The Conclusion of the Ceremony

I'm sorry it's taken so long to show you our ceremony! But I really wanted you to feel like you were right there....

Next up...we exchanged our rings! This is the only picture I have of that right now:

Here were the things we said while doing that:

I give you this ring as a symbol of the vows which we make as husband and wife. In the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit...I will wear this ring and thus declare in the presence of all that you are the mate of my choice. I will be faithful to you until death parts us.

Then we were SUPPOSED to pray while this song played:



Alas, Julie's sound system gave up the ghost and the song would not play. I was sad, because I'd always wanted this song played at my wedding, but it was okay. We can work it into the reception somehow.

When we realized it wasn't going to play, Jeff just prayed instead.

Instead of a unity candle, we did a "stone ceremony." Here's what we put in the program:

And the people said to Joshua, “We will serve the Lord our God and obey him.” On that day Joshua made a covenant for the people, and there at Shechem he reaffirmed for them decrees and laws. And Joshua recorded these things in the Book of the Law of God. Then he took a large stone and set it up there under the oak near the holy place of the Lord. “See!” he said to all the people. “This stone will be a witness against us. It has heard all the words the Lord has said to us. It will be a witness against you if you are untrue to your God.”
Joshua 24:24-27

We want our home to bear a tangible record of God’s goodness in our lives. A covenant between the two of us and the God who wrote our love story. Today we lay the first two stones – one for each of us – in this altar.

Ryan:

“Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial; for once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.”
James 1:12

Bekah, you have prayed many, many years for the husband that God has for you and I am so grateful to be that man.   I will always strive to be the Spiritual leader in our life together.  Thank you for loving me for me.  Lord please guide me as the leader and head of our marriage.  I have experienced a love with Bekah that I didn’t know existed and I am simply amazed.  Help me to show her that love in all that I do as we go on this journey you have set before us.  I pray that we look to you in all circumstances and always give you the glory. 

Bekah:

“Don’t urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God. Where you die I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord deal with me, be it ever so severely, if even death separates you and me.”
 Ruth 1:16-17

Ryan, this is my covenant to you. I’m yours for life. I choose you…only you…always you. Abba, create in my heart a continued faithfulness to this man you’ve called me to love so deeply. May our love story be one that causes those watching to see my devotion and loyalty to him and to You…through the way I love him.

We laid the stones in the bowl....

And then we signed our marriage certificate:

After that...it was time for....

A little kissy kissy!!!!

HUSBAND AND WIFE!!!!!!!!!!

Waiting for our recessional song to begin:

That one didn't work either. Sadness. We had given everyone tealights to carry out as they walked behind us after we left the front. The song we were supposed to walk out to was Steve Green's song Find Us Faithful.


But they played Ryan's song to me again and it worked out just fine!! In the end, it worked out better to not have those two songs because it gave us more time with the sunset for pictures! See? God knew!

Mr. and Mrs. Ryan Shaffer!