I am posting another complete Vow Renewal Ceremony in its entirety along with some Vow Renewal Certificate Templates designed specifically to go along with the ceremony. This ceremony is the Your Lives Together In Jesus Christ wedding ceremony adapted to be a vow renewal. This is a beautiful Christ centered ceremony that focuses on the couple's
commitment to one another as well as their commitment to love and serve as Christ commands.

Here is the ceremony posted on the blog and below it you will find free downloads for the Word docx file, PDF file of the ceremony and PDF files for the certificate templates....

Click here to view full post and get free downloads.

God of Love, bless this marriage and open our hearts and minds to hear your word as we read from Colossians, chapter 3, verses 12-14… So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience; bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you. Beyond all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity. Amen

Wedding Prayer Examples Part 2

Below is a list of wedding prayer examples. For the first part of the list, examples 1-7, see Examples of the Wedding Prayer.

The wedding prayer is said near the end of the wedding ceremony and is usually a prayer over the new marriage and may include a blessing, scripture or poetry.

8.
Officiant: Dear God we are grateful and joyous as you pour out your abundant blessings on this loving couple and their newly formed marriage. We pray that ____________ and ____________ will honor their vows and promises made here today and we remember the line of beautiful scripture that tells us, There is faith, hope and love, these three; but the greatest of these is love. Amen 

9.
Officiant: God blesses you with happiness, prosperity and gives you peace. May your love for each other become deeper and more blissful as you carry onward in your sacred journey of married life. May you draw forth, each from the other, the highest and the best. May you be open and receptive to divine inspiration and guidance. May you express poise, patience and understanding with each other. May your lives blend together in harmony and joy and may your days be good and long upon the earth. Amen. 

The Wedding Prayer or Blessing is said near the end of the ceremony. It comes after the vows and the ring exchange.

It can be a prayer for the new marriage along with a blessing over the new marriage.

Prayers, blessings and scripture are often used in the Wedding Prayer element of a wedding ceremony.

Here's a list of 7 examples of the Wedding Prayer and/or Blessing...

1.
Gracious God, hear our prayer of marriage blessing and grant ____________ and ____________ a spirit of unconditional love in their relationship and bless us all with loving hearts and minds as we pause to read the timeless and enduring words of 1st Corinthians chapter 13 verses 4 thru 7. Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Amen.

2.
A Wedding Prayer by the poet Robert Louis Stevenson. Lord, behold our family here assembled. We thank you for this place in which we dwell, for the love that unites us, for the peace accorded us this day, for the hope with which we expect the morrow, for the health, the work, the food, and the bright skies that make our lives delightful; for our friends  in all parts of the earth. Amen.

Traditionally this is the “Presentation of the Bride” or “The Giving Away of the Bride”. It is the time in the ceremony when the minister asks, “Who gives this woman to be married to this man” and the bride’s father says “I do”.

In contemporary weddings the minister may ask both sets of parents “Who gives these individuals to be given in marriage”? The parents answer “We do”. Other scenarios may have a different relative, family representative or child of the bride or groom that “gives them away”.

Some people may view this element as outdated and sexist and may choose to not include it in their ceremony. This is due to times in the past when the woman was considered as property and was given away in arranged marriages. Unfortunately there are many parts of the world where that is still the case. We are blessed to live in the United States of America, where women have equal rights and most people are not forced into arranged marriages.

Here are two lovely Keepsake Marriage Certificates that I have posted for you to download for free. The files are in PDF format.

One of them is bright and colorful with a touch of whimsy and a poem. I used a landscape orientation and a purple border with a multi-color chroma rose brush design that I made using Photoshop.

The other one is done in portrait orientation and is black and white. The frame is an intricate vintage frame.

It looks to be Victorian and even a bit Steampunk!

The vintage frame graphic I used to make this certificate is from The Graphics Fairy website. I love that website!

The fonts I used on the intricate fancy frame certificate are more formal looking than the fonts used on the colorful whimsy keepsake certificate. There is a quote from scripture at the bottom of this lovely keepsake marriage certificate.

The pronouncement as husband and wife is the part of the wedding ceremony when the officiant makes the official proclamation that the bride and groom are now husband and wife.

This element is usually near the end of the ceremony and can be followed by the benediction and the announcement as newlyweds.

The pronouncement often includes the familiar “you may kiss the bride” statement. The officiant may also declare their authority, i.e. “by the authority vested in me by the state of…”

Below is a list of examples of the Pronouncement As Husband and Wife:

1. Officiant: Inasmuch as you__________, and you __________, have thus consented in holy matrimony and have witnessed the same before God and this gathering and by the authority vested in me by the State of ________, I now pronounce you husband and wife and what God hath joined together, let no man put asunder. You May Kiss The Bride!

2. Officiant: Therefore because ________ and ________ have pledged their love and faith to each other, sealed their vows in the giving and receiving of rings and have expressed their complete and pure dedication to one another before God and our gathering then it is by the authority vested in me by the State of _____________, I now pronounce you husband and wife. -- You may kiss the Bride!

It’s fun for everyone!

Even if you are already married you can use the build a wedding ceremony form.

Use it just for fun!

A romantic and fun thing to do with your significant other... you can both create a ceremony and then read them aloud to each other!

It’s easy to use the Build A Wedding Ceremony automated tool. Just select your favorite option from each element category and then click the submit button. You will receive your ceremony via email. It’s a great way to celebrate an anniversary or special date with your spouse or significant other.

Create as many ceremonies as you wish, as often as you want.

Officiants can use it as a tool in their business. Wedding couples can create a ceremony to bring to their officiant.

Try it out today! Go to the Build A Wedding Ceremony website.

It's Free, It's Fun, It's Helpful!

The exchange of the rings during a wedding ceremony takes place immediately after the blessing of the rings.

The officiant performs the blessing of the rings and then the bride and groom exchange rings as they pledge vows of faithfulness and fidelity to one another.

Below is a list of 12 examples for the exchange of rings element in wedding ceremony.

Examples of The Exchange Of The Rings In A Wedding Ceremony:

1.

Officiant: To Groom:

________ will you take this ring and place it upon _____’s finger, and as you do, repeat after me, these words:

The following can be broken down line by line instead of said all at once.

I give you this ring as a symbol of my vow, and with all that I am, and all that I have, I honor you, in the name of God.

Officiant: To Bride:

_________ will you take this ring and place it upon ________’s finger, and as you do, repeat after me, these words:

The following can be broken down line by line instead of said all at once.

I give you this ring as a symbol of my vow, and with all that I am, and all that I have, I honor you, in the name of God.

A new Lord's Prayer Wedding Ceremony has recently been added to the Ceremonies section of the site.

It includes the reciting of the Lord's Prayer during the time of the Invocation.

It is a unifying moment of fellowship when everyone, including the guests, the bride and groom and the officiant recite The Lord's Prayer together.

You will find a free PDF available for download at the bottom of The Lord's Prayer Christian Wedding Ceremony page.

The file has also been extended with features so you can easily tab thru the form and fill in the names of the bride and groom and other variable information.

You only need to type the bride and groom's name once and the rest of the corresponding fields are automatically filled in.

The PDF has extra formatting with the Bride and Groom's lines color coded.

I used the free, fun and helpful Build A Wedding Ceremony tool to select the elements used in this ceremony. After receiving the completed ceremony via email, I pasted the content into a Word docx and then I tweaked some of the formatting to add the bride/groom color coding as well as their repeating speaking parts. Then I used Adobe Acrobat to convert it into a fillable form. Be sure to check out the PDF fillable form offered for free download at the bottom of the Lord's Prayer Christian Wedding Ceremony page.

Also, be sure to try out the free, fun and helpful Build A Ceremony tool, as you may enjoy putting together your own unique ceremony by selecting your favorite options for each element offered.

Go To The Lord's Prayer Wedding Ceremony Page >

The Blessing Of The Rings is spoken right before the ring exchange.

The officiant will ask God for a blessing on the rings and may also speak about the meaning of the rings and the vows of faithfulness that the ring represents.

For more information on the rings portion of the ceremony and for Blessings Of The Ring examples 1-7 please see Blessings Of The Wedding Rings - 7 Examples blog post.

For more info on additional elements of a wedding ceremony, please see the Wedding Ceremony Elements page.

8.

Officiant: To the Best Man or Ringbearer: May we now have the rings?

The designated person gives the rings to the Officiant. Or in a smaller/simpler ceremony without a Best Man or Ringbearer the Officiant will already have the rings.

Officiant:  From the earliest times, the circle has been a symbol of completeness, a symbol of committed love. An unbroken and never ending circle symbolizes a commitment of love that is also never ending. As often as either of you look at this symbol, I hope that you will be reminded of the commitment to love each other, which you have made today.

9.

Officiant: To the Best Man or Ringbearer: May we now have the rings.
The designated person gives the rings to the Officiant.

Officiant: Dear Lord, bless these rings which ________ and ________ have set apart to be visible signs of the spiritual bond which unites their hearts. As they give and receive these rings, may they testify to the world of the covenant made between them on this day. Amen