My nephew is getting married today. I hope the very best for him and his bride.

 

I hope they celebrate this special day for all the joy it offers. And may whatever planning and effort went into this one great day pale in comparison to the happy building of a great lifetime together.

 

I hope they have fun(!), that they laugh often, and enjoy the simple things that remind them every-single-day how special life is – together.

 

I hope they experience the depth of love that grows and abounds more and more, and in ever deeper ways; the love that drinks deeply from the well of cherishing, honoring, forgiving, and submitting to each other before our great God who first loved us; the love that keeps on loving when it doesn’t feel like being loving; the love that perseveres against all competing desires and abides when all else fades away.

 

I hope they learn quickly that marriage is not so much the efficient allocation of “yours” and “mine” as it is the creation and nurturing of a new being called “Us.” “Us” is not a 50/50 negotiation; it’s both giving 100% or more…ALL the time. “Us” is a fragile creation that needs constant protection all its life yet is as powerful as it is fragile. I hope they learn the power of “Us” is greater than the sum of “you and me.”

 

I hope they discover the exceeding greatness of finding “us” is more than just the two of them; that where “us” is powerful, “God in us” is invincible; and that where “the two of us” bond with others in mutual support and encouragement, the greater “us” can transcend the world.

 

I hope they find riches even in poverty, humility in success, persistence in challenge, guiding and sustaining faith in all difficulty, and secure hope in uncertain and threatening times.

 

I hope they create and nurture a great life of love and devotion together… one that never loses hope, the secure anchor for our love,

 

…the real hope we all need.