Yeah, it's pretty surprising, isn't it?

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It's hard to believe that it has been that long. I asked @mama-pepper to go out with me twelve years ago today, and one year later, we got married. When we first me and began dating, she loved me more than anyone, but now things have changed. You see, she loves Someone Else more than she loves me but don't worry, I live Him more than I love her too, which is why we are still married.

WHAT IN THE WORLD IS THIS GUY TALKING ABOUT

Well, when we first met, we were just a couple clueless people out there in the world, trying to figure it all out. Once we decided to get married, we walked into a church to set things up, because that is commonly what people do. Little did we know that our lives would be forever changed.

You see, we were learning to love one another at that point, but in the process, we found Someone to love even more than each other! We met out Creator and Redeemer on our journey together, and were able to build our relationship on a firm foundation. Before, I was a lot to deal with, and although I've still got some rough edges, I am way more refined that I used to be.

These days, we have chosen to follow the ways of YHWH, our Creator and have received his Son as our messiah and redeemer. We now serve a God of love, reconciliation, and forgiveness. Without Him loving us and providing the way for us to be forgiven and reconciled to Him, we wouldn't understand much about the truth of those matters at all. We will both testify honestly that without Him in our life and marriage, we would have given up on one another a long time ago. It's sad but true.

Guest appearance by @grandpa-pepper in this photo

Life is hard enough, but when you choose to be committed to another human being for the rest of your life, things get even harder. For us, we wouldn't have made it without the guidance and help that He has provided us. Our very lives, my sobriety, our children, and our marriage are all a testimony to His power and what He can do if we choose to let Him.

Back when @mama-pepper met me, all day every day I lived to get drunk, high, and whatever else came my way. I hoped to die in the near future so I wouldn't have to deal with life for much longer and wasted my time away chasing temporary distractions like inebriation and physical pleasure. Each day I would wake up sober, and more often than not, run right back to the bottle, the weed, the cocaine, or whatever else I could get my hands on.

That man would have been a terrible husband and father, which is why I am glad that he is gone now. It's interesting that with His help and encouragement, I chose to give up on who I had made myself in order to give Him the chance to recreate me as he saw fit. I am so blessed with the life that I now have, and I owe it all to Father God and His Son Jesus. A Happy 11th Anniversary indeed! Praise God!

As i shared two years ago in a post on steemit:

Personally, I do not believe that I can take the credit for any of this. Sure, I had a role to play in the situation, but it is Jesus Christ who made the real difference. Without Him, my marriage would already be over and without Him, I would be a terrible papa.

As always, I'm @papa-pepper and here's the proof:

proof-of-getting-married-a-long-time-ago-in-a-land-far-away

Until next time…

GIF provided by @anzirpasai

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