It is the first week of another

new year.

It is the first week of the

rest of my life. Similar to the Psalmist of centuries past, I want to

acknowledge also that it is the week which the Lord hath made; I will

rejoice and be glad in it.

I don't recall feeling quite

so sure in years past of the "I will rejoice and be glad in it"

part of that last sentence.

Think with me say it aloud

for yourself "This is the first week of the rest of my life..."

We must acknowledge the seriousness

of planning for, making the most of, and living this new year that is

upon us.

Life, at its best and longest,

is short. There is seldom enough time in a single life's span to bring

to fruition all we might want to accomplish, to build all we might want

to build, to do all we would like to do. Nor should there be.

It is okay for unfinished projects

to fall into the hands of our children and their children. Dreams should

be shared. It is good that future generations can build on foundations

that we, and our fathers and mothers before us, have laid.

There is, however, no excuse

for not living our lives, living them fully and completely every single

day that the sun rises and gives us a chance to try again.

That's right. Try again. You

think we live every day? No way.

We breathe. We move. We talk.

We function. We work. We listen (or do we?). We feel (or do we?). We love

and care and share (or do we?).

What is living? Actually, the

exact words of the Psalmist were: "This is the day which the Lord

hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it."

Living? Rejoicing? How closely

related are the two? Among the numerous definitions Webster gives for

live is this one: "to exhibit vigor, gusto and enthusiasm in life."

And for rejoice, he gives this definition: "to feel joy or great

delight."

So, are we to welcome this

new year with laughter and gaiety? Perhaps. But, what if we are grieving

for some loss and only feel like weeping? That's okay, too. Even in grief,

amidst great sadness, one can feel a tremendous enthusiasm for life.

If life is not precious to

us, and if it should not be appreciated and celebrated every day that

we are blessed to live it, then why do we grieve when another loses his/her

life?

What a great injustice it is,

to ourselves and to all whom we profess to love, not to live our lives

fully, completely with vigor and gusto and enthusiasm!

Perhaps this day, this first

week of the new year, this first day of the rest of our lives, is a good

time to remember the words of the preacher in Ecclesiastes 3:1-13:

"There is a time for everything,

and a season for every activity under heaven: a time to be born and a

time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, a time to kill and

a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build, a time to weep

and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance, a time to scatter

stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain,

a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw

away, a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time

to speak, a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time

for peace.

"What does the worker

gain from his toil? I have seen the burden God has laid on men. He has

made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the

hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning

to end. I know that there is nothing better than for men to be happy and

to do good while they live. That every man may eat and drink, and find

satisfaction in all his toil this is the gift of God."

So, too, is the chance to live

every day of our lives. Such an opportunity is truly a gift from God,

a gift we are allowed to accept or refuse. Another new year is upon us.

Shall we live it?