Retoast

So I got the honor and privilege of making a toast at my sister's wedding last Saturday. I have never made a toast before and it really showed. I had been thinking about what I was going to say for months, literally. And when it came down to the day I still had nothing except 1 Cortinthians 13. The Bible is always a good thing to use, right? Well I ran it past a few people and they said to say something more sisterly and personal. Rachel and my sisterly relationship is very much a love/fight relationship. We love eachother so very much and she is my closest friend, yet for some reason we can not stop fighting or debating or arguing or getting under eachother's skin after all this time. So I took the mic and started going into Rachel's "fighting spirit" and telling a story about her. The crowd laughed, so I don't know if that was good or not, but I didn't say what I really wanted to say. I really am not very gifted with words when in front of a crowd, I tell a story and leave out the most important part or just forget where I'm heading. So since I wanted to explain myself a little more, I am going to re-toast Rachel and Stephen right here. So pause for a minute, go get your glass and fill it because we're going to say cheers and clink glasses at the end.

My sister Rachel. I have waited 28 long years to be able to say these words. To my sister and friend. And to Stephen, the man we have waited and prayed for for years. We are so glad you are a part of our family. I would like to tell you about a unique and exquisite quality that Rachel has. Her redeeming quality is that she is a fighter. We need to travel back in time to when Rachel was in junior high at a friend's sleepover. During the night all the girls snuck out of the house except one girl. That's right, my sister stayed at home and went to bed instead of sneaking out of the house. And when all the girls got home from their nighttime rendezvous, one of the girls woke Rachel up to get her to move because she wanted to sleep there. So Rachel said no way, hauled off and slugged the girl, grabbed her sleeping bag and her clothes and walked home a mile in the dark to her own house to sleep. But this was a good thing in my eyes. Rachel fought back for doing the right thing. And there have been many other events in Rachel's life where she fought hard for good things. She sets her eyes on the goal and works hard to get there despite the obstacles in her way. She pereseveres and is in it for the long haul. So Stephen, I just want to say that you are getting a good girl that will fight hard for the right things. She will work hard and she does what is right. And my hope is that the two of you will continue to fight for what is good in your marriage. That you will fight and strive for a deep and unwavering love for God. That you will fight for a love that is selfless and humble, always putting eachother before yourselves. And that you will fight for the good of others in your ministry together. Here's to fighting for what's important. I love you guys.

(And everyone in blogland raises their glasses and clinks them together and says "Cheers!")