Many of you have asked for copies of our vows so I've put them online.DANNY:
My Darling Beautiful Widget,
I love you. I love you completely, endlessly hopelessly. I love you with all the strength, passion, tenderness, courage and honor that God has blessed me with and more.
Song of Solomon 4:9 “You have stolen my heart with one glance of your eyes . . . How delightful is your love! How much more pleasing is your love than wine . . .” 4:3 “Your lips are like a scarlet ribbon; your mouth is lovely.” 1:15 “How beautiful you are, my darling! Oh, how beautiful! Your eyes are doves.” 2:2 “Like a lily among thorns is my darling among the maidens.”
Your love is much more glorious and beautiful than any sunrise or any sunset. The Lord has provided me with so many earthly blessings, but if I had nothing else but you my Jacqueline, His blessings would still be far greater than any earthly imagination.
The fact that we are standing here about to become man and wife is a true testament to the power of the Holy Spirit that is within you. His grace and mercy is limitless and it is evident in you. You know the true meaning of forgiveness and grace and I am humbled by your love for me.
Proverbs 12:4 says “A wife of noble character is her husband's crown, but a disgraceful wife is like decay in his bones.” As God and all of you as my witness, I confess with all my heart, mind and spirit…My Jacqueline is my Crown.
I stand here before God, our friends and family and I wish to make it completely clear that I recognize God’s authority over my life which is exercised from his loving heart. I also recognize God has blessed me with you and has entrusted to me your life as a free gift that I have not earned nor do I deserve or will ever deserve.
Although my love for you may be feeble compared to the love of Christ our Lord, it is still immeasurable. Not one earthly creature could proclaim more love for anything than I have for you.
So, let me express my commitment to you through the promises of my heart:
I promise to love you as my wife, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy. In this same way, I will love you my wife as my own body. I will feed you and care for you just as Christ does the church.
I promise to live first unto God rather than others or even you and I promise to encourage you to do the same.
I promise that I will continue to lead our lives in a life of faith and hope in Christ Jesus.
I promise to love you with God’s love, to provide for your needs through His enablement and to lead you as He leads me, as long as He gives us life together, regardless of the circumstances.
I promise to always try to bear the Fruit of the Spirit especially patience, self-control, goodness, kindness and gentleness.
I promise to lead our family to Ephesians 6: “…pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all saints.”
I promise I will be a faithful, honest and honorable husband.
I promise to protect you to my death.
Although I am the leader and the head of this family, I promise to always take heed your words and value your gift of discernment.
I promise that every fox in your vineyard is a fox in My vineyard and therefore I promise to Song of Solomon 2:15 “catch the foxes, the little foxes that ruin the vineyard,” no matter the cost.
I promise to cherish every time we hold hands, every little smile, funny face, every hug…every kiss like it’s the first time.
I promise to try to provide you a life that has very few tears but when there are some…I promise to kiss them away.
I promise to show you patience and grace.
I promise that I will have unlimited amounts of forgiveness for you.
I promise to serve you no matter the circumstances no matter the cost.
I promise to take care of you no matter how healthy, no matter how sick…there is no distance I would not travel…no lengths I would not go to in order to fulfill this promise.
I promise that I will never intentionally cause conflict between us but if conflict arises, I promise to always fight fair.
I promise that I will always try to find us new experiences and adventures for us to build memories on.
I know that I can fulfill these promises because as Philippians 4 says, “…in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength.”
As we enter upon the privileges and joys of life’s most holy relationship, and begin the adventure of continuing to grow our Christian faith together, I will 1 Peter 3 “live with my wife in an understanding way . . . and show you your honor as a fellow heir of the grace of life, so that our prayers will not be hindered.”
Song of Solomon 5: let me now, “come into my garden, my sister, my bride…gather my myrrh with my spice…eat my honeycomb and my honey and drink my wine and my milk.”
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JACQUELINE:
So, thanks for following me to Raleigh. That’s really worked out well for me.
I don’t know where begin. We have an interesting history and the road we’ve already traveled, has lead us to this day, this moment.
I stand before you with a humbled heart. I am humbled by what Christ has done in my life. I have done nothing to deserve his love and faithfulness. And I have done nothing to deserve YOUR love and faithfulness.
I am also humbled by what Christ has done in your heart and life. A work that needed to be done and a work done without me. And a work that has also prepared us for this day and all our tomorrows.
I am grateful for Christ’s timing in our lives. Grateful that today is the day our lives, families, friends are united. Today is the day that the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it. I’m grateful today is the day we begin a new chapter in the story of our lives together.
I am so proud of who you are and have become. I am so proud of the man you are in Christ and the example you set for me almost daily. The example that loves me like Christ loves me, with joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. I am so proud to become your wife. If my father were here today, he would be proud to give me away to you. And I know our heavenly Father is proud of the work He has begun in you.
I know you moved to Raleigh to start a new life with me, but you should know something. I would and will follow YOU anywhere. As the verse in Ruth 1:16-17 says:
“…Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God. 17 Where you die I will die, and there I will be buried. May the LORD deal with me, be it ever so severely, if anything but death separates you and me."
I cannot be anywhere else but beside you, next to you as your wife, lover and best friend. It is the most dangerous and the safest place to be. I love you with all my heart, soul, and mind. You are my dream come true and I promise to spend all the days of my life being yours.
May the LORD bless us and keep us;
May the LORD make his face shine upon us and be gracious to us;
May the LORD turn his face toward us and give us peace.
My vow, my pledge, my covenant to you Danny is to love you always for the rest of the days of our lives.
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