This past Friday I had the privilege of officiating at the wedding of my daughter’s and now son-in-law’s wedding.  Our daughter Marie and Matt Kraske were united in marriage on Friday July 5th.  A number of friends asked me if I felt nervous in preparing for the event.  I honestly did not feel nervous, rather I felt excitement.  That sentiment grew from getting to know my future son-in-law as well as seeing the joy in our daughter.  I was also anticipating the opportunity to speak to them, and those assembled, about Christian marriage.  How many fathers are given twenty minutes of undivided attention by their future son-in-law?

My thought this week is about letting go.  The emotion of the day did not fully hit me until the close of the wedding ceremony.  It was exhilarating to hear the robust singing and witness the vows spoken by Matt and Marie.  The congregation erupted in applause as I pronounced them husband and wife and they began to recess down the aisle.  I had a unique perspective.  I saw their backs as they walked away and officially began their life as a married couple.  That’s when the significance of what had just happened hit me.  The thought ran through my mind, “It’s time to let them go.”  Gen. 2:24 states, “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh.”  As parents we know that we are only stewards of our children for a season.  We raise them to let them go.  Whether you are a parent or a child, whether you are young or older, whether you are married or single; one of the keys for the spiritual journey is learning the lesson of letting go.  It doesn’t mean we don’t care, nor does it mean we will not be involved in the lives of those we love, but it does mean that we entrust them to God and “LET GO.”

Pastor Mark



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