WEDDING MEMORY
I’ve attended weddings the last two weekends at Faith Lutheran church in Madison. Alex and Julie’s last weekend and this weekend Kody and Paige. Each time as I watched the bride walk down the aisle with her dad and watched the groom in the front of the church, I always think of my wedding some 40 years ago in the exact same church, Faith Lutheran.
Yes, Roxie and I were married at Faith Lutheran Church on December 18th 1976. Not much has changed inside the church building in 40 years, with the exception of the big pulpit being removed. So sitting there the last two weekends I was thinking how beautiful the brides looked and remembering how beautiful my bride was too. She just radiated in her wedding dress on that December day and I remember standing in front of the church watching her walk down the aisle with her father and just how absolutely beautiful she looked. Thinking I was the luckiest guy in the world.
So I watched intently Alex and Kody as their bride walked down the aisle, their faces were beaming! I noticed their eyes, they never took their eyes off their bride, ever. They watched her all the way down the aisle. I remember doing the same thing forty years ago, not taking my eyes off her when she walked the aisle. I was in those young men’s shoes, standing in that same spot and know the feelings they were experiencing at that moment.
I also wondered just how many weddings have been performed over the years at Faith Lutheran Church. How many couples have stood at that same altar and pledged their love to each other in front of family and friends, just like Roxie and I did in 1976. The service itself hasn’t changed much either, prayer, sermon, solos, exchange of vows, kiss and announcement of the new couple for the first time.
I’m always impressed with the pastor at weddings when they give the sermon. That has to be a tough job to keep a wedding sermon fresh when you do so many weddings a year. To make sure not to repeat yourself. I understand Pastor Kirk has 14 weddings to do this summer, that’s a lot of weddings and to come up with a new sermon each time on the same subject has to be difficult.
Faith Lutheran Church building is a special place for me, even though I am not a member there. I have many memories inside that building, attending many weddings and funerals over the years. And each time I go there, lots of emotions run through my mind, remembering times of rejoicing with a young couple that’s getting married and being happy for them or attending a funeral of a loved one and experiencing sadness.
So whenever I walk into Faith Lutheran Church I always remember taking our turn up front at that altar many years ago and expressing our love to each other in front of our family and friends, just like Alex and Julie and Kody and Paige just did.
