon I gave last Sunday.
The Making of A Vintage
Psalm 127
You two met, you two fell in love, and now, in this beautiful day, in this beautiful place, you took this love-affair to another level by committing to share your lives as husband and wife. And yet this is not the end in itself, but rather a significant beginning. Weddings evoke, in a sense, an ending, but more importantly, also of beginnings.
Beginnings can be exciting. The thought of starting fresh – we think of opportunities, of adventures, of discovering new things about the world, about each other. But beginnings can also be messy. Think of a baby coming out to this world – blinking in their first light, umbilical cord uncut, still wet with amniotic fluids and such. Messy. Think of constructions and building houses. In order to built a strong foundation, one must need to dig deep and excavate tons of dirt. Think of the hubris and the chaos. Beginnings may mean a lot of adjustments, of having your world turned upside down. But in all these things, we are suddenly overwhelmed at the prospect before us. You are about to start a new life. A new life. Together. For me that is a big deal indeed. Which leads us to what Scripture has to tells us.
Look at verse 1 “Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain who build it.” This verse bring to mind three things. There is a house to build. There are laborers who help build it. And there is the Lord who ultimately is the builder.
What you are building as you start this life together is a house, a household of faith. It should be a place of refuge where unconditional love, mutual support, respect, acceptance and spirituality may be found. In other words, it should be a house that honors the Lord. I don’t know how many kids you plan to have, but no matter if you have 1 or 1 dozen, the household you will build must be strong, the foundation secure, and it should be a place where the name of the Lord is glorified.
You two must work at building this house with much grace, patience and effort. It takes a lot of work. More important than having a beautiful wedding ceremony is to have a beautiful, if not harmonious married life. I’d like to tell you about a movie I just saw. The title is Sideways, and it is about two friends who went on a journey to the wine country of California. One friend used to be a famous actor, and he is getting married later that week, and the other friend was a failed novelist who teaches 8th grade English and is getting over his divorce. The trip quickly turned to a more inward journey as they examined their lives, their loves, the choices they have made in their lives. They began to think if they have indeed made something significant out of their lives. Miles, the failed novelist was a wine connoisseur, and at one point he waxed lyrical about his favorite wine, the pinot. This is what he said about it: “Pinot is a hard grape to grow. It is thin-skinned, temperamental, ripens early. It’s not a survivor like cabernet which can just grow anywhere and thrive even when it is neglected. Pinot needs constant care and attention. In fact, it can only grow in these really specific, tucked-away corners of the world. And, only the most patient, nurturing of growers can do it. Only somebody who really takes the time to understand pinot’s potential can then coax it to its fullest expression. And, oh, its flavor is the most haunting, most brilliant and thrilling and subtle and ancient on the planet.” The point I am driving at is that if you want this life together to be sweet, and brilliant, and great – if you want to look back at some point in the future and declare that the years you have spent together are vintage years, work hard at it, and nurture it. This life, this household you will build together will require constant care and attention. It will need diligence. It will need patience. It will not be easy, and some pain and sacrifice may be needed. There might be some point when you want to give up. Don’t. Never take each other for granted. Respect. Love. Commitment. Faithfulness. Sacrifice. Grace. These are what you should work on. Only then can you coax the sweetness that will flow in abundance in the life you will share together.
Lastly, recognize, that ultimately it is the Lord who will really build your household of faith. It is He who is in control. It is God who has the strength, and the wisdom, and the plan on how this household should be built. Now we have a mental picture of a God who is aloof, uncaring and often times cruel. But let me underscore this. This God from whom everything will be built from is a good God. This God is our heavenly Father, and all He will plan for you is for you own good. These are plans to prosper you, and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a secured future. You will have your plans, you will have your priorities, but unless it is the Lord that guides you, and it is His will that becomes the ultimate basis for all the things you do, you will labor in vain.
These are basic instructions for making your life worth living - for you to be able to come up with vintage years that bring out the very best in both of you, and those around you. May God’s blessings, and grace abound in your marriage.
The Making of A Vintage
Psalm 127
You two met, you two fell in love, and now, in this beautiful day, in this beautiful place, you took this love-affair to another level by committing to share your lives as husband and wife. And yet this is not the end in itself, but rather a significant beginning. Weddings evoke, in a sense, an ending, but more importantly, also of beginnings.
Beginnings can be exciting. The thought of starting fresh – we think of opportunities, of adventures, of discovering new things about the world, about each other. But beginnings can also be messy. Think of a baby coming out to this world – blinking in their first light, umbilical cord uncut, still wet with amniotic fluids and such. Messy. Think of constructions and building houses. In order to built a strong foundation, one must need to dig deep and excavate tons of dirt. Think of the hubris and the chaos. Beginnings may mean a lot of adjustments, of having your world turned upside down. But in all these things, we are suddenly overwhelmed at the prospect before us. You are about to start a new life. A new life. Together. For me that is a big deal indeed. Which leads us to what Scripture has to tells us.
Look at verse 1 “Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain who build it.” This verse bring to mind three things. There is a house to build. There are laborers who help build it. And there is the Lord who ultimately is the builder.
What you are building as you start this life together is a house, a household of faith. It should be a place of refuge where unconditional love, mutual support, respect, acceptance and spirituality may be found. In other words, it should be a house that honors the Lord. I don’t know how many kids you plan to have, but no matter if you have 1 or 1 dozen, the household you will build must be strong, the foundation secure, and it should be a place where the name of the Lord is glorified.
You two must work at building this house with much grace, patience and effort. It takes a lot of work. More important than having a beautiful wedding ceremony is to have a beautiful, if not harmonious married life. I’d like to tell you about a movie I just saw. The title is Sideways, and it is about two friends who went on a journey to the wine country of California. One friend used to be a famous actor, and he is getting married later that week, and the other friend was a failed novelist who teaches 8th grade English and is getting over his divorce. The trip quickly turned to a more inward journey as they examined their lives, their loves, the choices they have made in their lives. They began to think if they have indeed made something significant out of their lives. Miles, the failed novelist was a wine connoisseur, and at one point he waxed lyrical about his favorite wine, the pinot. This is what he said about it: “Pinot is a hard grape to grow. It is thin-skinned, temperamental, ripens early. It’s not a survivor like cabernet which can just grow anywhere and thrive even when it is neglected. Pinot needs constant care and attention. In fact, it can only grow in these really specific, tucked-away corners of the world. And, only the most patient, nurturing of growers can do it. Only somebody who really takes the time to understand pinot’s potential can then coax it to its fullest expression. And, oh, its flavor is the most haunting, most brilliant and thrilling and subtle and ancient on the planet.” The point I am driving at is that if you want this life together to be sweet, and brilliant, and great – if you want to look back at some point in the future and declare that the years you have spent together are vintage years, work hard at it, and nurture it. This life, this household you will build together will require constant care and attention. It will need diligence. It will need patience. It will not be easy, and some pain and sacrifice may be needed. There might be some point when you want to give up. Don’t. Never take each other for granted. Respect. Love. Commitment. Faithfulness. Sacrifice. Grace. These are what you should work on. Only then can you coax the sweetness that will flow in abundance in the life you will share together.
Lastly, recognize, that ultimately it is the Lord who will really build your household of faith. It is He who is in control. It is God who has the strength, and the wisdom, and the plan on how this household should be built. Now we have a mental picture of a God who is aloof, uncaring and often times cruel. But let me underscore this. This God from whom everything will be built from is a good God. This God is our heavenly Father, and all He will plan for you is for you own good. These are plans to prosper you, and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a secured future. You will have your plans, you will have your priorities, but unless it is the Lord that guides you, and it is His will that becomes the ultimate basis for all the things you do, you will labor in vain.
These are basic instructions for making your life worth living - for you to be able to come up with vintage years that bring out the very best in both of you, and those around you. May God’s blessings, and grace abound in your marriage.
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