"Sometimes while I'm talking to God, He'll show me something about myself in such a way that I have to laugh at my own humanity and how funny I must look to Him." - Donna

Donna...just found your blog...I absolutely love it! And I love your singing! I'm at work right now and it was just exactly what I needed to hear to help me make it through tonight! Thanks for your ministry here!
- Robert

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Monday, December 13, 2004

From This Moment



Keep yourselves in God's love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life.Jude 1:21 niv

I went to two weddings in one weekend. The first ceremony was held in a small, Pentecostal church with under a hundred guests in attendance. The entire bridal party consisted of a matron of honor and two flower girls. The forty-something first-time bride glowed in her traditional white gown with beads, lace, and sequins. Gail walked down the aisle to the music of “From This Moment” sung by a trio of friends and relatives. When the bride brushed the tears from the face of her groom after they said their vows, it seemed as if the entire crowd said, ‘Awww…” in unison.

Before the couple even kissed, I slipped out to go to the second wedding. An hour later I sat in a Catholic church with 300 other guests. Twelve, yes, twelve bridesmaids, three flower girls, and a ring bearer preceded the bride. The young bride, dressed in an understated, elegant gown walked slowly down the long aisle to the traditional Bridal Chorus played by violins. The formal ceremony lasted three times as long as the first one.

Even though the brides and their ceremonies differed in many ways, the love that brought the two couples together was the same. Each bride promised undying love and faithfulness. Each groom pledged to be true and supportive of his bride. I have no doubt as each man stood before God making his vows he would give his life for his bride.

Jesus gave His life for His bride, the Church. He proved His love on the cross. In Ephesians 5:22-33, Paul uses the imagery of a bride and groom to describe God’s relationship with the Church. God calls us to a lifetime of growing closer to Him.

A few days before the wedding, I asked Gail, the older of the two brides, if she had made all the preparations for the wedding. “Are you kidding?” she said, laughing. “When he proposed, I was ready.”

On the other hand, the younger bride took an entire year to prepare for her wedding. Are you prepared for Jesus’ return? We want to be prepared for His coming. It doesn’t take a year to prepare to meet Jesus as Savior. When you’re ready to become a Christian, God’s ready to accept you as you are. The Bible says, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” – Romans 10:13 niv.

Each bride promised to remain faithful to her spouse. Have you remained true to Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior? Many times our eyes wander. We get sidetracked into love affairs with the things of this world. As Gail promised to love her husband ‘from this moment on,’ we make a vow to be true to God, making Him the Lord of our life, not just for the moments of this life, but for all eternity.

Prayer: Dear God, thank You for being my Lord, and for Your boundless and indescribable love. My heart’s desire is to remain true to You. In Jesus’ Name I pray, Amen.

8 comments:

Jan Price said...

Hey, Donna,

Good analogy! My mind is always running on high speed any more, but I sure don't want to be so distracted with life I miss the important things of the Spirit.

Jan

Anonymous said...

Donna,
Waht beautiful imagery, and how true. Many folks think we have to be "good enough" to give our lives to Jesus,
that is an impossible feat. There is no way sinner can be good enough with out our dear Lord helping us.

Sandy Ellis

Anonymous said...

Donna,

Beautiful story and very inspiring. Committment and love are vital to a marriage and to Christ. He wants our total love; not just bits and pieces.

Thank you for an uplifting devotional...

Toni

Paul said...

Hi Donna,

Again an awesome post!

Thanks so much for sharing it. It spoke volumes my friend!

Paul

Rhodi Alers de López said...

Donna, what a beautiful reminder of what our commitment to the Lord should be like! Blessings!

Donna J. Shepherd said...

Thanks, everyone, for stopping by and commenting! - Donna

Anonymous said...

From This Moment...

Donna, this was a beautiful devotional. A reminder of your "first love" as described in Revelation.

I wanted you to know that I think this may be one of your absolute BEST!

Ellen

Anonymous said...

Donna, you're doing a great job on your devotionals. I haven't checked in lately because my life has been hectic with all of the hospital visits. However, I did especially enjoy this one about the two weddings.

May the Lord bless your Christmas.

Janet Seever

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