IT WAS a service with a difference at the Glendevon New Testament Church of God in Montego Bay, St James, on February 11, as the congregation celebrated married couples.

The couples, who conducted all aspects of the service which focused on the theme ‘For Better, For Worse’, were serenaded, given solid advice and guidance on how to strengthen their union, and also had their marriage vows renewed, as a group, by the church’s pastor, Reverend James Lewis.

The service, a special project by the Diane Bowen and Ivin Malahoo-led women’s movement, was the first event in a series of special programmes planned for February, during which the church will be focusing on the theme ‘Building Stronger Marriages’.

Bowen, who moderated the service with her husband Stephen, who is one of the leaders of the church’s men’s movement, said it is critical for the church to recognise and highlight marriage, since it is the foundation for godly families.

Unlike the normal Sunday worship service, where just one person would conduct roles such as the call to worship, opening prayer, and the reading of the first scripture, on Sunday these roles were jointly carried out by couples, operating as a team. It was an opportunity for those wives and husbands who were not usually in the spotlight, to make their presence felt.

The focus on the couples, who were all asked to sit together in a specially designated section of the church, began to take shape when they were called on to recite the motto, which was taken from Songs of Solomon 1 verse 15 – “Behold, thou art fair, my love, behold thou art fair; thou hast doves’ eyes”. The theme song, Love in any Language, which the remainder of the congregation joined in singing, followed the saying of the motto.

When choir member Annett Cox serenaded her husband Carl, warm smiles lit up the church. It was most touching to hear Carl, who is usually very reserved, boldly declaring his love for his wife. His words and her smile elicited a rousing applause from the congregation.

In a seminar-like sermon, Jacqueline Lewis, the pastor’s wife, who is a trained teacher by profession, gave an informative presentation, during which she used props to illustrate the pitfalls married couples could face and the ways to circumvent them. She stressed the need for married couples to be good examples to their children, to promote harmony and to bond as one in following the marriage vows.

“Commitment in a marriage provides role modelling for the children. A committed marriage provides a positive image for the offsprings. Children learn valuable lessons about love, dedication and perseverance by watching their parents’ commitment to each other,” said Lewis.

The collective renewal of vows generated significant interest as the couples recited the various pledges with their ‘I do’. However, there was much laughter and excitement when Pastor Lewis said, “You may now kiss the bride” and the couples obliged. That exercise was repeated two more times, at the request of those members of the congregation who say they did not see clearly the first nor second time.

After the couples were blessed, they exited the sanctuary to take their souvenir photographs outside.