After the blushing sweetheart places the shiny, new engagement ring on their fiancé’s finger and announces to the world the great news, the frenzy begins. Family and friends begin to feverishly prepare for the near future. The perfect wedding gown, bridesmaids’ dresses, ornate flowers and a delectable reception overflowing with special delicacies will all be meticulously planned for this once-in-a-lifetime occasion.

Millions of brides and grooms have all gone through all the careful preparations of the wedding day, yet somehow almost everyone forgets the vows that are made that day. Oh, yes, everyone knows about “Till death do we part” but what about the rest of the vows?

If I asked you ladies if any of you had broken your wedding vows, I believe many ladies would adamantly answer “No.” But some of those very same ladies may be quick to point out that their husbands did.

“MY husband committed adultery,” one may say.

“I have caught my husband viewing pornography many times.” Another wife may pipe in.

The majority of husbands and wives think that adultery and divorce are the only wedding vows made on their wedding day. No, they would not say that, but ask them to repeat some of their vows. Sadly, many of them cannot. How can you keep your vows if you do not know what you vowed?

Ladies, if you followed the traditional vows that are used in many weddings, your vows may have been something like this:

Bride: I, Sara take thee, Michael, to be my lawful wedded Husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better for worse, for richer for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love, cherish, and to obey, till death us do part, according to God's holy ordinance; and thereto I give thee my troth.

These are the traditional Anglican wedding vows that are from the Common Book of Prayers.

So, ladies I would like to ask you, have you ever broken your marriage vows? Have you ever not loved, cherished or obeyed your husband? Consider the famous chapter of I Corinthians 13 to give you a quick check-up on love. According to that amazing chapter, love is patient, kind and thinks no evil. Have you ever thought evil towards your hubby? Have you always been kind?

Sometimes I wish I had written my own vows and had promised something like this:

I, Alison, take thee Adam, to be my lawful wedded husband. I promise to never leave or forsake you during our marriage. I hope and depend on God’s grace to help me be the wife you need me to be. I hope to be the wife of your dreams, but I am only human and may mess up. I love you and am excited about our new life together and hope the Lord blesses us with many happy years.”

Too bad I did not think of that before my wedding day. No, I vowed to obey and cherish my husband, and though I believe I should do those things, I have regretfully broken my wedding vows—on more than oneoccasion.

Just recently I asked my husband to forgive me for not giving him the respect he deserves and not always being the loving and kind wife I should be. I remember his blue eyes taking in every word and I could see gratitude on his face. Every loving husband deserves to be cherished, loved and honored.

Why not renew your desire to love and cherish your hubby today?

Blessings,

Alison

Alison Wood has been married for 12 years to an amazing hubby, has six adorable kiddos, works in Southeast Asia as a missionary, freelance writer and blogs at http://www.pintsizedtreasures.com.