Wedding Wednesdays: Practicing. Private.
Here we are... On another Wednesday. I hope everyone is having a spectacular day!
And if you're struggling with that any at all, here's a helpful hint - spectacular days start with grateful hearts, positive attitudes and "accurate" perceptions (seeing life as GOD sees life).
Here's an Update on Our Planning Process:
Our invitations are finally, FINALLY done and have been sent out and people have started receiving them. FINALLY Done! It was such a task! Collecting all the addresses, making sure the addresses were correct and that no information was missing …AND I didn't even do any of the really hard work - printing, stuffing pockets and envelopes, going to the post office to mail them off…but still, lol.
**One thing I've learned is that procrastination has been kind to me when it only affected me alone. Obviously, now that I'm getting married, my procrastination no longer affects only me and it's affected a lot of others who have been helpful in this planning process (My bad! Truly), so I'm hoping I've learned my lesson there, lol.**
The invitations came out beautifully! Danny and I couldn't be happier.
Special thanks to our designerYohanna Reis.
Now that the invitations are out - the REAL fun starts - receiving RSVPs and working on the seating plan.
In addition to that I still have to figure out a few technical details for our centerpieces, which are simple (on purpose) and makes the technical part all the more strange. But, whatever, its necessary.
We also met with the ministers (our premarital class facilitators who are also) officiating the ceremony and we're excited about what we have planned.
THE MOMENT ALL BRIDES LOOK FOR
"Some people wait a lifetime for a moment like this…" - Kelly Clarkson
**For the record, I am a Kelly Clarkson fan, that is, I thoroughly enjoy the music she makes. #RockOn! #IDigress #MovingOn**
SO I'm going to be honest...
Up until the moment I saw the finished invitation, I didn't really have the "Oh my gosh I'm marrying the love of my life!" moment.
Even when I was trying on dresses, it all seemed so foreign to me.
The closer I get to the wedding day, the more I lean and include Danny in all the planning and the more I text my sister every wedding thought I have when it hits the more I have felt like a bride.
But yesterday my moment came. When I saw the completed package and held the invitation with our names and saw my name, my dad's name, and Danny's father's name - I was overcome with happiness, my eyes welled with tears…
"I'M GETTING MARRIED!"
And yes, the marriage is way more important than the wedding. And again, let me be honest here: I have struggled with having a wedding. One minute I was at peace with the idea and other times I felt like it was more trouble than it was worth.
But GOD has totally changed my perspective on that.
This wedding is a BIG deal!
To our families? Yes.
But even more so because of what it means to me...
This wedding is the tangible reality of a promise GOD made to me six years ago.Even beyond that, GOD is using this wedding to show Himself strong to my parents, reminding them of where they started and the position HE has placed them in now.
When GOD brought that to my attention, and I REALLY understood it, I looked at this wedding, at this entire process in a very different light.
Sure...it's about Daniel and I coming together but that wouldn't have been possible without
The Orchestrator of it all,
The ONE
Who thought of me,
Danny,
Our families
Before
HE laid the foundations of the earth.
This wedding is about GOD being GOD in my life, in Danny's life, in the lives of our families…and I'm so thankful for the people who will be able to celebrate and witness this next step with us.
Which brings me to my next and final points.
Practicing. Private.
One thing that was emphasized in our pre-marital class was having a plan in place (for conflict, for dealing with money, etc.) and practicing those principles even before you say I do. Sometimes practice comes in the form of actions , like in the middle of a misunderstanding, and sometimes practice comes in the form of discussion, like planning out a budget. for your family.
One area I've needed practice is in handling conflict and putting right thinking into action (not just knowing the correct thing but actually doing what I know to be correct).
Other areas people can practice are speaking highly of your spouse-to-be and never speaking ill of your spouse-to-be. That goes for men and women but particularly to us as ladies, because we can get overly emotional and have the "need" to "vent" - I spoke about that more in detail in last week's post (Bridesmaids).
Marriage is a private, intimate, and sacred thing instituted by GOD.
In a world where so much of our lives seem lived for the sole purpose of sharing it on Social Media it's good to have this reminder - that some moments are so intimate, so special that they should be kept private and that it's okay to be selfish sometimes.
You don't have to share everything with the rest of the world.
The day-to-day inner workings of your marriage should not be disclosed to other haphazardly. If you're married we shouldn't be able to tell that you and your spouse just had a disagreement because of your latest post. You don't have to share every time your spouse surprises you with a gift just because.
Private moments aren't just found in marriage they're all around us. I had the opportunity to work with author Lana Reid and she truly is wonderful at what she does. I loved what she said in this quote -
Don't get me wrong, there is much insight that can be gleaned by others through our sharing private moments with others. If I didn't believe that, I wouldn't have this blog. However, sometimes I think we share things prematurely and it can become a situation where we, intentionally or unintentionally, begin to rely on the attention and approval of others as a measuring stick for our happiness.
I just wonder…if Social Media existed during Bible times would David have taken a selfie right after he had been anointed by Samuel to be the next King of Israel? David didn't become King until years later.
What if David would have taken a selfie and posted it on Instagram like
Photo Source: http://biblefilms.blogspot.com/2014_01_01_archive.html
#anointed#nextKingofIsrael#SaulImcomingforya#bowdown - how would we feel about him today?
People, especially loyal servants of King Saul, would probably leave comments like #boystop#pumpyourbrakes and maybe even death threats (since apparently you can use social media for that kind of thing).
My point is, before David became King he had to go through a process - an intimate and private process with GOD. Yes, we can read about it now and it resonates with us and it's because David went through that process the right way. David didn't seek to promote himself, he waited on GOD to do the promotion.
If GOD has given you something precious, be it a marriage, a child, a goal, a book idea, anything - be careful of sharing prematurely and attempting to make it happen according to your time. Check your motives for sharing. You don't have to cause a ruckus just to inform the world of your next move…just make it.
And remember-
Every good and perfect gift comes from GOD (James 1:17)
Promotion comes from GOD (Psalm 75: 6-7)
And Your Father who sees what is done in private will reward you openly (Matthew 6:4, 6, 18)
And when GOD rewards you openly, you don't have to hide it….
Go ahead share that thing ALL Over social media - lol
Just remember to tell the whole story - the days you were discouraged, the tears you may have shed along the way, the times you may have failed and yet GOD remained true to His Word.
It's Practicing. Private. and ultimately Sharing -
The right way.
Wishing you wisdom, courage, love and peace along your journey,
-CN