My life has transformed substantially since I said 'I do' on June 14th, 2019, just a month ago.

I have gone from being an independent male who can do things to suit his own pleasure when he wants, to being on a team - in addition to receiving Isela as my wife, I also inherited the cutest 5-year old step-daughter, Brenda Tahily.

Not that I can't enjoy life anymore, it's just we now plan fun things as a team, and there is more giving and taking - pleasing my wife, caring for my daughter.

We are journeying on this journey of Life together, seeking to please Yahweh God, creator of heavens and earth. We always pray before meals asking Him to guide us and we give thanks for all the blessings he has bestowed on us.

Life is truly pleasant on this new walk, though of course we have responsibilities... Both me and Isela work full-time, and thanks to God, my Mom is able to watch our daughter Tahily. Work was never a curse before the first sin in the garden of Eden. But it did become more difficult as part of Adam's judgment. So, there is character-building value in working - and it feels good and rewarding to put in a good day of work and then be able to come home and relax and enjoy family, food, life, etc... Indeed, one who doesn't work should not eat (a grown person, probably male) and one who doesn't provide for his family is worse than an unbeliever, the scripture says.

So we have these rhythms of life - work and rest, toil and play. Through it all I seek to speak of the ways of Yahweh to my inherited daughter and instruct her in them, as it says - when you arise, when you sit, when you walk in the way! And as well I seek to study scripture with my wife and grow in our obedience and love for the Most High, sharing the scriptures and concepts I know with her.

Shabbat (sabbath), historically known as being on saturday, is that key time of the week when we can all CEASE from everything, be still and rest, and turn our eyes to Yah - God's short personal name, as in Hallelu-YAH. Well, ideally this would be the case. Unfortunately, my wife is a servant of her boss at work, and working saturdays is required right now. I know it's not ideal, but it is just kind of necessary for our finances, and perhaps in Diaspora not under a kingdom that observes shabbat, things are different. Thankfully I have weekends off.

Friday night sunset (days start at night in bible) we still set aside as a special time - it is our date night, and at home we light our shabbat candle - we just have 1 right now - 😄😄 and read Genesis 2:1-3 in memory of God's creation of the world and his ceasing from work on the seventh day.

So as I continue this new life, I know my primary responsibility is to my wife and daughter, yet I still seek to love my neighbor as myself, and part of that is sharing at the right time the message of Yeshua (Jesus), the ultimate sacrifice for sin, the bringer of eternal life, as testified in thousands of copies of greek and other language manuscripts of the new testament, not to mention all the testimonies of Yeshua's work in the lives of believers today. He fulfilled the prophecies, most notably Isaiah 53, and He said keeping the commandments of the Torah (Law of Moses) was the way to eternal life - to the man who asked him what to do for eternal life. Of course we fail to keep them, and that's why we have Yeshua's atonement which allows for the forgiveness of our sins and which secures our eternal life. But He taught that til heavens and earth pass away, the Law is still valid.

Though of course, the Law is written from the perspective of being geocentric to the land of Israel, and temple-centric, revolving around priestly service at a temple. Things we don't have today, especially scattered among the nations. Yet perhaps there will be a restoration of these things, and we can still apply more generic commands and principles from the Law to our lives. The whole law hangs on loving God with everything and loving our neighbor as ourself, but that doesn't mean the smaller commands of Torah are nullified. For example, we try to not wear mixed fabric, as the commandment says - something people might say doesn't matter.. But yes, Yeshua said the weightier things of the law, justice, mercy, and the love of God, deserve more attention. Of course.

Well, I give thanks to Yah for this new life, with it's challenges and joys, and I seek to follow Him faithfully and lead my family in doing so as well and never stop thanking Him for His care and mercy for us.

Shalom,

-Greg Wilson