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Engagement & Marriage

Marriage is God’s design and His great gift to us. No other human relationship can approach the potential for intimacy and oneness than that which can be found within the context of marriage. At Calvary we seek to support and strengthen marriage so couples can experience the joy that God intended as well as be equipped to withstand the challenges that arise over the years.

Counseling, Mentoring & Classes

Premarital Counseling

Premarital counseling is available to Calvary couples approved to marry by Calvary Church and is required for couples marrying at Calvary. Couples will have the option of one of the following:

  • 6 hours/3 months of personalized counseling with a counseling facilitator
  • Preparing for Marriage class through Adult Ministries: Three sessions of 3 hours each

Remarriage Counseling

Remarriage counseling will be tailored to the needs of the couple by a Calvary Church Pastor.

Marriage Mentoring Ministry

Engaged or young couples attending Calvary are highly encouraged to experience marriage mentoring with experienced older couples who have been trained to provide marriage mentoring. Mentoring requires a one-year commitment. Mentee couples take the Prepare/Enrich Relationship Inventory (Prepare-Enrich.com) and then meet 10 times over the course of a year with their mentor couple. In these meetings couples together go through their inventory report with a focus on their relationship strengths and growth areas, strengthening relationship skills and learning new skills, and learning from the marriage experience of the mentor couple as they share about their own marriage.

Mentor couples are screened, trained, and supervised. Areas covered include communication, conflict resolution, financial management, sex and affection, relationship roles, personal stress, leisure activities, children and parenting, friend and family relationships, and personality similarities and differences. Limited availability.

For more information, contact marriagementoring@calvarygr.org 

Marriage Counseling

Meet with a Calvary pastor for biblical marital counseling. For more information, contact Calvary Care at ext. 3623.

Classes

We have a variety of Adult Sunday Classes and Calvary Equip classes.  Click here for more information or contact Karen in Adult Ministries at ext. 5173.

Family Life Conference – Weekend to Remember

Strengthen your relationship by attending a conference on marriage together.

Check for upcoming conferences in West Michigan at http://www.familylife.com/weekendtoremember.

Weddings

Couples who are members of Calvary Church are eligible to be married at Calvary, or if one set of parents are members at Calvary. If couples are not members they can begin the membership process simultaneously to their wedding process.

A Believer Joining in Marriage with Another Believer

Calvary Church supports a believer marrying another believer (2 Cor 6:141 Cor 7:39). As a result of this biblical teaching Calvary will not be able to officiate a wedding between a believer and a non-believer.

Sharing Life Start-Date

Calvary Church understands God’s Word to support living together as husband and wife only within the context of a lawful marriage relationship. Because of this understanding of God’s design for holy and healthy living, Calvary will work with a cohabiting engaged couple to explore the best ways to facilitate God’s design during the engagement process.

Previous Marriage

In situations where there has been a previous marriage for one or both parties of the engaged couple, care will be taken to understand the circumstances of the divorce with a view to ascertaining if a remarriage is biblically permissible.

Wedding Preparation Process

Applications

After we receive your application, Erika Sparks will contact you to schedule your Wedding Application Appointment. Your Wedding Application Appointment must take place at least three months to 18 months prior to your wedding date. You will both need to be present for this appointment that will take place in the Calvary Care Office.

Please click link below for electronic application. Forms will be directly submitted to Erika for processing.

If you prefer a hard copy paper application, please contact Erika Sparks at esparks@calvarygr.org or by phone at (616) 956-9377 ext. 5628.

Wedding Officiant

The application has a section for you to request a Calvary pastor for your ceremony. If that pastor is not available, we will help identify another Calvary pastor for your ceremony. You may utilize a pastor from outside of Calvary, if you prefer. Outside officiants must be pre-approved by Calvary.

Preparing for Marriage

All engaged couples are required to complete a course of pre-marital or remarriage counseling.

For pre-marital counseling, a couple will meet with a Calvary pastor for approximately six sessions. Information from your pre-marital counseling may be shared with the pastor who marries you.

Ceremony Planning Guide

You will be given a Ceremony Planning Guide at the Wedding Application Appointment. This booklet will provide important building information, ceremony information, and staff contact names and phone numbers for planning your wedding.

Ceremony Coordinator

Calvary Church will provide a Calvary Ceremony Coordinator to assist in preparing you ahead of time for your ceremony and your meeting with your Calvary Officiating Pastor. You will be contacted by your Calvary Ceremony Coordinator three to four months prior to your wedding and will attend your on-site rehearsal and ceremony.

Personal Ceremony Facilitator for Off-site Weddings

If you are having an off-site wedding but a Calvary officiant, you will need to select and prepare a Personal Ceremony Facilitator to be present at your ceremony because the Calvary Ceremony Coordinator will not be present to oversee the ceremony details.

We look forward to celebrating with you what God is doing in bringing the two of you together in marriage. We pray that your experience during this engagement process will be both an encouragement and a blessing.