Weddingbee Blog

Our church’s assistant Pastor read a few scriptures. It was a great way to include her in our ceremony, which we really wanted to do!

I fell in love with this verse after Mrs. Cheese posted about it:

Ruth 1:16

Entreat me not to leave you, or to return from following after you. For where you go, I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people, and your God will be my God. And where you die, I will die and there I will be buried. May the Lord do with me and more if anything but death parts you from me.

We had a really hard time finding additional readings after we got the first one squared away. (I went through pages and pages of the interwebs—Weddingbee included—in search of them). This one came from a list of readings recommended by our Pastor.

Colossians 3:12-17

As God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. Bear with one another and, if anyone has a complaint against another, forgive each other; just as the Lord has forgiven you, so that you also must forgive.

Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in the one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly; teach and admonish one another in all wisdom; and gratitude in your hearts sing psalms, hymn, and spiritual songs to God.

And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

Then our bridal party sat down, while our Pastor presented us with a really beautiful message.

Looking back, I really wish I had bit the bullet and hired a videographer (or even enlisted someone in the audience with a Flip) for our ceremony. While I remember feeling very touched by his words, and very, very happy about our choice of officiant, I cannot remember exactly what our Pastor said. Our ceremony was, by far, the best part—my favorite part—of the day and I’m sad that I don’t have a recording of it.

Our Pastor ended his message with this reading (also one of my favorites):

Blessing For a Marriage | James Dillet Freeman

May your marriage bring you all the exquisite excitements a marriage should bring, and may life grant you also patience, tolerance, and understanding.

May you always need one another-not so much to fill your emptiness as to help you to know your fullness. A mountain needs a valley to be complete; the valley does not make the mountain less, but more; and the valley is more a valley because it has a mountain towering over it. So let it be with you and you.

May you need one another, but not out of weakness.

May you want one another, but not out of lack.

May you entice one another, but not compel one another.

May you embrace one another, but not encircle one another.

May you always succeed in all important ways with one another, and not fail in the little graces.

May you look for things to praise, often say, “I love you!” and take no notice of small faults.

If you have quarrels that push you apart, may both of you hope to have good sense enough to take the first step back.

May you enter into the mystery which is the awareness of one another’s presence- no more physical than spiritual, warm and near when you are side by side, and warm and near when you are in separate rooms or even distance cities.

May you have happiness, and may you find it making one another happy.

May you have love, and may you find it loving another.

And with that, we were almost husband and wife.

*Ashley and Laura are the artists behind the cameras.

Previously in the Beagle recaps:

• We rehearsed.
• My hair was done, my face got painted, and I arrived at the church.
• The guys got pinned and had their picture taken.
• I transformed into a bride.
• Our ceremony procession began and I found my dad.
• I walked down the aisle and Mr. Beagle finally saw my dress.