Judaism is very different from other Abrahamic religions, it is the first, the oldest, and in my opinion, the most deeply and spiritually connected to Hashem. Jews are called G-ds chosen people because they were chosen to live the mitzvot, to serve Hashem, and to be a light to all nations in his infinite name. Jews are as much the people of the book (Torah) as they are the people of Hashem and they live by his commandments (Mitzvot), as servants on the earth.

Christians live for their afterlife, to go to heaven, Buddhists live for enlightenment and Nirvana, Muslims live for paradise in their afterlife, Jews live only to serve Hashem here and now, nothing more, nothing less. We don’t pray for trivial things, instead, when we pray we ask G-d, “what can we do for you,” and “How can we serve your will?” You won’t find a Jew praying that the Sixers beat the lakers, or that they win the lottery, only honoring the creator and asking what we can do for Hashem.

Personally speaking, I surrender everything to Hashem, what will be will be if it is Hashem’s will, because his will, is my will and his will be done. This is why each and every day I try to be as observant as possible of his commandments, to do good and be good, and to live a life of Kedushah… holiness. I plan on potentially becoming a Cantor in the future, long after conversion, so I plan for the future, but live for today and live to be his servant. The more I learn and grow, the more I want to learn and the more I want to grow, not just for myself and my family, but so that I can better serve the will of Hashem. 

This is one of the key differences between Judaism and the other Abrahamic religions, we are servants to Hashem, we forge a direct connection with the divine and live, nearly verbatim according to Hashem’s laws and commandments. We read and study his book, we honor the Shabbat, we celebrate the holidays, and we live a life with G-d at the center of it all.