Saturday, November 24, 2007, 4:00 PM
Read 1 Corinthians 13:4-8a
Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices in truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
Love never ends.
Unique Love
Ally and Roehl, as one of a number of persons who have watched your relationship grow and mature, I am filled with joy that you are standing here together in marriage. The love that you share is God’s special, unique gift to you. There’s no one else in this entire world that shares the unique love that you have for each other. You might say that since love is such a universal emotion, one might conclude that love is love. A rose is a rose or a homemade candle is just another candle. But no, your love is unique! It is God’s gift to you.
If, of all the millions of snowflakes that fall on Boston within a single snowstorm, no two are alike or here in California; if of all the tall redwood trees that stand majestically in Muir Woods, no two are alike, is it so hard to believe that God could give you a love which is like no other? If all the millions of people who have walked this earth are in some way unique, and can be positively identified by their fingerprint, is it so hard to believe that God has given you a unique love? The love that you have for each other is one of a kind!
The love that you have is God’s special gift for you. Take care of it, prize it, cherish it above all possessions. You may not have much in this world, but when you have strong love, possessions don’t matter so much.
God’s love for you is hardly quiet or hidden; your love is alive and active. Based on this love, you have taken action to be here today to be married. Just as your love has borne all things, believed in all things, hoped for all things, and endured all things, your love for each other will serve as your love for the world. If love is not action, it can hardly be called love.
Being in love together, you will share your love with many others; you will bear witness of your love by reaching out to those who need to be loved; you will live out your life in truth and love because love never ends.
Ally and Roehl, the unique love that you have for each other will forbear any obstacle that life throws at you; it will demonstrate that nothing culturally or geographically would ever overcome your love; it will grant you the patience to hope for a wonderful future; and it will last for your entire life times.
The love that the two of you have is truly unique as each of you is unique and beautiful—this must be lived out in this world. As a verse said,
A bell is not a bell unless you ring it,
A song is not a song unless you sing it,
And love isn’t love in your heart to stay,
For love isn’t love unless you give it away.
No other couple in this world has the love that you have for each other, Ally and Roehl. Cherish it as well as share it because your love is unique and one of a kind!