Begin Again
Entering the room she heard the familiar words:
There once was a man named Michael Finnegan,
He had whiskers on his chinnegan,
The wind came up and blew them in ag'in,
Poor old Michael Finnegan (begin ag'in)
Watching the joy and delight of her son as he watched the characters sing, act, and dance to the tune, she was drawn to her son and joined him clapping and singing along with the silly words.
The tune finally came to an end as all the characters of "sillyville" collapsed in laughter--and exhaustion. Her toddler deftly pushed a few buttons and the entire sequence began . . . again. He must have listened to the silly song a half dozen or more times before she stole the remote and pushed STOP and collapsed on the floor like the characters of the video did. His laughter filled the room as his "silly mommy" hid the remote, distracted him, and sighed at the peace and quiet of the room while the dogs entertained him.
He loved the silly song. He loved the video. He could watch it again and again without tiring of it. She didn't have that much patience. After a few times, the novelty wore off and she was ready to move on to something else. However, she never tired watching his delight in the simple, silly song. For him, it was always fresh and new.
That sense of awe, delight, freshness is not always easy to find in our day to day life. Perhaps that is why so many parties and celebrations take place around New Year's. The old year winds down. Life continues, but there is a sense of closure to the old. A new year . . . new opportunities await that have not yet been determined. Fresh possibilities lie ahead. It is the opportunity to begin again.
That simple opportunity is enough to bring hope into lives that may not be going as we wished and longed for in the old year. Expectations, dreams, plans and opportunities lie ahead that are unknown; yet to be determined; open to possibility. Life has not yet made an imprint upon this time. The circumstances of life may weigh heavily upon us, but at New Year's we have the chance to begin again.
That is how it is with God. Through prayer, meditation, reflection--time spent with God, we have the opportunity to begin again. A new way of thinking . . . different perceptions . . . and change is possible with God. The old passes and new possibilities are waiting to be embraced. It is our chance to leave behind the sadness, failures, disappointments, and distractions of the old to begin anew. It is our chance to discover the simple, childlike faith and hope of our creator, redeemer, and sustainer.
When we become jaded and weighed down by life as we have chosen to live, help us to turn to you, our loving God. In you all things can become new and we can begin again. So be it. Amen.
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