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Song~ "Stuff that
Works"
Welcome to the marriage of
Walter Scott
Sturtevant and Deborah Ann Cossairt. You have been asked to gather here
this
evening to witness and share in the joy of this union.
Marriage is a
clasping of
hands, the blending of
hearts, the union of two lives as one. Scott and Debbie, in presenting
yourselves here tonight to be joined in marriage, you perform an act of
complete faith. This faith can grow and develop and last, but only if
you both
decide to make it so. A lasting and growing love is not guaranteed by
any
ritual. Your marriage must stand, not by the authority of the state,
nor by the
words of a minister, but by the strength of your love and the power of
faith in
each other.
With full
awareness, know that
you are declaring
your intent to be married before your friends and family, present,
absent and
departed. Do you still seek to enter into this ceremony?
Scott and Debbie:
We do.
As an
expression that your hearts are joined together in love, will you
please join
hands?
Scott, do you take
Debbie to be
your beloved
wife? Do you promise to love, honor and keep her, for better or worse,
for
richer or poorer, in sickness and in health and forsaking all others,
be
faithful only to her as long as you both shall live?
Scott: I do.
Debbie, do you take
Scott to be
your beloved
husband? Do you promise to love, honor and keep him, for better or
worse, for
richer or poorer, in sickness and in health and forsaking all others,
be
faithful only to him as long as you both shall live?
Debbie: I do.
May I have the
rings?
Scott and Debbie
have chosen
rings as an outward
symbol of the commitment they make today. From the earliest times, the
ring has
been a symbol of wedded love. An unbroken, never ending circle that
represents
a commitment to a love that is also without end.
Scott, please place
the ring
you have chosen on
Debbie’s finger and repeat after me:
Debbie, please
place the ring
that you have
chosen on Scott’s finger and repeat after me:
I promise to share my life openly, to
speak the
truth with love, to honor and cherish you, all the days of my life. I
promise you my living and dying, each equally in your care. With these
words, I promise my love. And with this ring I seal my vows, now and
forever.
Let us pray:
God, bless this
couple that you
see before you
this evening. Give them strength to hold on during the storms of stress
and the
dark disillusionment. Keep them tender and gentle as they nurture each
other in
their wondrous love. Help them to continue building a relationship
founded in
respect and rich in caring. May Scott and Debbie see each other as
healer,
protector, shelter and guide. Amen.
Scott and Debbie,
you have come
from different
backgrounds. You have walked different paths. You are different
individuals.
Your love has transcended these differences. May the challenges of your
life
together be met with courage and optimism. May you learn from your
failures and
grow in your achievements.
In as much, as you
have both
pledged one to the
other, your life long commitment, love and devotion before God and man,
I now
pronounce you husband and wife.
You may seal your
vows with a
kiss.
It is with honor
and joy that I
present to you,
for the first time as husband and wife; Mr. and Mrs. Scott Sturtevant.
Song~ "To Make You Feel My Love"
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