This book offers help and inspiration to couples who desire creative and Christ-honoring wedding vows.

The wedding is planned, but are you spiritually prepared for your wedding day? Trusted relationship author Gary Thomas coaches engaged couples on how to grow closer to the Lord in the days leading up to the wedding as a means of preparing them for all the days after the wedding. Engagement is bursting with promise, hope, joy, and anticipation of all kinds. It can also be one of the busiest times your life. For some, planning a wedding, with all the decisions involved, can feel less like the exciting onset of marriage and more like a tedious to-do list. Amidst the busyness, this devotional is designed to encourage and guide you through the spiritual priorities and challenges that lie ahead in order to grow a joy-filled marriage filled with love, grace, and God's blessing. In addition to helping you celebrate the joys of marriage and become radically connected as you create an even deeper passionate relationship, this lovely book also provides encouraging entries that will help you deal with common issues such as: Building physical and emotional intimacy Repairing trust Celebrating differences Being a team player Managing finances With a special section on the marriage vows and thoughtful meditations for the bride and groom, Preparing Your Heart for Marriage will help you grow in your relationship as a couple on your journey from “me” to “we.”

Your vows are the most important and sacred part of your wedding day so it is vital that you feel comfortable with everything you are saying to your partner. What better way to achieve this than to create the vows yourself and make your special day even more meaningful. Personalized vows can be full of intent and meaning, or can even serve to add a touch of humor to your wedding ceremony. Through original words and extracts from poems and literature both traditional, unconventional, and inspirational, Wedding Vows and Traditions will incite you to write words from the heart and create a truly memorable day for you and your partner. Above us are the stars; below us are the stones As time does pass, remember; Like a star should our love be constant, Like a stone should our love be firm. Adapted from a Native American Blessing Two lives already richly lived, one road still to travel. Let's not regret what might have been, but enjoy what may unravel. Cathy Howes

Writing personalized wedding vows is a wonderful way to make the big day that much more special. Packed with ideas, insights, and inspiration, this completely revised third edition helps you declare your love in a uniquely personal way. This book features information on how to develop meaningful, personal wedding vows, incorporate a favorite song or poem, get family members involved, include children, and more! For extra fun, this book also includes celebrity wedding vows and great love lines from the movies. This is the only book you need to create the perfect statement for their new life with their partners.This edition includes completely new material on: ethnic vow traditions from around the world, vows incorporating holidays and nature, and vows for same-sex ceremonies.

"The marriage union is the closest relationship that can exist between two human beings. When a man and woman decide to join together in marriage, they should do so with full realization of their responsibilities. Marriage is serious business. When two born-again believers know it is God's will for them to marry, they come together...

As the country moves toward marriage equality for gays and lesbians, couples and pastors are in need of updated language for marriage services. This sourcebook not only provides inclusive marriage services, taking into account a variety of situations, but also provides guidance for couples and pastors to take into account for all couples. In addition, it includes prayers for a number of situations that happen around many weddings, such as rehearsal dinners, the wedding participants before worship, and the reception. Inclusive Marriage Services includes updated but traditional language carefully chosen, resembling historical marriages we are all familiar with, but improving some of the language.

Now an official resource of the nationwide DivorceCare ministry, this new edition of When the Vow Breaks offers practical advice to Christians regarding the top five felt needs and issues that result from facing divorce: kids, finances, anger, depression, and loneliness. In this sensitive and thorough guide, author/attorney Joseph Warren Kniskern recounts the emotions of his own failed marriage and shares a comprehensive study on what the Bible says about marriage and divorce. More important, he shows how God continues to work in people’s lives to provide hope and encouragement in the aftermath of divorce. Kniskern also provides important insights about how to seek reconciliation, secure proper marriage counseling, find a good attorney, and negotiate settlements and custody issues.

A guide for believers who want their wedding to portray the relationship of Christ with the church and to reflect the gospel to all in attendance.

The first comprehensive wedding guide specifically for the Jewish/Christian couple who wants to honor both religious traditions in their service, vows, and readings. Saying "I do" is one of the happiest moments in a couple's life together--but planning that trip to the altar can be a stressful ordeal. The minute an engagement is announced two full clans want to celebrate the union their way! When one of those families is Jewish (50 percent of whom now marry outside their faith) and the other is Christian, the religious details can increase the pressure on the bride- and groom-to-be. Celebrating Interfaith Marriages provides all of the expert advice on how to combine elements of the two faiths so everyone can rejoice with the bride and groom on their wedding day. Devon Lerner draws from her twenty years of officiating interfaith weddings as she discusses the significance of vows and traditions unique to both faiths and suggests how to incorporate them into a service that is balanced and beautiful. She provides Christian and Jewish services readers can mix and match, as well as custom-bled ceremonies contributed by couples who have worked with her over the years. There's a chapter on how to avoid crashes on issues like location, when the ceremony takes place, and whether the bride and groom should see each other before meeting at the altar. A full section of readings, both biblical and secular, are here too, as well as anecdotes that will reassure and amuse. No interfaith couple will want to be without this essential handbook when they plan their special day.

Describes what marriage should be according to the Bible, arguing that marriage is a tool to bring individuals closer to God, and provides meaningful instruction on how to have a successful marriage.