From Zero to Hero
With all honesty, our wedding preparations were not as smooth as everyone expected. As one of the wedding vendors in our country, I know a lot of suppliers and I immediately hired them to help us on our wedding day after my husband popped the question. Although, at the back of my mind, "I'm a freelance (wedding) musician. I can't raise money that can cover all of our expenses." but I kept my faith that God will indeed provide on that day.
I went to Doha, Qatar to venture for work. I thought I could save up more for our wedding day but it turned out really bad. I resigned, paid my dues to my employer and got back in Manila around January 2015. Mind you, our wedding is set on August 26, 2015 and we don't have any funds yet. I have finalized our wedding budget and it cost us almost 250,000PHP (roughly 5000USD). We kept on praying and working hard as well just to make our ends meet and eventually save up for our wedding fund.
One of our first hero is my husband's uncle from USA. He sent us money to start our wedding planning. He gave us around 300USD. Not quite big, but for us, it was a HUGE help. A good start. We kept on doing our regular work and eventually got a good number of wedding clients for our October to December 2015 events. Although, we can't use all the money we got from there, we saved some for other needs we need to fulfill. Because of this, from June to July, heroes came one by one. Some gave us 1000USD and others were generous enough to send material gifts and monetary gifts.
However, it didn't stop there. Two weeks before the wedding, we still lack 170000PHP (2500USD). I was personally shaken but God kept on reminding me that He will provide. I went to a vacation with my sister and her kids who came all the way from the UK just to attend our wedding day. I needed that relaxation. I was worrying all the time regarding the money we need to raise to complete our wedding budget. But I was reassured that God will be there on our wedding day.
Our wedding day came with beautiful weather. No rains, not too hot for a morning wedding. Regarding the wedding budget? We still have zero. It was indeed a test of faith not to worry while walking down the aisle. Just to let you know, I prepared a surprise for my groom. I sang during my bridal walk just to see him cry while I walk down the aisle. :) I was successful. While walking and singing, I didn't mind the expenses, the friends, family and relatives on how would they think about our wedding. I just want to make it as wonderful as possible. Nothing bizarre happened. All went according to plan. We had a blast. Some of our principal sponsors gave us envelopes and my husband and I started to count if it will fit our lack.
The end of our wedding program has reached and we still need 62000PHP (1500USD) more. I asked my suppliers, who happened to be my friends if I can send the money a month after or up until we can cover the entire debt. My heart sank. I don't want my suppliers to be left like that. I almost cried in front of them but I need to stay strong. My husband was so supportive during that time. I know how hard it is to raise that money in a short span of time. More than that, the trust that my friends have for me will be diminished because of this unfortunate event. From that point on, we planned our gigs and every work we can get. We were able to raise up 40000PHP within a month and we were able to pay some of the suppliers in full. We got some monetary gifts and we were able to pay some bills we need to pay.
Overall, by November 2015, we have fully paid every debt we had from our wedding day. Whew! Indeed it was a faith building and nerve-wrecking experience. It was hard. I don't want to do that again in case we'll be having our next wedding celebration.
Because of our wedding day, we were able to learn a lot of things. Even if you have planned everything, it's really hard to cope up with your finances if you're a freelancer like us. It takes guts to plan your wedding when you are budget constraint. Never hesitate to ask friends for help, prayers are a good help too! We have earnestly prayed for our wedding day to be as glorious as it was. Lastly, your wedding day is your day. Just smile and do not let your worries be seen as you walk down the aisle.
I just want to share that the hero in our wedding, is God. He alone gave us the strength, courage, grace and patience to wait on His promises, especially for His glory to be known in our wedding. We just had a simple wedding but my friends and family told me that it was indeed beautiful. The music is great, food is superb and everything else is lovely.