Why I Married Bob...Again.

There were several practical reasons to legally perform our marriage vows again. There were even a few romantic reasons to have a renewal ceremony. But that is not why we chose to stand before God and our family and friends and make our promises to one another. Again. In truth, we did not CHOOSE to do it all over again. God did.

We found our original Marriage License in an obscure scrapbook tucked away in the bowels of my closet. Four days before our second Wedding.

We didn't need to get hitched after all.

But we did. God knew we did.

Bob and I needed to watch our first wedding on a poorly shot video. And observe ourselves making our promises seventeen years ago. And cry. We were so young.

We needed to listen to all "our" songs and remember the one that was playing on the radio the night we met. And laugh. We were so young.

We needed to dig out our first vows from storage and say them aloud. And pray. Please God, make them true.

We needed to go through 24 years worth of photos to make a slide show of our growing family. It didn't matter that most of the guests at our second wedding would not watch it. It wasn't for them after all.

We did the whole Renewal Ceremony entirely for Bob and me--for the health and preservation and protection and renewal and restoral and ...of our marriage. He accomplished so much in those two hours. And God knows we needed it all.

I needed my beloved to pursue me again. To bend his knee and ask for my hand all over again.

He needed me to be excited about spending the rest of our days together. To stand before God and vow that he is and always will be the only one for me.

We needed to cry, remember, laugh, and pray together all over again.

I was not a blushing bride this time around.

Bob was not a love struck and naive bridegroom.

Our 17 years together have held sorrow and tears, laughter and joy, triumph and defeat, darkness and light. And God knew that we needed to acknowledge, all over again, that He brought us together, He has kept us together, and in Him alone, we can count on staying together.

God knew I needed to say these words again to my groom, the father of my children, my partner, companion, my better-half, best friend, my beloved:

"Bob, once before I pledged my love and commitment to you. I promised to love you, honor you, obey you, comfort and keep you. I pledged to be by your side in sickness and in health, in times of want and times of plenty, for better or worse. We have shared all those times—sorrow and joy, triumph and defeat. You have been my side as we created a family, a home, a life together. This past year has tested the vows we made when we were young. I haven’t always keep my promises. But God’s Grace has prevailed. There is still no place I’d rather be than in your arms. YOU complete ME. Today, at the beginning of my 18th year as your wife, before God, I renew my vows to you, promising my eternal love and devotion. I take you today, for all my days, as my beloved husband."

Bottomline: We didn't have this fancy second wedding to celebrate all that Bob and I have done right in our years together. We can take no credit for anything good in our marriage, our family, our selves. It is by God's Grace alone that we celebrated our marriage last week. God knew all along.