My youngest son took sweet Hanah to be his wife! Our son found the one his heart loves, and Mark and I watched them vow to love one another forever under the wedding canopy.
Weddings are such a sacred time, and rejoicing is mandatory! Why? Because marriage under the covering and protection of God opens the womb and welcomes another generation to be His own special treasure. God likens His Kingdom arriving on earth to a wedding between His Only Son and us, His bride, his holy people bound to Him through faith in His enduring love. Faithfulness is the fruit of a life spent with God and, like marriage, the vow we make with the utterance of our lips is a covenant we agreed to. When God promised to redeem mankind after the fall, His covenant love for Adam and Eve gave them an appointed seed – Seth.
Today, having suffered many falls along the way, I stand in awe at the sheer unbridled love God has for His Creation. How can he just keep loving us all when humanity seems so frail and bent on arguing over such small and temporal things? The God of the Universe saw me when I was humiliated in the filth of my bad decisions, and He introduced me to His Son, Yeshua. When I married Mark I had NO IDEA what marriage or any lifetime commitment was like. Seeing now the fullness of God’s appointed seed, our Simeon, for His anointed love between this joyous couple is the stuff dreams are made of! When I vowed to love Mark forever, Mandie was already inside my womb. God was changing me already, giving me what I never even knew I wanted. How did He know me better than I did? He knew.
To see a lifetime of possibilities for Simeon and Hanah is so wondrous to me! God has already planted love deep inside their hearts for each other. They know God has their future firmly in His grasp because they recognize His Spirit – His holy light shining upon them. We have watched them honor Him with their passion for Him – and united in faith, hope and love – they have a secret place in His loving kindness that the world can’t recognize! The shields of earth belong to God! I am so excited about the love they share. I thank God for having the kind of marriage that set me free, not caged me in. Mark is always my best cheerleader and I am his. What a privilege to see all three of our children married and happy.
This is my prayer for my beloved new daughter:
“Father, God Most High, Maker of Heaven and Earth, oh how we love you. Thank you for keeping our loved ones safe and happy. Thank you for opening up new life and hope for every generation. Thank you for saving Mark and I, and joining our hearts together as one. Thank you for not abandoning us ever, nor our children. Thank you for keeping Israel under your watch care and sending the Torah forth from Zion, the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. We are so grateful for the joy of serving you. Thank you for opening hearts everywhere through Hanah’s beautiful artwork. Thank you for the love Simeon has for her that is manifest in her inner beauty. Thank you that her voice is like wind chimes that my heart hears whenever I am around them together. Thank you for letting me experience what ‘fullness of joy’ means alongside my beloved husband after 32 precious and blessed years together. Every day is a gift, God. Every moment an opportunity to see you more clearly and love you more dearly. Hold us close to you, Father! Show my children the joy that comes with a life filled with the love of a Godly choice to follow you whole-heartedly. I honor you today God. You are my highest joy! Amen and amen.”
From Rabbi Mark Greenberg:
“It has been said that the Lord moves in mysterious ways. My viewpoint is that it is only mysterious to us His children. Not to God. So when Hanah entered into the life of our family, and we all realized that they were going to enter into the covenant of marriage, I was shocked at how perfect she was for our son. Somehow, here was a God-loving, brilliant, beautiful women who knows Simeon on the inside and out – both his gifts and shortcomings. But most of all I am delighted at the commitment to journey through this life for the rest of their days on the earth to serve the kingdom of God together. My heart is so full.”
From Mandie and Alex :
“To see Simeon find the one his heart loves is a bright, shining moment amidst the darkness of 2020. Hanah entered our family at the exact right time and has filled our days will unexpected joy. Her heart for God’s word, for the developing faith of the next generation and for our family has been a surprise and delight. We love her spirit and are exceedingly blessed to call her sister!”
From Joseph and Brittni Greenberg:
“From the moment we met Hanah we absolutely adored her. Even our one-year-old daughter immediately fell in love with her! She’s been such a blessing to our lives already and seeing Simeon so happy is truly a gift! We are looking forward to sharing a very fruitful life together as family.”
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