Along came the wedding day,  a grey old cloudy morning. My friend Jim (the Best Man), called in to pick me up to take me over to his place for lunch, and help me get ready. Jim and I arrived at the church and met with Rev Feltham who would officiate, with my Mentor Pastor, Dr. Marsden. who was to do the Bible readings and Prayers for us. We would have loved him to preach, but ah well.

We had wanted the choir from a favourite church to sing for our wedding. Back in those days, I was not really certain as to why they were not available. Both the soloist and I believed they did not want to tarnish their "Independent Baptist" status by singing in an Anglican church...and this church was what is known in America as "Episcopalian" or "High Anglican"...almost Catholic! It now has come to my notice the reason (well one of, anyway)we could not get the choir. It just happened that on the very same day we were to marry, another young couple who were graduating from our bible college were also to be married at Rev Marsden's church. This was the reason I could not get the choir for our wedding. There could have been some other reasons as well but we got the best in Mrs. Brady as our soloist.

Nancy Brady's beautiful rendition of Psalm 27 "The Lord is My Light and My Salvation", was lovely. Here is the text of Psalms 27:
Psalms 27:1 The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?
Psalms 27:2 When the wicked, even mine enemies and my foes, came upon me to eat up my flesh, they stumbled and fell.
Psalms 27:3 Though an host should encamp against me, my heart shall not fear: though war should rise against me, in this will I be confident.
Psalms 27:4 One thing have I desired of the Lord, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in his temple.
Psalms 27:5 For in the time of trouble he shall hide me in his pavilion: in the secret of his tabernacle shall he hide me; he shall set me up upon a rock.
Psalms 27:6 And now shall mine head be lifted up above mine enemies round about me: therefore will I offer in his tabernacle sacrifices of joy; I will sing, yea, I will sing praises unto the LORD.
Psalms 27:7 Hear, O Lord, when I cry with my voice: have mercy also upon me, and answer me.
Psalms 27:8 When thou saidst, Seek ye my face; my heart said unto thee, Thy face, Lord, will I seek.
Psalms 27:9 Hide not thy face far from me; put not thy servant away in anger: thou hast been my help; leave me not, neither forsake me, O God of my salvation.
Psalms 27:10 When my father and my mother forsake me, then the LORD will take me up.
Psalms 27:11 Teach me thy way, O Lord, and lead me in a plain path, because of mine enemies.
Psalms 27:12 Deliver me not over unto the will of mine enemies: for false witnesses are risen up against me, and such as breathe out cruelty.
Psalms 27:13 I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.
Psalms 27:14 Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the Lord.

This song is a great melody and great words and  I am sure the actual text of the song differed slightly to the Scripture, as printed here.
(See Author Notes for a Male Choir singing the Psalm.)
I only just learned the following additional 'behind the scenes' information, very recently, about the soloist and the organist discussion etc., on the wedding day, as at December 2014.

Nancy (soloist) speaking: 
"I only practiced with the organist the morning of the wedding.  He asked me if I had the song approved by the church and I said I supposed you had taken care of that."  "Why?" I said. He said:
"it wasn't the kind of music they usually sang there,"  and I giggled and said:
"it isn't the kind of music I sing either."

"We were poles apart of course." she continues, "I think he was trying to say that their music was much more 'high church'.  We decided it would be better at that stage to 'ask forgiveness than permission'   so we just went on with it," she said.  
"When I started to sing, the pastor" (Rev Feltham) "was walking off the platform and he whirled around and looked up at me and stared for a few seconds.  I don't know what he was thinking - Either 'Wow what a voice,' or 'how in the world did they get by with that song.' " she said.  

Nancy continues filling me in about this previously unknown, to us anyway, aspect to our wedding ceremony...
"Either way it was fun, and I would like to have given him a little wave but I was way too nervous.  See, you just never know what is going on behind the scenes of the best-laid plans.  Thanks for the memory," she concluded.

 Mum-in-law did not like the selection of the song - mainly because she did not know it. She wanted some well-known identity to come and sing some romantic, non-emotional - (contradiction here, I know) - "top - of - the - charts" hit, or something. For us, it was the story of our courtship and all the dramas we had with Louise's family. A bonus for me was, mainly - being married, and (secondly) a Pipe Organ officiating - a life-long wish of mine. And... firstly...MOST IMPORTANT; marrying lovely Louise, who while handicapped and so on - is a bright, smart, and clever girl whom God gave me the privilege of leading to Himself a couple of years, almost, before we married.

St Alban's Epping had a big step or two up to the dais at the front of the Sanctuary, where the newly-weds normally signed the register in the presence of the congregation. Due to our unique situation, it was arranged that on exiting the aisle after we were "hitched" we moved into the vestry of the church to sign the register, hence doing away with the need to get up on the dais, which would be impossible even in those days when Louise was a lot more "nifty" on her feet. While we signed, the congregation moved out to the front of the church to greet us as we re-appeared.

A fulfillment of a "prophecy," ho-hum; of later "Dr" H.G.'s from back in the early 80's, when I asked him back in those days
"when will the Lord send the right one along for me?"He replied:
"Maybe the Lord will have you lead the right one to Him, yourself!!" 
:
How prophetic was that, huh! And how absolutely precious those wonderful words...only about 5 or 6 years before she actually walked the aisle to me. Probably the only good thing Bro H. G. ever said, in all the time I worked with him...but that's another story for someplace else as well.

I guess you could say his blue and white "Style-Rite" type shoes, and his "neatly-sprayed-in-place" hair and lovely blue suit, got me in for a while. ( I wonder if he bought the shoes from "Radar" O' Reilly..on the M*A*S*H set. Hehe!)

I was pleased that my Dad was over his initial stroke, enough to attend our Wedding and that Mum, somehow - managed to get my entire family, to attend, as well! ( I was not sure right up to the big day my whole family would be there!) Our wedding day was a joyous occasion, 180 people turned up to see us married, and we had a reception of 112 guests.

Following the reception we drove over to Louise's folks' house, to drop off her Mum's car and pick up Louise's own car. We remember the sense of real freedom we both felt, as we drove away from her parents', and her most recent home of 13 years, for the last time.

We then drove to the Airport Hilton Hotel for our wedding night. Next morning we transferred to the Airport in a Microbus and left Louise's car at the Hotel, to be later picked up by her Dad.

We enjoyed a wonderful Honeymoon in Coolangatta in Queensland, after which we were picked up by Louise's Mum, at the Airport on return. We went back to her parents' home for tea, after which we drove over to our flat.

We were blessed, not all that long after getting settled in the flat together, to get some nice neighbours in the back flat, behind us, after the drama I had before our wedding day, there. Fred and Jane became friends, and we kept in touch for a long time afterwards.

One little story I would like to share, of our early "homemaking" days, I still remember the time I did overtime at work and my dear Louise put the plate of food over a saucepan of boiling water to keep it warm for me, till I got home. Trouble is by the time I got home, I had to send a search party out to find all the shrivelled up veggies etc on the plate!

Those were the days. Hehe! Fortunately, when we moved into our house, we had more room, so we were able to finally get the rest of our wedding gifts organized; including a lovely Convection Microwave oven! How nice to still be getting wedding pressies, 6 months after the event - AND No more plates of food shrivelling up over boiling water!

The following is a story I feel is good to share regarding our courtship days during which I never knew all the trials Louise went through, at home, in our times of getting to know each other. I think what I will say below explains that some more...

In the earlier days of our marriage, one day, I was working on the 'beast', the computer. During my typing, I'd become aware of a CD playing where Louise was sitting, knitting. It leads back to a time long before she met me when she used to sit alone for hours listening to pop music.

The reason I mention this, is, that after I had been listening for a while, it came to my mind that she may have been upset by the CD's tunes. The reason for her upset was the reminder of lonely times she had had, back then, at the times of originally listening to these CDs.

Even though I couldn't see her (she was in the lounge room and I was in the study) it turned out, talking to her a little time later, I was right.

 

As a long time down the road new edit, after 37 years, I now know how to add a Youtube Link of just 10 minutes of that wonderful wedding Day.  Click on the link above and the video will come up. To open in full click on he box in the bottom right corner of the Youtube file.