Commitment ceremony

Has anyone had a commitment ceremony instead of a wedding? Basically the same thing just commitment ceremony doesn't have the marriage license. So my question is, is it basically the same thing? Did you tell your guest? Did you still have the ceremony and reception to follow? So many questions. Did you get married at a church? Did the pastor have any concerns about it?

We are planning our"wedding" for this coming September but for financial reasons it's better for us to not be "legally married".