Why I got married on Good Friday

It's Holy Week, and time to share my annual story of how I got married on Good Friday. This was originally published on Medium.com.

I’ve been thinking a lot about Jesus lately:

We remember that He went to the grave for our sins, and then came back to life!

I’m listening to a Bible app devotional;

We saw “The Chosen,” a series about the life of Christ at the movie theater;

And my eighth wedding anniversary is today — yes, you read that right, on GOOD FRIDAY!

You might think that is a strange day to get married, but we chose it for an important reason. My husband, Tim, and I met on Good Friday in 2015, and I strongly believe that God brought us together. When he proposed on my birthday in June 2016 I knew instantly what day we would wed.

Good Friday appears to be a day of sadness and death and fear, but it also is a day of love, hope and redemption.

On the Positively Joy podcast, The Rev. Dr. Leah Schade and I talked about how movies depict the life of Christ and some, like “The Last Temptation of Christ,” and “The Passion,” feature all the blood and gore of a horror movie.

But remember all the people Christ came in contact with, even on His way on the Via Dolorosa, including Simon of Cyrene, who helped carry Jesus’ cross. He was forced by Roman soldiers, but Simon had compassion for Jesus.

Think about the criminals he was hanged beside. One only thought of himself, asking Jesus to save them, but one was transformed just being near Jesus, and asked him to remember Him in Heaven.

It is hope, compassion and kindness that Jesus evoked to most who were near Him. And that is why I was happy to be married on Good Friday.

Technically, the wedding day was Friday, April 14, 2017. That was Good Friday in 2017 but since then, Good Friday, like Easter, moves around on the calendar.

We celebrate the day every Good Friday:

In 2018, it was March 30

In 2019, it was April 19

In 2020 it was April 10

In 2021 it was April 2.

In 2022 it was April 15 (just one day after the real date. We got pretty close that year!)

In 2023 it was April 7

In 2024 March 29.

And today, it’s April 18. Always a Friday. Always our anniversary.

I looked back at the ceremony. Our officiant Wendy Meyer told us that day, “Nothing beats a marriage built on Christ.” In my vows, I told Tim:

You are the kind of man I need, but in the past, my shortcomings might not have allowed me to pick you. BUT GOD has his own plans. The song “Spirit of the Living God” by Meredith Andrews goes:

“When you speak and when you move

When you do what only you can do

It changes us, it changes what we see and what we seek.”

Yvette and Tim on the beach, with wedding officiant Wendy Meyer.

The Living God changed me and what, and who, I sought. In his vows, Tim told me:

In my eternal life, it is my desire to seek God’s face so that I may be with Him in the next. (He then quoted Ecclesiates 4:9–10:) “Two are better than one because they have good return for their works. If one falls down his friend can help him up.”

Here where earth, sky and ocean meet, I pledge my love to thee.

Getting married on this very special day, mere days before Easter, made me feel like we were partnering with the Savior. Co-laboring, as a good friend calls it, with God’s ultimate plan for us.

Good Friday isn’t about pain, it’s about relief. It’s about sacrifice in love. It’s about redemption and provision.

And our wedding and marriage aren’t about each other — Tim and Yvette — it’s about the love of Christ, and how that love keeps our marriage holy. Amen!

Happy Holy Week, and Happy Easter season! I pray that you find Jesus right where you are. In your marriage, in your family, and in your own life.

It’s not about us. Our marriage is a holy partnership with God.

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Yvette Walker is a journalist, educator and the founder of Positively Joy Ministries. Her ministry supports this blog, a podcast, publishing her many books and opportunities to share the message of joy.

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