It was a cold Saturday, December 18 at 6PM. Liz and I were going to be married the next afternoon. We were walking downtown in Henderson, Tennessee, when I looked up and saw the courthouse. It hit me that I forgot to pick up our marriage license. Did I mention it was Saturday night?
It was a terrifying moment for me. Relatives from Texas had driven hundreds of miles. The cake was made. The rings were bought. The church was ready. Obviously I was not in charge of any of those things. Liz had even gone with me to purchase the marriage license. In preparation for the wedding she had only given me the job of picking up the marriage license.
It was a cold Saturday, December 18 at 6PM. There was a chill in the air, but the chill did not come from the temperature outside. The chill came from the young lady walking with me.
My failure should have been a warning to her, but apparently she had a learning disability. What she did next amazed me. She called the county clerk and had him open the courthouse and get our license!
The event may be different, but if you are married, your wedding also had a mess-up, a slip-up, or an up-oh moment. Over the years I have talked to many couples and never have I found one that did not have one. Maybe yours is an exception, but I doubt it.
Wedding ceremonies are not wonderful because they are perfect. Marriages are not great because they have are uh-ho moment free.
Marriages are successful because the two people in the marriage have learned to see past the past, live in the day, and embrace tomorrow. Your partner is not perfect. If he or she were then they would not have married you. They would have been looked for someone one who is perfect. In spite of that, “Husbands, love your wives.” (Eph 5:25) Wives, respect your husband. (Eph 5:33)
Do this even if he forgets the wedding license. If he did forget, then forget about the “up-oh” moment. Mine did, or at least if she remembered it, she never mentioned it again.
Lonnie Davis
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