They looked blissfully happy and radiant, and they had an added gift to give each other that day: no regrets. She and Gregg exchanged vows, the pastor blessed the union, and then stood our daughter and her new husband before our tear-filled eyes. There it remained until her wedding day: April 10,1999.Īnnabelle stood before us and 200 guests, looking like an angel in her pure white wedding gown. She quickly placed that ring on her wedding finger and, without hesitation, moved her purity ring to her right hand. Then in 1998 Annabelle became engaged to her second Prince Charming, Gregg, who presented her with a beautiful betrothal ring of diamonds and gold. Thankfully, most things worked out in the end with lots of talking, crying, laughing and prayer. We had conflicts, curfew wars and arguments about her responsibilities at home. I’m not going to tell you that those years were all fun and games. The ring remained on her hand throughout her teen and early adult years, a symbol of her modesty and virtue. Annabelle accepted her father’s gift happily and immediately placed it on her wedding finger. For this reason there was no lecture when, as part of a birthday celebration, Michael gave the ring to both Annabelle and her husband yet unknown, with words of encouragement and trust. Annabelle would never have committed her chastity to a legalistic doctrine, but to a man she knew God would provide. The purity ring Michael bought was gold, engraved with tiny doves and hearts. For that reason, the ring would need to be made of gold. In fact, Annabelle and her friend each planned, upon getting married, to melt her ring to become part of her husband’s wedding band. It is an enduring reminder that Jesus is always present, and hopefully it prompts a young girl to ask what He would do in a given situation.īut to a 13-year-old, there is also an element of romance in getting such a ring. Buy the ring!”Ī purity ring is a symbol of chastity and faithfulness, not just to a future husband but to the Lord. “No, we cant afford it, and yes, there may be hurt feelings,” she said. I had a lot of questions: Could we afford to give a junior high student such an expensive piece of jewelry? Would her older sister, who received no such ring, have hurt feelings? Most of my doubts were dispelled by a simple phone call to my wife. The following week I went to our local Bible bookstore to look at such a ring. To this day, Annabelle says she was surprised by what came next. So when Annabelle mentioned in the course of a conversation that her friend Shawna had received a purity ring from her dad, I knew I had the perfect idea for a gift. I knew that a desire fulfilled unexpectedly was valued and recalled long after a desire that was gratified immediately. They would often say that the birthday presents or Christmas gifts I gave them were the best, not remembering that they had mentioned them in a conversation months earlier. Over the years I had developed the habit of listening to my children’s wishes, even if they didn’t realize at the time that they were telling them. For him disciplining and guiding our daughter was handled quietly and with prayer - and a small gold ring. Fortunately, Michael was born with a calm, peacemaking personality. I’m passionate, opinionated, and when pushed can display a rather fiery temper. But Michael approaches life much differently. We had discovered that mothers and daughters can get into some very nasty power struggles, even though they both profess to be Christians and love the Lord.Īs a mother I had prayed, cried, confided in friends, asked for advice, and finally I just gave up. We had somewhat successfully sent one daughter out into the world, and now Michael and I were faced with a new challenge. Such was the story with our youngest daughter, Annabelle. Sometimes her first Prince Charming can be her dad. It is a deep-rooted hope that someday she will find love, romance and happiness - a sense of belonging. It begins with a fantasy, but it is much more than a flight of imagination. A young woman begins preparing to meet the real love of her life when she is still harboring her Barbie dolls, dress-up clothes and pop beads in her closet or old toy chest. Most little girls dream of the day they will meet their Prince Charming.
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