It was rough going up in the Kellar house. Despite all the difficult times we have had, this celebration tonight is a testimony of God’s faithfulness through those tough times and how it is expressed in the marriage of my mom and dad.
When I think of commitment throughout the years of a marriage, I think of a journey on an airplane. When you first get on the airplane, there are all sorts of adjustments you have to make. Sitting down, getting your bags arranged. This is the honeymoon period. Its still hot because they haven’t turned the air on yet for you to cool down.
Next you take off and things get a little more difficult, Your ears start popping and children start crying the honeymoon period has worn off because they’ve turn the air conditioner on. Once you are in the air you go through seasons of rough and calm. Maybe there’s a little turbulence and you have to put your seatbelts on because things are kind of shaky. Then you have the times of calm when the flight attendants are bring you refreshment.
Periodically on your journey to your destination you may have to stop in an airport to refuel and you find yourself beginning the journey all over again. That is what we are celebrating tonight, the completion of one leg of the journey. On that leg, there are seasons of calm and seasons of turbulence. The thing that comforts me most during times of turbulence is not knowing that I have correctly fastened my seatbelt, or that if the oxygen masks fall down from the sealing I have been instructed to put mine on myself before I put one on the child sitting next to me. Its that throughout the whole journey, there is one man in control of the plane and he is ensuring that I will arrive at my destination safely. It comforts me to know that even if things get so rough that I wish I could stop the journey there is one who has made a promise. The one who sits in the cockpit wearing the captain’s hat has entered into a covenant with us.
A covenant is defined simply as a promise. When we enter into a marriage, two covenants are made. One between and husband and wife and a second between the couple and God. We know how serious is about covenants God makes. Philippians 2:5-9 reads:
Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:
Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,
but made himself nothing,
taking the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness.
And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
and became obedient to death—
even death on a cross!
Death is the extent Jesus was willing to make for us, just like the pilot who doesn’t go for his parachute at the first sign of trouble. Paul tells us in Philippians that our attitude should be the same. That we should be willing to die for the covenant we have made.
Paul also tells us in Ephesians 5:21 that we are to submit to our spouses and love them as Christ loved the church. The covenants we enter into are so important that death is the only thing that breaks them. Mom and Dad, you are starting a new leg of your journey. There may be times of refreshment and times of turbulence but you know there is one in the cockpit taking you where you need to be, keeping his promise. As you begin this new leg of the journey you have decided to renew your vows.
Dad/Mom, repeat after me:
You are mine, and I am yours, How
God brought us together, kept us together.You are God's gift to me,
my priceless treasure,
my blessing for life.
You have helped me let go of the past
and now I embrace the future.
May God bless us as we come together before family and friends
to renew our pledge of love to one another.
I come today to give you my love,
to give you my heart
and my hope for our future.
I promise to bring you joy,
to be at home with your spirit
and to love you more tomorrow than I do today.
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