Speaking in the Light – 7-7

To Infinity and Beyond
I was given the honor of a lifetime by being able to officiate the wedding of my firstborn son Rudy to his lovely new bride Lindsey last weekend. Needless to say, it was one of the very few moments in my life that I became flabbergasted and tongue tied at the same time.
I felt like I was Ralph Kramden during his “Chef of the Future” commercial on the old television series “The Honey-mooners.” When it came time for me to speak the words that I had prepared to share with my kids at that precious moment, I sounded more like a stuttering woodpecker rather than an intelligent human being. And when it was all over, I felt like I missed it and wanted to cry “Do-over…”
So this is my do-over… Taken right from my notes, that I couldn’t see that day because my eyes went blurry and I couldn’t say because my throat went dry, but fully meant because my heart was bursting with a roaring unconditional love for Rudy and Lindsey.
…My exhortation to the couple
Rudy I can’t tell you what an honor it is that you chose me to be able to make your union with Lindsey a forever thing… Not many Fathers get to have the best seat in the house at their son’s wedding- but thanks for letting me be right in the front row.
Just as I got to be with you all those years you played baseball- as I stood as close as I could to you without literally coming onto the field, cheering you on and trying to pass on to you all the help and encouragement that I could muster…I am awestruck by the reality that I can stand right here today and before God and all our family gathered here, I get to hold on tight to you both, before I have to let go and let God have you fully, so your marriage can be all that He wants it to be!
I got to be there the day you took your very first breath in this world…I got to hold you before anybody else ever did… And now I get to breathe the life giving official words that will kick off your new adventure and the birth of your new family…What a wonder to be able to shove the Rudy III and Lindsey Sheptock Ship away from the shore for the first time as it takes it maiden voyage way beyond the blue.
I am oh so proud of both of you, but I am not too proud to say “I love you as much as a father could love a son…” And I look forward to loving Lindsey… You chose well son… She is a keeper and obviously your soul mate…
Do not marry a person that you know that you can live with; only marry someone that you cannot live without.”
I want to give you one verse today from the Song of Solomon 4:7…It reads, “All beautiful you are, my darling; there is no flaw in you.” Now before you think Solomon hit the jackpot and married the only flawless female who ever lived upon this planet… (Lindsey wasn’t born yet…) Let me point out the truth that I want us to see here…Love isn’t given because the other person is perfect… Real love given is what perfects us as people…
Love takes us from being so low (solo) and lonely and makes us into a couple that is able to do it (duet) because we are teamed together…God knew that we were leaky buckets without Him… He knew that we can’t do squat without Him. He didn’t say, “Love Me first.” He said, “Let you be loved by Me.”
And so God loved us when we were not very loveable at all. But His true love ways for us, His one act of love done without strings attached on our behalf, is what gave us our identity and purpose.
Receiving His love means that we will never be a nobody again and we will always belong to Somebody and His Body made that possible. He has put His name on us as an affirmation of His love and His name on us is what gives us our worth. We are at our best when we are there with Him. We will never be complete without Him.
It is the same in marriage… Today you are writing your names upon each other’s hearts and you are doing it in permanent ink, forever. And you do so because when you see each other you see somebody that you have chosen by your will to love and nothing on the outside should ever change what you are willing to give on the inside.
And to be your best- you better not ever try to live without one another again! Love is not the result of a good marriage- Love is what makes the marriage good. Love is what makes you real. Love is what makes you perfect! There is no flaw in you because love covers over a multitude of mistakes.
Your brother Joel and I went to see “Toy Story 3” the other day. Rudy, you were only nine when the first one came out… And 15 years later, Andy is going to college and Rudy is getting married. And Woody is still Woody and Buzz is still off to “infinity and beyond!” And what makes those toys matter is that Andy loves them unconditionally.
They belong to Andy- no matter whatever. Each one of us who truly belong to God bears the Name of our Owner upon us. Andy plans to take Woody with him to college. And when toys become real because of our love for them, it doesn’t matter if they are missing their stuffing or their pull-string no longer works or all of their hair has been rubbed off. They are special not because of their looks, but because of our love for them.
And before Andy goes to college, He makes the ultimate sacrifice by giving his prized companion away to another little girl. And she is going to love Woody not because of what he used to be, but because of what Woody will still be. Today, Love is about us giving Rudy and Lindsey away as parents… We will always love them for what they were to us. But now, in each others arms, and in each others eyes, they are to love one another for what they are still yet to be! And if you want your love to grow, you best be letting each other go to God and His best. His Name trumps your own!
In the Toy Story Movie, the character Lots-O the Bear says this about the Barbie doll: “She’s just a piece of plastic…there are 100 million more just like her…” And you say, “Oh No! You are oh so beautiful my love and there is no flaw in you and you belong to me!” It is our love for each other that keeps us unique and real and alive. So know this, your name upon each other’s hearts, and your active love upon each others lives is what keeps the wonder alive and keeps this marriage real.
I love you and now my love blesses you to go and live a life of love with one another…to infinity and beyond!