Even though I can be a tough critic of Hallmark movies (as you know from my previous writing), I do have a list of several favorites. I actually just watched one of them last week. The plot centers on a beautiful romance between a professional bridesmaid (yes, I know that’s not a real job) and a journalist who’s writing about the high-profile wedding the professional bridesmaid is in. As the days to the wedding draw closer, they begin to fall in love. Of course, there’s a minor conflict toward the end of the movie that quickly gets resolved with a sweet apology and an even sweeter kiss.
I was pleased that weddings, marriage, and love were all celebrated in this Hallmark movie. Still, it felt like it was missing something. Honesty, it feels like all Hallmark movies are missing something.
A Hallmark Movie Starring You
If you’re anything like me, you’ve daydreamed about a guy entering your life—perhaps at an unexpected-but-incredibly-quaint moment like the guys always do in Hallmark movies.
In your daydreams, your guy literally runs into you at a local coffee shop, spills coffee all over your favorite shirt, and makes you late for your high-end job interview. He’s adorably embarrassed, and you’re more charmed than annoyed by his clumsiness. Your paths cross again, and you find out he’s actually your friend’s older brother, your new next-door neighbor, or your grandma’s trusty handyman. He falls madly in love with you, and you fall madly in love with him. A brief-yet-dramatic miscommunication threatens to ruin your relationship, but a happily ever after follows. The end.
As amazing as this may sound, it’s missing the same thing the professional bridesmaid and her journalist boyfriend were missing: purpose. Love and marriage were praised, but it wasn’t clear why they were praised. Thankfully, God’s Word provides a very clear “why.”
A Real Reason to Rejoice
And from the throne came a voice saying, “Praise our God, all you his servants, you who fear him, small and great.” Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the roar of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, crying out, “Hallelujah! For the Lord our God the Almighty reigns. 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. (Revelation 19:5-8 NASB1995)
This marriage between Christ and the Church is what our marriages point to. Though our marriages on earth are imperfect, they can also represent Christ’s union with His bride well if we let the Holy Spirit work through them. Marriage is not only a gift but also an opportunity.
I do genuinely enjoy watching Hallmark movies, but none of them offer nearly as much depth as Scripture does. We shouldn’t take Hallmark movies too seriously because they’re simply intended to entertain us, not serve as our guidebooks for finding purpose in our relationships. While I certainly hope my marriage will include witty banter and romantic outings, I’m thankful that won’t be the extent of it.
Tizzie's Tidbits of Truth 