Standing With The Groom

I don't like weddings!  I just don't.  I love marriage, but weddings drive me crazy!


Most weddings really aren't about the bride, they are about the bride's mother and grandmother and any other woman who happens to be present and is happy to share their opinion.  I've seen too many brides-to-be reduced to tears at their rehearsal because of their opinionated, forceful, inconsiderate friends and family.  (Not all wedding rehearsals are like that - but most are...)


Weddings are stressful, expensive, and always on Saturdays.


Too many couples prepare more for the wedding than they do for the marriage (so much I'd like to say here, but it will have to wait).


All that said, there is something profound about standing next to the groom as his bride walks down the aisle!  It's my favorite part of every wedding I've participated in as the pastor.  There is a tangible sense of awe, anticipation, excitement, gratefulness, and pride.


I have a friend who was a pastor for almost 50 years - he used to tell us, "There's no such thing as an ugly bride."  After performing countless weddings, I would have to agree with him.


As a pastor, it's an honor to stand with a young man who is watching his beautiful bride approach.






As a pastor, it's an honor to stand with Jesus as he adores his bride!


I've always wondered why Scripture calls the church the "Bride of Christ."  I don't think I will ever understand it completely, but two things I know for sure: 1. There is no such thing as an ugly bride;  2. Jesus loves his bride!


It's easy to get down on The Church or the church you attend.  It's easy to focus on the flaws and point out the problems.  I'm thinking maybe that's not such a great idea.  


If you come to me griping about my bride's flaws and problems I'm probably going to punch you in the throat (with the love of Jesus, of course)!


I wonder how Jesus feels when people like me come to him with complaints about His bride.  I wonder how Jesus feels when His bride is overlooked, neglected, disparaged, discredited, disrespected, and devalued.


I love the church.  I love my church.  I love every church who proclaims Jesus alone for salvation!


I believe in the church.  I believe in my church.  I believe the church is the greatest source for good, creativity, impact, and change that the world has ever seen!


Jesus loves His bride - so should I - so should you!


I stand with the Groom.  How about you?

Drop the Disguise!

A few weeks ago, Champion Construction began the expensive process of re-siding our Family Life Center at church.  The current siding is crumbling and falling off the building and urgently needs to be replaced.


I heard an interesting story about the building and the reasons for its crumbling exterior....


When we bought the building, in the 90's, we bought it from a local school district - it was a metal building used as a gym.  As the church was reassembling the metal building, someone decided that the metal building shouldn't look like a metal building so the metal exterior was discarded in favor of a stucco-like exterior not designed for this kind of building.  They were successful in disguising the true nature of the building by hiding it behind a pretty exterior, but since the stucco wasn't designed for this purpose it eventually failed.  The stucco exterior probably looked good for a few years, but it has been falling apart and really ugly for the past seven years that I've been here.


Guess what kind of exterior is going up on that building right now...  Metal!


Yep, we're replacing the stucco (that we put up in hopes of disguising the fact that this was a metal building) with metal siding.  There's no hiding it now, the truth is out there for all to see, our gym is a metal building inside and out.  Gasp!!!


And guess what?  It looks great!  It even matches our new Worship Center, which is a metal building.






Why do churches feel the need to disguise who and what they really are?


Why do people feel the need to disguise who and what they really are?




Disguising the true nature of our building cost us much more than it should have.  It also put us in danger of losing the whole building because of the damage over the years.


What is your false facade costing you?


Is your character in danger?


You can fake it for a while - some people can even pull it off for years - but it's just not worth it in the long run - it ends up costing you more than it should.


The truth sets you free.  Be you - you're the only you God created!


Drop the disguise, forget the facade!