Stephanie Lyn Lurz

**Who gives this woman to this man? Father answers: her mother and I**

Opening

Every girl plays “wedding” when they are a little girl. They grow up having an idea of what their wedding day will be like before they can even truly understand what being married actually is. Then one day you go to the races, which you have been to millions of times before, and a guy catches your eye in the next pit over. Neither of you can stop looking at the other and a spark is ignited. The next thing you know, the two of you are at the river he asks you to marry him and you say yes. Your wedding day is seldom exactly how you envision it as a young girl; but when you are lucky enough to find the “one”, the man is. It is apparent the respect and support that Justin and Mattaya have for one another and mostly it is apparent how head over heels they are in love with one another when years later that spark is a flame and continues to burn brighter and brighter every day.

Intent

Mattaya and Justin, marriage is the promise between two people who love each other, who trust that love, who honor one another as individuals in that togetherness and who wish to spend the rest of their lives together. It enables the two separate souls to share their desires, longings, dreams, and memories; their joys and sorrows, and to help each other through all uncertainties of life. A reading called The Bridge Across Forever by Richard Bach explains this perfectly.

A soul mate is someone who has locks that fit our keys, and keys to fit our locks. When we feel safe enough to open the locks, our truest selves step out and we can be completely and honestly who we are; we can be loved for who we are and not for who we’re pretending to be. Each unveils the best part of the other. No matter what else goes wrong around us, with that one person we’re safe in our own paradise. Our soul mate is someone who shares our deepest longings, our sense of direction. When we’re two balloons, and together our direction is up, chances are we’ve found the right person. Our soul mate is the one who makes life come to life. Justin and Mattaya, if you have come here today because you have each found your soulmate in one another. If it is your desire for your lives to be intertwined as one from this day forward and to be joined as husband and wife reply: We do

Exchange of Vows

One of the most important parts of the ceremony is the exchange of vows. But what makes a vow different from just a pledge or oath. A pledge is a serious promise or agreement, an oath is a formal and serious promise to tell the truth, but a vow adds something more…. A vow is a serious promise to DO something or behave in a certain way. It is more than mere words or a promise of something abstract. It is the promise of the things you will actually do.

Please face each other and hold hands……

Mattaya repeat after me…… I Mattaya, take you Justin to be my soulmate, confidante, and husband. I vow to always love and respect you at your best and your worst. I vow to compromise and fight fair during times of disagreements. I vow to support your dreams as we keep our eyes on the winner’s circle. I vow to cuddle with you, kiss you, and remind you that you are my best friend every night from now until the end of time.

Justin repeat after me…. I Justin, take you Mattaya to be my soulmate, confidante, and wife. I vow to always love and respect you at your best and your worst. I vow to compromise and fight fair during times of disagreements. I vow to support your dreams as we keep our eyes on the winner’s circle. I vow to cuddle with you, kiss you, and remind you that you are my best friend every night from now until the end of time.

Rings

Justin, place the ring on Mattaya’s finger and repeat after me…. This ring is a symbol of my love and devotion to you. As it encircles you, so shall my love.

Mattaya, place the ring on Justin’s finger and repeat after me… This ring is a symbol of my love and devotion to you. As it encircles you, so shall my love.

Sand Mixing

Love is a force more formidable than any other. It cannot be seen or measured, yet it is powerful enough to transform you in a moment and offer you more joy than any material possession ever could. But although this love joins you together as one, remember the gift of your individuality. Cherish and affirm your differences as you love each other. Be supportive of your strengths, and tender towards your weaknesses. Laugh together, cry together, be comforted by each other's presence, and secure in each other's absence. To symbolize the joining of their two lives and the inseparable bond their marriage creates, Justin and Mattaya will now combine sand.

Closing

I leave you with the following words from a Native American wedding called The Benediction of the Apache.

Now you will feel no rain, for each of you will be the shelter for each other.

Now you will feel no cold, for each of you will be the warmth for the other.

Now you are two persons, but there is only one life before you.

Go now to your dwelling place to enter into the days of your life together

And may our days be good and long upon the earth.

Treat yourselves and each other with respect and remind yourselves often of what brought you together.

Give the highest priority to the tenderness, gentleness and kindness that your connection deserves.

When frustration, difficulty, and fear assail your relationship, as they threaten all relationships at one time or another, remember to focus on what is right between you, not on the part which seems wrong.

In this way, you can ride out the storms when clouds hide the face of the sun in your lives, remembering that even if you lose sight of it for a moment, the sun is still there.

And if each of you takes responsibility for the quality of your life together, it will be marked by abundance and delight.

Pronouncement

Mattaya and Justin, you have stood before me and your closest friends and family to express your intent to be joined as husband and wife. You have made vows to one another and exchanged rings as a symbol of those vows; as well as combined sand to symbolize the bond your marriage has created. So, By the power vested in me by the State of Nebraska and The American Marriage Ministries, I am honored to pronounce you husband and wife. Justin you may kiss your bride. It is my privilege to be the first to introduce you all to Mr. and Mrs. Addison!