{"id":167,"date":"2015-04-14T17:15:45","date_gmt":"2015-04-14T21:15:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/gingerwarner.net\/?p=167"},"modified":"2019-06-25T14:29:58","modified_gmt":"2019-06-25T18:29:58","slug":"more-than-here-comes-the-bride","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/gingerwarner.net\/?p=167","title":{"rendered":"More than “Here Comes the Bride”"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Almost anyone who has been to a wedding is familiar with the \u201cThe Wedding March\u201d.\u00a0 It\u2019s saved for the most important part of the processional.\u00a0 All attendants are standing at the front of the church, the organ sounds with the familiar notes, the doors of the sanctuary are flung open and the bride walks down aisle to her waiting groom!<\/p>\n

Most people don\u2019t know the words to this music, or think the lyrics are the same as the irreverent children\u2019s rhyme that starts with \u201cHere comes the bride, all dressed in white\u201d.\u00a0 But actually (and thankfully) the words are far more beautiful and meaningful.\u00a0 They originate from an opera by Wagner.\u00a0 As I was raised in a church that frequently sang acappella music at weddings, this was a song I heard often.\u00a0 Here are some of the lyrics \u2013<\/p>\n

“Faithful and true, We lead ye forth.
\nWhere love triumphant, Shall crown ye with joy.
\nStar of renown, Flower of the earth.
\nBlessed be ye both, Far from all life’s annoy.
\nChampion victorious, Go thou before!
\nMaid bright and glorious, Go thou before!
\nEarth’s noisy revel Ye have forsaken,
\nTender delight for you now awaken.
\nFragrant abode, enshrine ye in bliss
\nSplendor and state, in joy ye dismiss.”<\/p>\n

Isn\u2019t it romantic and tender? \u00a0\u00a0Even regal?<\/p>\n

So why am I sharing this with you?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I almost always wake up with a song in my head.\u00a0 Most of the time it\u2019s a hymn.\u00a0 Sometimes it\u2019s a song from my childhood \u2013 usually an annoying camp song that\u2019s irritatingly catchy.\u00a0\u00a0 Recently, it was this song. (I have several friends getting married soon so I am thinking that was the trigger.)<\/p>\n

As I found myself humming it though the day it occurred to me how these lyrics could represent our love story with God.\u00a0 What if, instead of a wedding, it represented our relationship with Him and the promises He gives us?\u00a0 What if instead of being sung to a bride and groom, it was being sung to the beloved of God?<\/p>\n

Here are scripture verses that came to me as I thought about this:<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong>Faithful and True<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cI saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True\u201d \u00a0<\/em>Rev. 19:11<\/em><\/p>\n

He Leads Before.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cThe Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.\u201d <\/em>Deut. 31:9<\/em><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong>Where Love Triumphant<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cGreater love has no one than this: to lay down one\u2019s life for one\u2019s friends\u201d<\/em> John 15:13<\/em><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/em>\u201cWhere, O death, is your victory? \u00a0Where, O death, is your sting?\u201d \u00a0<\/em>The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. \u00a0But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.\u201d\u00a0 <\/em>1 Corinthians 15: 55-57<\/em><\/p>\n

Will Crown thee with Joy<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u201cThose the Lord has rescued will return.\u00a0 They will enter Zion with singing;\u00a0<\/em>\u00a0 \u00a0 Everlasting joy will crown their heads\u201d <\/em>Isaiah 35:10<\/em><\/p>\n

Star of renown, Flower of the earth<\/strong><\/p>\n

“I, Jesus\u2026. am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star.\u201d \u00a0<\/em>\u00a0<\/em>Rev. 22:15<\/em><\/p>\n

Blessed thee are filled, far from all life\u2019s annoy<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cTherefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?\u201d\u00a0 <\/em>Matthew 6:25-26<\/em><\/p>\n

Champion Victorious, Go thou before!<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cIn all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. \u00a0For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.\u201d\u00a0 <\/em>Romans 8:37<\/em><\/p>\n

Maid bright and glorious, Go thou before!<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cYou are the light of the world.\u201d <\/em>Matthew 5:14<\/em><\/p>\n

Earth\u2019s noisy revel, thee have forsaken.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201c<\/strong>Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.\u201d \u00a0<\/em>Romans 12:2<\/em><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/em>Tender delight for you now awaken.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cNo eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no human mind has conceived, the things God has prepared for those who love Him\u201d\u2014<\/em>1 Corinthians 2:9<\/em><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/em>Fragrant abode, Enshrine thee in bliss<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cAnd surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.\u201d\u00a0 Matthew 28:20<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong>Splendor and state, In joy thee dismiss<\/strong><\/p>\n

I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength.\u201d\u00a0 <\/em>Phillipians4:12-13<\/em><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/em>So, \u00a0what do you think?\u00a0 It\u2019s still romantic and tender, but now it’s coming from the One who created Love.<\/p>\n

May you look for Him today and find Him in work, in song, in sorrow and joy. \u00a0And know, He’s always here.<\/p>\n

Ginger<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Almost anyone who has been to a wedding is familiar with the \u201cThe Wedding March\u201d.\u00a0 It\u2019s saved for the most important part of the processional.\u00a0 All attendants are standing at the front of the church, the organ sounds with the familiar notes, the doors of the sanctuary are flung open and the bride walks down … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":179,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"http:\/\/gingerwarner.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/faithful-true1.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p2sCJ7-2H","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/gingerwarner.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/167"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/gingerwarner.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/gingerwarner.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/gingerwarner.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/gingerwarner.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=167"}],"version-history":[{"count":22,"href":"http:\/\/gingerwarner.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/167\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":186,"href":"http:\/\/gingerwarner.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/167\/revisions\/186"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/gingerwarner.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/179"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/gingerwarner.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=167"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/gingerwarner.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=167"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/gingerwarner.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=167"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}