Dave's Deep Thoughts

Here's Pastor Dave McDowell's weekly devotional that he sends out to members of his church. Dave is my brother and serves as the Music Minister at Stewartstown UMC in PA.

It is said for weddings....

something old, something new,

something borrowed, something blue.

I like weddings.

Officiating at them is one of my

favorite parts of my work as a pastor.

It is probably because I often have

close ties with either the bride or groom.

Recently, I had the privilege

of performing an outdoor wedding.

Outdoor weddings in this neck of the woods,

during the month of April can be a bit tricky.

It can be sunny and pleasant,

or cold with chilling rains.

This couple was blessed with 74 and sunny skies.

As a pastor,

I like to make everyone in the wedding party

feel as comfortable as possible.

To do this, I make sure everyone

knows what they are to do and when they will do it.

Now my track record is not flawless.

There was the fainting wedding,

not to be undone by the sound feedback wedding.

And may we never forget the vomit wedding of '05.

Now most couples,

particularly brides,

often plan their wedding day down to the smallest detail.

Everything needs to go just right.

This wedding was no different.....

Planned with meticulous detail.

That would be, except for Grandma.

Here's a new rule for wedding planning:

If your Grandma is coming to the wedding,

have a chauffeur under the age of 80 bring her.

It seems that Grandma and her driver were late.

The wedding was to begin at 5pm.

5pm No Grandma.

I consult with the Father of the bride (son of Grandma)...

Let's wait a few minutes, we agree

5:10pm No Grandma.

Anxiety levels have been ratcheted up a few notches.

5:20pm Still no Grandma in sight.

Cell phone calls going out to the octogenarian chauffeur.

They are in the area, we are told

I'm not sure if they meant immediate area or area code.

5:30pm An all points bulletin has been put out to find Grandma.

Now, most wedding crowds have a fairly high threshold of patience,

but when you hear Jesu, Joy of Man's Desire for the third time,

things get a bit cranky.

5:35pm A Grandma sighting has been reported in town

The crowd is now beginning to get up to stretch their legs.

5:40pm Grandma arrives seemingly oblivious

that the DJ has worn out 3 CDs on her behalf.

She is escorted to her seat

We can start.

No, not really.

The chauffeur needs to park the car and be seated.

Not an easy task.

Parking on these narrow streets in this quaint little town,

makes parking in New York City seem like a piece of cake.

Speaking of cake, we should all have been eating cake by now.....

5:45pm I decide to take the bull by the horns.

I talk to the DJ. I let him know that when I am given the cue to begin,

I will motion to him to stop the music

so that I can lead the groom's party to their positions.

Once we are there, he can crank up the Pachelbel canon to start the bridesmaids.

5:50pm The father of the bride says we are ready.

I motion to the DJ.

He proceeds immediately into Pachelbel,

thus forcing me and the Groom's party into a full sprint to get to positions.

5:51pm The groom's party and I are catching our breath.

Pachelbel is serenading throughout the neighborhood.

We are ready to go, except for one thing....

no bridesmaids.

5:52pm Still, no bridesmaids.

5:53pm I have heard of runaway brides,

but runaway bridesmaids??

5:54pm There is movement at the rear of the garden

Things are on cue now, I think.

Except it wasn't a bridesmaid,

but the chauffeur,

who is now walking down the aisle,

totally unaware that she is not crashing the wedding,

but crashing the wedding procession.

I lean over to the groom and whisper,

I hope for your sake, they get younger by the end of the line.

We'd like to think that we are in charge of each of our days.

But the truth is, we aren't.

A car crash that comes out of nowhere,

a trip to the doctors that ends with an unexpected diagnosis,

a sudden job loss, a relationship that goes sour.

All we can really be sure of

is that God walks with us through every aspect of our day

and is in control.

Once we recognize that simple spiritual truth,

our anxiety levels drop.

Additionally, we find that all the things

that need to unfold in our lives, do indeed happen,

just in God's own time.

I'm not sure about the new, the borrowed, or the blue....

And by the end of the day,

there was still time for cake.

Commit your way to the Lord,

trust also in Him,

and He will do it.

Psalms 37:5

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