Heartfelt · about 2.5 minutes · 277 words
Christian Wedding Vows (2 Minutes)
Santino is marrying a woman whose faith shows up in small daily habits, and he wants vows that sound like their church life without preaching at the guests
Said by Santino, to Tove. The names are made up.
The vows
Tove, the first Sunday I noticed you, you were using a gas receipt as a bookmark in your Bible. Eleven dollars and forty cents at the Shell on the highway. I could read it from two rows back. I've since learned that every Bible, hymnal and cookbook you own is held open by a receipt, and you never throw them out, because each one marks a page you were praying over.
Most people at church know you run the coffee on Wednesday nights and sing alto a little louder than the rest of the section. What they don't see is you in the car before every long drive, one hand flat on the dashboard, praying for the tires, the other drivers, and me, in that order.
You taught me that faith can be small and daily. Mostly it looks like showing up.
So here is what I promise you, in front of God and the people who have been praying for us.
I'll pray with you every night, including the nights we've been short with each other. Those most of all. I will wash the coffee urns on Wednesdays so you can finally sit down. When you have something marked, I'm going to read it before I ask you what it says. And when you're the one who can't find the words to pray, I'll find them, or I'll sit with you quietly until you can.
Love keeps no record of wrongs. I want to live that one, which means forgiving you fast and asking you to forgive me faster.
This morning I slipped a receipt into your Bible. It's from the florist. You'll know which page.
Why it works: The faith in these vows lives in habits, a receipt in a Bible and a prayer for the tires, so it reads as real life and not a sermon. The one scripture line is paraphrased and short, and he turns it into a promise he can actually keep. The ending puts a new receipt in her Bible, which brings the opening back with today's date on it.
Make them yours
Borrow the shape, not the sentences. These open on one real moment, say one thing about the partner nobody else sees, make a handful of promises (mostly small ones), and come back to the opening detail at the end. Put your own moment, your own habit and your own promises in each slot. The guide to writing vows walks through each part.
Write yours, or check them
The vow writer starts from your own answers. The vows check times your draft and flags the lines every couple uses, without sending it anywhere.