Meet with the engaged couple to see what type of ceremony they desire. Most ceremonies are already outlined so that a minister can easily read and fill in their names.
Talk with the couple about the type of service they are looking for, whether it is traditional, contemporary, or something that reflects their unique personalities. Ask the couple if they would like to modify or write any of their own vows to be added to the ceremony. Some couples choose wedding planners who have already done the planning on the types of ceremonies and decorations. Most planners will direct all aspects of the wedding rehearsal except for the actual ceremony. If you are a part of the rehearsal, talk the couple through the vows during the rehearsal to let them know what to expect but do not have them actually say the vows.
That should be saved for the actual wedding day ceremony. During the actual wedding day ceremony, direct the couple as to when they need to kneel for prayer, light the Unity Candle, and when the bride should hand off her bouquet. This is their ceremony and their special moment. Make it enjoyable for them.
Most ministers will make a check mark of each step of the ceremony inside the wedding book so they will not repeat or omit any portion. This may help relieve the pressures or nerves for new ministers on their first wedding. Give the vows that need to be repeated in short sections. The longer the section you give the more likely a nervous bride or groom will forget and have to be told again.
Gently guide the couple, making them comfortable. Some ministers prefer to hold out the wedding book towards the maid of honor and best man so they can place the appropriate rings on the book. Others prefer the more traditional way of allowing the maid of honor and best man to hand the rings off. The reason to use the book is to reduce the danger of dropping the ring and the embarrassment of having to find it and picking it up.
If you use the book, you can pick up the ring from there. Be sure to cover this in the rehearsal. After the ceremony is finished and the newlyweds have kissed, tell the audience that it is your pleasure to introduce Mr. Be sure to smile, this is a joyous time for everyone. You may have to make an announcement thanking everyone for coming and inviting everyone for the reception that follows.
If it is being held at another place, be sure to mention the location. TIPS: Be sure to take your time while conducting a wedding ceremony. Being made in the image of the triune God, the male was not complete when he was alone, so God created the perfect complement for the male: the female. She was to be his life companion, his co-laborer in fulfilling the creation mandate of God: "Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, and subdue it.
Rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, and every creature that crawls on the earth" v. In the time of man's innocence, God instituted the estate of matrimony between the first man and the first woman. Marriage was consecrated by God, not only for mutual help and comfort, but also as a means of procreation. In marriage, God gave His creatures, man and woman, the ability - and the mandate - to create life like themselves, life in the image of God.
Not only this, but God also gave this first couple a taste of redemption for mankind, as marriage is a foretaste of the mystical union that exists between Christ and His bride, the church. Not knowing any just reason that these two should not be married, I ask, "Who gives this woman to be married to this man?
Let us pray: Father-Creator, we thank You for Your wondrous and gracious creation of mankind in Your image. We thank You for the heavenly character of love - especially when Your love exists between a man and a woman. We thank You for Your institution of marriage and of the joy and the sense of completion that it brings.
We thank You for our redemption in Jesus Christ, as we are made new creatures in Him. We ask You to enable this couple to bless You in their lives and in their marriage in all the days ahead. For it is in Your name alone that we pray. As you stand before the witness of God and this company, it is important that you give careful consideration to that which you are promising. You are accountable to your precious mate and to God for that which you pledge. It is advisable that you soberly examine the vows you are about to make.
These vows, which you have selected to represent your commitment, are timeless in the earnest promises they reflect. In these few moments, we will examine the things that you are vowing to do for your mate, regardless of life's circumstances, for as long as you live. Your first promise is to honor your mate. What does "to honor" mean? As Christians, we look to God's Word for instruction on this and other important matters. In doing so, we find that honor is a biblical term for respect, esteem, high regard, and reward.
In its various forms, it is found more than times in the English Bible. Honor is used to represent respect paid to superiors, such as God, Christ, kings and presidents, church officers, the elderly, and parents.
Honor can also be something bestowed as a reward for virtuous behavior, such as for honoring God or serving Christ, for manifesting wisdom, discipline, or righteousness.
To honor someone or something is to acknowledge and show respect for the authority or worthiness of the object of one's honor. This is the connotation of "to honor" one's mate. As you make your vows to each other, you are pledging to acknowledge and to show respect for the worthiness of your mate.
Showing honor to your mate involves an affective side that is, a feeling of respect for your mate as well as outward manifestations that is, your actions toward or regarding your mate. Tragically, there are too few marriage partners who consistently keep this vow. This lack of honoring one's mate contributes significantly to troubled and failed marriages.
Too often marriage partners fail to realize the value and worthiness of the one they profess to love above all others. Instead, they tend to elevate themselves or others to the demotion of their mate. There is one other aspect of honoring your mate about which you should be aware.
In the Bible the word love is sometimes used as a synonym for honor. This is seen when Paul tells the Romans to "show family affection to one another with brotherly love.
Outdo one another in showing honor" Rm We see also in Scripture the highest example of such honor. It is the example of Christ. In washing the disciples' feet, He paid them the honor of service, of subjecting His own priorities to their interests. Are you prepared to follow Christ's example by subjecting your personal priorities to the other's best interest and serving the other all the days of your life?
Next, you will promise to love and to cherish your mate. For two people like you, who are so deeply in love, these promises sound easy enough to keep. Yet there are many who start out "in love" when they marry, but who apparently no longer "cherish" their mate enough to stay married for a lifetime. We hear the statistics; we see the marital casualties of our day. Do not despair, however; you can build a stable and loving relationship that will withstand the storms of life.
How is that possible? You must look to your heavenly Father, not only for His wise counsel on marriage, but also for His being a role model of loving and cherishing this new family member. God's Word, in 1 John, describes His role modeling: "Look at how great a love the Father has given us, that we should be called God's children.
And we are! It is amazing that God Almighty chose to adopt us as His children - not His servants - His family members! This lavish love is unconditional and blind to sinful shortcomings. As you are about to "adopt" this new family member, your mate, remember to lavish on your mate godly, unconditional love. This is much more than simply saying the words, I love you, everyday. First John continues by saying, "Little children, we must not love in word or speech, but in deed and truth;.
Dear friends, let us love one another, because love is from God,. And we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and the one who remains in love remains in God, and God remains in him.
These verses explain to us that God is not only the source of love; He is love. If you are to live all your married days "in love," then you must do as the verse says: "The one who remains in love remains in God, and God remains in him" c. It cannot be with just your words or even your well-intentioned vows that you proclaim your love to and for your mate.
Your words must be clothed in action, day after day, from the little things to the big things of life. This involves a total commitment of your life - to live in God and allowing God to live in you - so that your relationship to Him and to your mate reflects His love. This means your focus cannot be on attaining the perfect house or the great job but rather, on maintaining the humble posture of a loving servant who is willing to serve his God and serve his mate.
Then - and only then - can you begin to understand what to cherish means. In this insightful book of the Bible, we find: "This is how we have come to know love: He laid down His life for us.
We should also lay down our lives for our [mate]" 1 John , paraphrased. You must cherish the other more than you cherish your own self. Your mate now comes first - before yourself, before your parents, before your friends, before your job, before your leisure activities, before your caring for your own exhaustion and needs at the end of a hard day.
You must serve each other as Christ served. Then and only then will you truly fulfill your vow "to love and to cherish. These vows are as binding in adversity as they are in prosperity. They should be broken only by death. If you are prepared to make such a serious commitment, will you now turn, face one another, and join hands.
You will now seal your vows, "to honor, to love, to cherish," by the giving and receiving of rings.
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