I recently had the opportunity to perform a wedding ceremony for some friends of mine. The theme of the wedding was admittedly a first for me. You see the bride was a huge fan of Disney Princesses, and absolutely loved Rapunzel. The groom however wasn’t much a princess man, well with the exception of his bride! His passion was superheroes, and specifically Spiderman. He believed that Spiderman was the best superhero ever. 
The other unique piece for me was our conversation prior to the wedding ceremony. They both indicated that they would like to have a simple ceremony and not too churchy because we’re not very religious people. My wheels started spinning right away. What was I going to do? I believe the purpose of a marriage is more than a tax break and it’s far more than a secular event. I firmly believe that we have a wonderful example of a marriage in the life and teachings of Jesus. So I stayed attentive to see where Jesus was already present in this conversation.
I asked the groom Why Spiderman. Then he quoted a line from the movie – With great power, comes great responsibility. He indicated that this line was one of the reasons he loved this superhero. He believed this quote held true in his own life and that while he didn’t have superpowers he did have a great gift that required great care and responsibility – his fiancee. What a guy!
The lightbulb went on! I knew exactly where Jesus was already present in this relationship. He was there in the Spiderman quote. You see that line reminded me of something Jesus said, To whom much is given, much is expected. Admittedly, these words weren’t spoken at a wedding and really weren’t intended in their initial context for a married life, but they fit. It was the open door to bring Jesus into a wedding that wasn’t supposed to be “all Jesus-y.”
The wedding had most of the typical stuff and yes – Jesus was there. He was there in a connection to the Spiderman quote. In marriage we are given a great gift – our spouse. Marriage is all about one life being given completely to another. To whom much is given much is expected. I addressed both the bride and the groom, and through them all who were present at the wedding. I reminded them of the vows that were going to be spoken. I took the opportunity to remind them of all Jesus gave for them and all they were giving to each other. We talked mostly about the expectations of the gift of our spouse. To care, honor, cherish, love, obey, sacrifice for. Jesus was certainly there.
The moral of the story isn’t Jesus and Spiderman! The reason I share this is to demonstrate that Jesus is present all around us. We just need to be aware of who Jesus is and what he said. We need to keep our eyes open for the opportunities that Jesus puts right in front of us every moment of everyday. Then we need to act on those opportunities. A new line I just heard is that reminds me of a story Jesus told. I’ve used it more than a dozen times in just the last few days! What a great hook into a conversation. Jesus was at the wedding and thanks to Carl Medearis I was able to see him!
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