Our Covenant Vows

Many people have commented about the vows Grant and I used on our wedding day. It was difficult trying to decide what we wanted to say. We wanted more than the usual "I do" vows (though we included those while exchanging rings) but we also didn't feel led to write our own vows....yet we could not seem to find the right vows that would fit the commitment we were making to one another....until the last minute!

Somehow, we stumbled upon the story of a couple's wedding and marriage and we read, with awe, their vows to each other. It took less than 5 minutes for Grant and I to say - "That's it!!"

Our vows were so important to us. In a time when the divorce rate is 50/50, even in Christian marriages, we wanted our covenant marriage to have a covenant vow, a Biblical vow. Our desire is to have a beautiful marriage relationship, that exhibits Christ and is a picture of all that He is. We wanted our vows to reflect what true marriage is supposed to be; the husband's role and the woman's role. We wanted our vows to be more than just a repeated promise that is broken daily by thousands all over the world, but a covenant vow to one another based upon the Word of God and Biblical principles. So, each part of our vows were taken from Scripture. So, below are our vows. I hope for all of you bride's reading, that it inspires you and gives you a glimpse of what marriage is really supposed to be. And for those of you who are already married, may it strengthen you and encourage you in your marriage relationship with your spouse.

GROOM:

I, Nathan Grant Lee, covenant before God and man, to you Kristen Elizabeth Lisemby to be your loving husband, and to lead you, to protect you, and provide for you in the fear of the Lord[1]. I vow to love you as my wife even as Christ also loved the church, to lay down my life for you[2]; to wash you with the water of the word[3]; to love you as my own body and to nourish and cherish you even as the Lord does the church; to render unto you the affection due you, knowing that I do not have authority over my own body but you do[4]; to dwell with you according to knowledge, giving honor unto you, as unto the weaker vessel, and living together with you as heirs together of the grace of life[5]. You alone will be my delight as the wife of my youth[6]. I will fight for you, for our sons, for our daughters, and for our household[7]. The Lord do so to me, and more also, if anything but death parts you and me[8]. I will be yours in times of plenty and in times of want, in times of sickness and in times of health, in times of joy and in times of sorrow, in times of failure and in times of triumph. I pledge to you my life as a loyal and faithful husband[9].

1 Timothy 5:8 ** Ephesians 5:25 ** Ephesians 5:26 ** 1 Corinthians 7:4
1 Peter 3:7 ** Proverbs 5:18 ** Nehemiah 4:14 ** Ruth 1:17 ** Hosea 2:19-20

BRIDE:


I, Kristen Elizabeth Lisemby, covenant before God and man, to you Nathan Grant Lee to be your loyal wife and to submit myself under your headship[10]. Just as the Church is subject to Christ[11], so I will be to you in everything. I will live first unto our God and then unto you, loving you, caring for you, obeying you, and ever seeking to please you as my earthly lord[12]. I will be your discreet, chaste keeper at home[13], diligently, industriously, and faithfully caring for the affairs of your household so that your heart may always safely trust in me[14]. If the Lord chooses to so bless us, it will be my delight to be your fruitful bearer[15] of children, and I will help you diligently teach them the commandments of the Lord as we talk of them in your house, as we walk by the way, when we lie down, and when we rise up[16]. Wherever you go, I will go; and wherever you lodge, I will lodge; your people shall be my people, And your God, my God[17]. The Lord do so to me, and more also, If anything but death parts you and me[18]. I will be yours in times of plenty and in times of want, in times of sickness and in times of health, in times of joy and in times of sorrow, in times of failure and in times of triumph, I pledge to you my life as an obedient and faithful wife.

Ephesians 5:22 ** Ephesians 5:24-25 ** 1 Peter 3:6 ** Titus 2:5 ** Proverbs 31:11
Psalms 128:3 ** Deuteronomy 6:7; 11:19 ** Ruth 1:16 ** Ruth 1:17

[1] 1 Timothy 5:8
[2] Ephesians 5:25
[3] Ephesians 5:26
[4] 1 Corinthians 7:4
[5] 1 Peter 3:7
[6] Proverbs 5:18
[7] Nehemiah 4:14
[8] Ruth 1:17
[9] Hosea 2:19-20
[10] Ephesians 5:22
[11] Ephesians 5:24-25
[12] 1 Peter 3:6
[13] Titus 2:5
[14] Proverbs 31:11
[15] Psalms 128:3
[16] Deuteronomy 6:7; 11:19
[17] Ruth 1:16
[18] Ruth 1:17

The Lord said in Ecclesiastes 5:5 that it is better never to make a vow, than to make one and break it.