Can you imagine what it was like to witness God’s first miracle at a wedding in which water was turned into wine? The witnesses at the wedding in Cana must have been in awe and disbelief at the sight of it all. How was that possible without power far beyond humankind? This miracle demonstrated that an unseen God in Heaven above could manifest His presence on Earth in profound ways. That was a little of what I and others felt at the wedding of my dear friend, Houston’s beloved Diane St. Ives and Todd Brewer in Bryan, Texas at the Stella Hotel.
As was witnessed at their wedding, God’s love is also manifested in the hearts of His children in their love for one another. That inexhaustible love brings souls together as Diane and Todd to be joined in marriage for a lifetime. Just when the best in life is thought to be in the past, true love intercedes and shows couples, like Diane and Todd, that the best is yet to come. That they and we are never too old to live more richly and love more deeply.
Yesterday, on a cool and gloomy wet-sky day the festivities were not dampened. Seeing the love Diane and Todd shared rekindled in me and others just how much love can heal and realign each of us to be a better reflection of God’s amazing grace. That is the transformative power of God’s love we celebrated with them and others who receive God’s blessing in marriage.
Diane and Todd asked me to say a prayer at the wedding to bless their union as husband and wife. This week’s prayer was inspired in being a part of the blessing of their marriage. There is no better way to honor them and celebrate their profound love for one another than to dedicate this prayer to them.
God has spoken to us in Scripture about God’s Divine transformative presence at a wedding at Cana.
John 2:7-9
Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water”; so they filled them to the brim.
Then he told them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet.”
They did so, and the master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine.
Let us pray together for Diane and Todd and for those of us who have or will receive the sacrament of marriage.
Dear Ever Gracious Good Lord,
In days of ancient human yore
In the midst of time the wise ones taught that:
Surrender and vulnerability are our greatest strengths
Alongside true forgiveness and yearning for sacred unity.
Thus, please show these things in and around Diane and Todd and all others in marriage.
Please unite them in the ways of peace and saintly honor.
Do grant them selfless endeavor.
Show them the favor of happy years
And lasting friendships
Even unto eternity’s door graciously opening wide;
A door with hinges of pure golden welcome and divine hospitality.
As Diane’s and Todd’s hearts were joined ever further as one well-woven fabric,
Please remind them and each of us
That in holy matrimony, a mathematical miracle of sorts takes place.
That 1 plus 1 does not equal 2. Rather, 1 plus 1 equals 1, a holy One.
Thus, Diane and Todd and others in marriage become “One holy” for the other,
The true sum in God’s miraculous equation of His love and grace.
Wondrous Creator,
Grant Diane and Todd and others joined in marriage
The treasured knowingness that in their unity
There is always possible
The mystery of joy unending and ever beginning anew…
So, God fulfill these things to Diane and Todd and others in marriage,
Now and evermore. Amen
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Jack H. Emmott is a Senior Counsel of Gray, Reed & McGraw, LLP, a 145-lawyer full-service firm in Houston, Dallas, and Waco, Texas, a Board-Certified Family Law and Master Credentialed Collaborative Law Professional Divorce Attorney, Mediator, Author, Entrepreneur, and Inspirational Speaker. For more information about Jack or his latest book, Bending Angels: Living Messengers of God’s Love, go to the Bending Angel website.