I have been a pastor for 20 years and am closing in on 100 weddings that I’ve officiated. And there a couple of trends I have seen in the past several years that I think are worthy of note.

Most weddings are now outdoors. I don’t have a STRONG opinion about this, but just an opinion. A church building is meant to evoke thoughts about the presence of God. I will be the first to admit that He is NOT any more present in a church than He is in a vineyard, or on a farm, or at an outdoor wedding venue . . . But the entire wedding ceremony is full of symbolism. And in past generations, getting married in a church symbolized the acknowledgement that this is fundamentally a religious service. It is about God forging a new covenant. The vows ratified in proximity to the altar. I don’t think that there is any particular blessing that God offers to those who get married in a church. But I am still a little old-fashioned in my thoughts that a church still symbolizes the presence of God in a way that an open field doesn’t. But my take on this common trend is a take it or leave it opinion. I am very excited about my daughter’s wedding that will be held at a farm this very Friday!

The second trend is a bit more troubling to me. And it is increasingly going to be a non-starter for me. This past Sunday I conducted the last wedding ceremony I will conduct on a Sunday. Wedding venues have begun to discount Sunday’s in order to utilize their space for income all weekend long. And the more money conscious will be tempted to bite.

On the personal front, I am a pastor of a church. To put Sunday into perspective for someone in business, Sunday is like a weekly product launch. It is the day God’s people gather. It is the day I currently preach two sermons. It is the only day of the week that ReCAST Church gathers as the church. I cannot personally give a couple the attention I want to, and do right by my church if I am conducting a wedding in the same day. I will be divided. Maybe other pastors can lock down those compartments and shift quickly from Sunday morning services to Sunday afternoon wedding officiating. I cannot. And I hope that this blog might reach some people who will be tempted to ask me to officiate their weddings on Sundays. I’m going to be a “no” on that moving forward.

There is a secondary reason to avoid getting married on Sunday. Sunday is the Lord’s Day, not ‘our day’ . . . not ‘Bill and Jen’s Day’. I recognize that someone will want to call me petty on this, and I’m okay with that. Skipping church to get ready for your wedding would be like selling your car for gas money for your road trip. You’re gonna need that for the very thing you are doing! Young Christian couple . . . You’re going to need a church family. You’re going to need the gathering of God’s people to stay on track in your walk. Why give that gathering up on the very first day of your union!? To save money? If money is really the issue then just get married at a church.

I don’t love this trend of getting married on Sunday. It is taking the Lord’s Day and making it YOUR day.

I am not looking forward to the first time I have to say no to a couple I know and love. But I am more committed than ever to no longer conducting a wedding on a Sunday. I know there will be some tough conversations moving forward. And it will likely be a young person I’ve known for years. And I’ll be close friends with their parents. And it will sound like a petty concern. It may even come across as merely whiny. ‘Oh, the poor pastor might need to work another few hours that week!’

But my conviction is pretty strong in this. Let God be the center. Let His day be respected. You have 6 days of the week to conduct your business. Let Him have HIS day!