bridezilla

Photo Credit: Getty from Huffington Post

 most of us are familiar with the term bridezilla.  i believe there's even a tv series with that title.  its not exactly a nice name, as my mother would say.  in fact, there are a lot of really not-nice terms associated with bridezilla, most of which i care not to mention here.  but some of the milder adjectives would include moody, bossy, mean, selfish, picky, impatient, etc, etc, etc. 

and not every bride deserves this label, but many come by it honestly.  you may have seen or read news stories about the "running of the brides," an event where bridezillas are basically given free reign over a dress boutique to find that perfect dress. some of these women even form teams and strategies with their bridesmaids and other female relatives to dominate the day and make sure to secure their precious cargo.  it is basically a full-contact sport in my opinion, except without helmets and pads.  (well, at least without football pads.)  but even those who don't participate in this madhouse of an event can become bridezillas in their own right.    i have seen many brides completely ignore their groom-to-be, their family, their bridesmaids, and everyone around them in an effort to secure what they deem to be "the perfect wedding."

i mean, planning a wedding is stressful, no doubt.  and somehow it has a way of making one focus so much on self that they forget what the whole day is about.  the wedding becomes an end, instead of a beginning.  its about the bride, instead of about the couple.  it becomes entertainment, instead of covenant. 

and speaking of entertainment, its actually quite entertaining to google the word "bridezilla" and scroll through the images.  some are just down right awful.  but not once does the word beautiful come to mind. 

and isn't that what a bride is intended to be? beautiful? i don't know how many times i've heard the statement, "there's nothing more beautiful than a bride on her wedding day." well, that may be true, but the days leading up to the wedding are often a different story. 

i think the same just might be true of the bride of Christ.  sometimes when i think of the church, and of myself in particular as a part of the body of Christ, the term beautiful is not really what comes to mind.  bridezilla is more like it.  i think sometimes we make things about us instead of about Christ.  sometimes we make things about what we want more than about what Jesus wants.  we are selfish, mean, picky, impatient, etc, etc, etc.  we often view our lives as all we have, instead of just the beginning of eternity.  we make it about entertainment, rather than remembering the covenant He has made with us.  we completely forget about our Glorious Groom, in an effort to secure what we think is the perfect life. 

so as individuals, and as the body of Christ, maybe its time to take a good look in the mirror.  and not just in vanity as we try on all our stuff.  maybe we should look at the light that's reflecting from our faces.  is it a selfish scowl, or a peaceful smile?  is it stressed out wrinkles and furled eyebrows, or a joyous beauty?  the latter only comes when we spend time in the presence of the groom.  only when we remember how we are loved.  only when we remember the grace that has secured our future with him for eternity!!!! 

Song of Solomon 4:1 "Behold, you are beautiful, my love..."



AND .... there's more good news:
1) no need to stress because HE has already picked out the dress :)

Revelation 19:7-8 "Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready; it was granted her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure - for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints."

AND
2) even though at times we are unlovable, WE ARE NEVER UNLOVED!!!!!!

Romans 5:8 "but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us."

Photo Credit : http://zsazsabellagio.blogspot.com