Two Things That Make Me Cry

There are two things that always make me cry ..........
Weddings and baptisms.

I am a sucker for the moment when the bride walks down the aisle.   I am scanning the faces of the father as he takes that final walk and is about to give his precious daughter to another man.   I am looking for that look of pride on the groom's face, as he anticipates the beautiful treasure he's about to be given.  And I'm searching the eyes of the bride and trying to read her thoughts; are they happiness, joy, or just plain terror?    (I, personally,  was shaking so much the bottom of my dress was moving!)

As the bride moves past me and takes the place beside her future, and as the pastor starts to lead them in their vows, I give in to the tears.   I love wedding vows!   I always find myself praying for the couple to truly HEAR the meaning of the words they are repeating; to truly GET the idea that marriage is a GIVING of themselves, more than a getting.

Then, there are baptisms......
I always cry at baptisms.   It's also a symbol of GIVING.......except this time the groom is Christ.
Baptisms symbolize a release - of pride, of old ways, of caring what the world thinks, and a giving over to the desire to say to the world "I'm changing and I'm not ashamed!"  And, at the moment they are lowered into that water and the moment they are "raised to new life" - I cry.

I cry for the letting go of the old person they were and for the new one they are to become.  Not that the act of baptism stops one from ever sinning again, but it's a symbol of the desire to be changed; to live for Christ from that point on.   And, I cry for the hope that will walk with them; reminding them that they once took a step toward Christ, and it meant something.    And I pray, at that moment, that their "walk" will be real; that the ways of this sinful world won't be too much for them.

When it's all said and done, two acts of GIVING - both of the HEART.   

Both a beautiful act.

Both make me cry.