The senior pastor of Family Worship Centre (FWC) in Abuja, Sarah Omakwu has narrated how she borrowed a wedding dress for her own wedding because she and her husband could not afford to buy one.
The clergywoman, widely known for her teachings on faith, marriage, family life and women, spoke about her wedding to Ifeanyi Omakwu, which took place in the United States.
According to her, they had very little money at the time, so her husband could not buy her a wedding dress.
She said that a woman who had been married before lent her a wedding dress for the occasion, and it fit her perfectly.
“Let me tell you how Pastor Ifeanyi and I got married. We got married in America. I went there, he didn’t have money for my wedding dress,” she said.
“A lady who had married before loaned her wedding dresss to me and somehow it fitted. We married in the church. It was a nice wedding done by Dr Gizzle then.”
Omakwu said the wedding was simple and held in a church. She recalled that guests were served a basic drink after the ceremony.
“After the wedding, they served Kool-Aid outside in a foyer. It is just sugar and colour and water. They sprinkled oranges on it and people drank it and went home,” she said.
The cleric criticised the growing trend of extravagant weddings, arguing that spending millions on a ceremony does not guarantee a successful marriage.
She also expressed concern about couples spending huge amounts on weddings only for the marriage to break down shortly after.
“You don’t have to do an expensive marriage. You don’t have to do reception. You don’t have to do Aso-Ebi,” she added.
“Spending N40, N50, N60 million on weddings then after six months they are divorced.”
Omakwu urged women not to put their partners under financial pressure because of wedding plans. She said the focus should be on choosing the right partner and building a lasting marriage rather than organising a lavish ceremony.
“I want to encourage the ladies; please don’t put anybody under stress or under pressure. Please you can take pictures, you can wear your wedding gown and take pictures,” she said.