The wedding day countdown is moving quickly toward this Saturday night! Even as I am preparing this blog post, mother and daughter are in the kitchen making some of the props that will add to the esthetic beauty of a girl’s dream wedding! Preparing for a wedding reminds me of all the work put into making Thanksgiving dinner. The hostess gets up early on Thursday morning to spend her whole morning and part of the afternoon in the kitchen so folks can gather for 20 minutes around a large table to consume a delicious meal and then head for the recliners. For the last year, Alli, her mom and others have worked to plan and prepare for this Saturday night where people will come from all over to sit for an event that will last maybe 30 minutes. You see, it is important to plan and prepare in advance for these events if they are to be successful, and it’s worth the effort.
Preparation. Hard work. This is a great precursor for a successful married life. As the bride and groom drive away from the church, their planning, preparation and hard work have just begun. If they work at their marriage every day, they will look back over the years and say when they have been married twenty plus years or more, “Where did the days go? Seems like just yesterday that we were married!” If they refuse to plan, prepare and work at their marriage, twenty-plus years will seem like an eternity!
Last week, I shared five ways you can be sure your marriage will end in divorce. This week, I’ll be sharing ways you can be sure your marriage will end in delight! The wedding starts with great delight as the doors open and the bride appears (which always brings tears to my eyes). The delight doesn’t have to end with a brief wedding and honeymoon. God has given us richly all things to enjoy (1 Timothy 6:17). He intends for our marriages to be a delight and not a burden. So let’s get started with that planning, preparation and hard work.
Delight #1 – Walk together.
Now my first suggestion may not wow you, but it is a simple, practical way to bring delight to your marriage. Your life is probably full right now, and you struggle for time to spend with each other. If that is the case, and even it is not, set aside time to walk together holding hands, down a country road, through a park, on the beach, in the mall, or through the fields. Take your time. Stroll along. Stop every once-in-awhile for a kiss, a hug, to smell the flowers, to look directly into each other’s eyes, etc. Talk about the things on your heart. If possible, do it without the children. You need time to walk side-by-side and not ahead of each other or interrupted and guided by younger ones. So, go for a walk today. Enjoy the journey. Just as you walked back down the aisle together on your wedding night, you just might find yourself walking right on for years to come, sharing and caring with great delight!
From A Pastor's Heart 