The Sils' Wedding
This one is one near and dear to my heart. Danny and Faith are such good friends of mine and it has been such a privilege to get to see their love grow for each other over the past year. Danny and Faith have such a love for Jesus that I feel drives them together even more. Their wedding day put that on display wonderfully.
I love when my friends get married, because I'm not only there to take photos of special moments but I get to interact on another level with my couple.
I met Faith this past year when Danny started bringing her to church on Wednesdays. The first time we really talked, we clicked. I feel like I've known Faith forever. She is such a light for Jesus and shines so bright. Her and Danny both do. They compliment each other so well, in that aspect and many others.
I met Danny a few years back when I started coming to the church I go to now, with my boyfriend. Danny has always been such a gentleman and knowing his and Faith's personalities, they just fit.
Communion
One thing Danny and Faith did before their wedding was communion. Danny, Faith, Pastor Ard, and I all went to the third floor for Danny and Faith's first touch and Pastor Ard gave them words of advice about how husband and wife are supposed to love each other as Christ loves the church. He gave little words of encouragement for the hard times that will come ahead and words of joy for the good as well. Then, it was time to break bread. Pastor read out of 1 Corinthians 11:24 where Paul refers to Jesus at the last supper saying "and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said 'this is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.'"
In this case the bread symbolizes Jesus' body when he was wounded for our transgressions (Isaiah 53:5-7) and died on the cross for our sins. We remember Jesus by taking the bread, breaking it, and eating of it. Danny and Faith stood on opposite sides of the wall, broke their bread and ate it.
Paul goes on to say in verse 25 "in the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, 'this cup is my new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me. (26) For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lords death until he comes.'" Here, Paul refers to the cup (wine) as Jesus's blood; because Jesus's blood was shed, the veil was torn and the old law was fulfilled, giving us the new covenant we live by today. (Thank you Jesus for the blood!)
For Danny and Faith, taking communion was a reminder to put Jesus first in everything they do, dying to themselves as individuals AND as a couple, and picking up their cross to follow Jesus. As christians, this tradition is one we do not take lightly. When entering into a marriage you're committing to a covenant between you and your spouse, under God.
The Vows
After communion, Danny and Faith decided to read their private vows. Pastor prayed over the couple before he was dismissed, while I stayed behind to capture a few photos as they expressed their excitement for the day. After I left, the couple took about 10 minutes privately to express their hand written vows to each other. I can only imagine how sweet that moment was.
The Ceremony
The ceremony is always the biggest part of the day. It's the time when a couple becomes one under God. A new beginning and covenant to express their dedication to each other. Danny and Faith's ceremony was simple and intimate but inspiring none-the-less. For the unity ceremony, they decided to braid the cords of three strands into one to represent the joining of one man and one woman, by God. This sacred union practice comes out of the Book of Ecclesiastes 4:12, where it states "though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken." To end the ceremony the couple chose to have their fathers bless their union by praying over them, before the pastor dismissed them as Mr. and Mrs. Sils.
Congratulations to The Sils! :)
