We are truly excited for this year’s upcoming engagement season. We know that all the postponements that took place during the Covid-19 era in 2020 and 2021, according to The Wedding Report, an independent company is indicating that 2022 is expected to have 2.5 million nuptials, which would be the most in nearly four decades. The Wedding Report, research projected that in 2021 – 1.93 million weddings with an average spend of $22.5k.
http://www.leelajames.com/ 
For the sake of this celebratory period, we wanted to have an uplifting conversation beyond the moment of the engagement. The seriousness of the concept of marriage is based on the very powerful and profound statement cited below:
“Two things adults should take more seriously: Who we marry & who we create our children with.” Leela James (R & B Soul Singer)
Those words hold so much weight, that no matter who you have the conversation with you will always come back to it with a variety of responses, different perspectives. The statement in itself is not a debate, but it is how people choose to respond and their motives behind it that will have you thinking of a variety of scenarios.
Let’s keep it basic, it is a simple philosophy every good parent, and anyone that is remotely connected to a higher being–namely God–would give. Some of us may be familiar with the scripture at 2 Corinthians 6:14 which admonishes its readers “Do not become unevenly yoked with unbelievers. For what fellowship do righteousness and lawlessness have? Or what does light have with darkness?” This passage is basically warning us about the two worlds being the polar opposite of each other. Not to be confused with acknowledging the existence of both. Rather, they simply could not logically, scientifically exist at the same time– one would overpower the other. One would dominate or break down the existence of the other.
With that in mind, I wanted to explore that conversation with a few people that could give me their thoughts on ways that would help me appreciate the value of those words from the songstress.
I began to do what most of us do in the world, go to google and see what conversations were being had regarding marriage and all of the bells and whistles that go with it. What I found trending were the stories on Meagan Good and Devon Franklin, Will Smith, and Jada Pinkett-Smith. Apparently, a few months ago the couple’s marriage became the hot topic with Jada admitting that she had an “entanglement” with another well-known celeb outside of her marriage; leaving a myriad of questions in the minds of their viewers; Is marriage still relevant in today’s society? And, can a marriage work or even last in today’s ever-changing society?
As we read in one of our past articles even Beyonce and Jay Z were not immune to the distress that befalls marriages. So not even money, materialism, fame can shield us from the challenges of marital bliss.
While we are in the last days of 2021, be mindful that the peak engagement season generally runs from now to February 2022. We also could not resist acknowledging that it is also the time where the majority of holidays are celebrated of various faiths and people decide to go home, to meet the family and pop the question– In the words of Queen Bey– Put a ring on it!
While other wedding magazines traditionally focus on what size diamond one received, which designer dress a bride is going to wear, and what exotic location are you considering for your wedding, or which celebrity planners are going to be executing your “wedding production?”
We at World Bride Magazine decided to do things a little differently… In the words of Tina Turner, take it “nice and easy.” After two unprecedented years–so much lost, we decided to offer hope and something positive to close out the year to show you our readers that marriage even with all of its adversities, can be as beautiful as it was designed to be by its creator.
Preparing For Marriage: Mentally and Spiritually
We decided to approach this conversation differently: We thought it would be a perfect opportunity to receive answers and insight from a spiritual perspective while answering several questions about how one who is a servant of God, a person of faith manages to balance work, community, self-identity, faith, and married life in these challenging times.
Those who know me, know I am a talker, a reader, and a lover of documentaries. I have traveled the world and visited Vatican City, Rome, the Mosque in Egypt Al Rafia, attended Shabatt and Rash Shashannah, Pentecostal, Seventh Day Adventist, Catholic, and Baptist services. All in the name of learning. It wasn’t until I read this amazing book “Mankind’s Search For God” published by the Jehovah’s Witnesses, did I start to feel something distinct?
Their ministry preached about getting to know God personally–one on one. Respecting others, they told me we had free will–but had to live with the consequences of our actions. Forgiveness should not be taken for granted even though it was extended to every human being on the planet. God would hold me accountable for my actions. Their faith teaches their members about discipline, self-control, responsibility, and most important loyalty to God by any means–even to the death. Only I can choose to serve God–my salvation lies with me being obedient to the rules of engagement. No different than it would for a job, my parent’s “rules to live under their roof” and so on. It didn’t seem unreasonable. Until you realized they really meant it. This is not something you pick up and put down like pebbles on the beach. They called it a lifesaving relationship.
So with all that ammunition, I felt fully equipped to talk to a few of their members. I wanted to go to someone within their organization that could break down the values of marriage, family life and explain to me if they really believed that in today’s society marriage really can work. Do the rules apply? Can people really find happiness in union with two people? And explain to me why God cares so much about how we navigate our way through marriage?
Marriage rules seem to be so outdated for our society and for so many–we live in a world wherein far too many households, the belief in God is looked down upon more than Santa Clause.
I had the honor of speaking to one of their ministers, a husband, and community volunteer Robert Hendrix who not only made time for me once but several occasions and answered all my questions, and that of my producers–he literally shared scriptures. That’s different. Some of the questions such as:
(1) If marriage is as important to our society as we say it is, why aren’t there more institutional intentionality around maintaining it?
For instance, owning a car is a more intentional process than a marriage. To legally maintain a car requires monthly insurance payments, yearly inspections, and bi-yearly registration.
Why does getting married require no intentional action?
(2) For spiritual people, which is the more honorable decision to make when a partner has shown an abandonment of their religious grounding? To end the marriage and reject the abandonment of god’s law?…. or suffer from a partner who shows through their actions they have no intention of following God’s law, simply for the sake of not getting divorced?
We spent time discussing his own personal marriage and I even had an opportunity to get questions answered from members of their faith. No question was off the table which made me feel comfortable.
WBM Sustainable Mission
After a challenging two years; World Bride Magazine is preparing to revamp the mission of the magazine. We witnessed the challenges so many had to undergo–and we decided to share something uplifting, light-hearted, and hopeful. This conversation proved to be just that to close out the year and usher in the new year; bringing in the new and better World Bride Magazine that promises to be refreshing and helpful to you, our readers as you navigate your way through this life and plan your nuptials.
When it comes to faith, that will always be an individual choice–but positive messaging can always be found in the pages and platforms of WBM.
World Bride Magazine is proud to announce the new vision for the magazine. We will be creating more content that is going to assist you our readers and viewers in doing more than planning your big day by addressing the concerns and challenges you will face beyond the wedding day with our new theme on Sustainability of healthier life, love, family, finances and creating a more beautiful environment that is more fulfilling.
So until the next time, we wish you all the best in love and peace…
