To Chris and Angie on their wedding day:

On this special day, love is in the air and we hope to hang on to this feeling forever. However, that’s not how life works. As unlikely as it seems now, there will come a time when you will look at each other and think, “Did I really marry THIS person?” Fortunately, this feeling, like all feelings, is subject to change. The point is that love based on feelings alone can be like riding a roller coaster that never stops. At first, it’s exciting. Later, it just makes you feel a little ill.

On a second level, love is also based on commitment. It is commitment that brought you here today to exchange your vows in front of your family, friends, and God himself. Unfortunately, even marriages based on commitment can sometimes be strained to the breaking point by hard times.

The third level where love is found is the level of faith. Having faith in the basic goodness of each other allows you to let go of personal expectations and embrace the life that comes to you. This love is like a gardener who looks at an empty plot of land and realizes that something good can be grown in the rich soil. He plows, plants, weeds and waters until the space he has is filled with abundance. Faith gives us the vision to see possibilities even when the ground is barren in the dead of winter. There is a verse in the Letter to the Hebrews that says: “Only faith can guarantee the blessings that we hope for or prove the existence of the realities that at present remain unseen.” This kind of faith hangs on through inevitable uncertainties, misunderstandings, and hard times. It is the seed of hope that keeps us going even though we have no idea what the future holds.

Chris, not long ago you told us that a favorite childhood memory was of being with your siblings in the back of the station wagon where you read books, played games and ate snacks on the way to Florida. We were amazed that the journey itself meant more to you than the destinations we visited.

In marriage, it isn’t achievements or wealth that matter in the end. It is the shared journey that is memorable. To our son and his bride, and to all who embark on marriage, we wish a love based on faith in each other, faith in God and faith in the loving, joyful future you will create together.