Dusty hit a home run

We were talking to the youth about marriage because that’s what our church service was about and we always tie into that. I asked Dusty Martin to do the lesson/discussion and he agreed. He brought a unique challenge to them by bringing a bunch of temporary tattoos. He challenged them to wear them for one week and to protect them. The tattoo was to represent their spouse. Some of the teens were up to the challenge, some were afraid a tattoo (even a temporary one) would disappoint their parents.
I loved this analogy and my words here probably will not do it justice.

Temporary Tattoos can come off easy if not cared for/ spouse can leave you
Temporary Tattoos can be hidden/ spouse can be neglected or ignored
Temporary Tattoos can be scratched or damaged / spouse can be insulted or trampled
Marriage was never intended to be temporary!

How about a permanent tattoo?
Permanent Tattoos are a life long commitment/ marriage is for life
Permanent Tattoos need care and protection/ spouses need to be cared for and protected
Permanent Tattoos done right are shown with pride/ a spouse should be like an ornament that enhances you
On a side note: I have seen some poorly planned and downright awful tattoos. Some were just poorly chosen, some were poorly placed and others were poorly designed. But fret not, the base tattoo (marriage) is permanent but it can be enhanced and filled in to become something beautiful. It WILL take professional help and it will hurt a little but the results are worth are something you can be proud of.
Look at this restoration job:


You see the original is all wrong, distorted and, well, kind of ugly. But with professional help a better one can be had, a beautiful one. The original one has not been removed! Its just been enhanced into something better, something pleasing and desirable. It may not (and probably should not) even look like the original
The only way to remove a tattoo (marriage) WILL be more painful than fixing it and it will leave scaring. This is a fact.

BTW, while I do not have a problem with tattoos, I am not indorsing them. I am endorsing a life long, beautiful marriage that you will be proud to show off to the whole world.

I love this message, thanks Dusty!