At the beginning of another year you may be asking, as I am,“What can I do to make this the best year of my life?”

While 54% of all serious New Year's resolutions are broken within six months, that same research shows that people who do make explicit resolutions are 10 times more likely to attain their goals than people who do not. So I join with other writers and speakers to offer you five simple rules, none of which are unique to me or to MOM. By applying these universal ideas to my life situation, I hope to spark in you some serious reflection on your lifetime goals and help identify areas that need work.

Laugh a lot

We face mounting negativity each day—the merciless fighting in Iraq, the “blue vs. red” infighting in America, the earthquake and flood victims fighting for survival in South Asia. Each day the lost, last, and the least among us share their tales of woe at Middleton Outreach Ministry. Some days it’s not easy to laugh.

According to an ancient proverb, “A cheerful heart is good medicine.” And according to modern science, hearty laughter encourages the brain to discharge endorphins that serve as a natural painkiller.

You may recall a time when you were aching with pain, or at least complaining, then something happened to get you laughing, and the more you laughed the better you felt.

When we laugh aloud, it’s infectious and things go better at home or work. I married a woman, Sue, whose ready laughter diffuses many an argument and warms my heart. Craig and Claudia, with their jokes, help keep office humor ongoing here at MOM. Ellen and Sarah make staff parties a delight and keep their smiles ready to encourage us each day.

Learn a lot

There is little outside the grasp of one who will apply herself to the task of learning. Most sought-after jobs demand a degree of education. I took this job as director of MOM with little or no knowledge of housing or poverty issues. A willingness to learn from my clients and colleagues has keyed my success here at MOM. The person who can read and ask questions can learn most anything he needs to know. Books are some of my best friends. The ability to crawl in another’s skin, or walk a mile in their moccasins, is something I learned on the job. If I must teach something—such as parenting teens, budget counseling, or Stephen Ministry—that focuses my attention on learning and retaining that for myself.

Live a lot

Put your heart and creative energy into living. I’ve had to counsel a few suicidal depressed people that life IS worth living. Yet I know others who live a lie, and still others who make a living, but are not really making a life. Some living beings are not truly alive in their spirit or soul.

I remind all of you: There is a life worth living, a “purpose-driven life.” And it’s not about you; it’s about God. To discover what you are here on earth for, consider the next two universal truths.

Love a lot

The two great commandments given by Jesus in this regard cannot be improved upon: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength,” and “Love your neighbor as yourself” (Mark 12:30 -31). Everyone, regardless of their faith, thirsts in their heart of hearts to be fully known and forgiven. That is the essence of love: to be known and accepted for who we are. I want that for all those who come to MOM, whether to receive or to give help.

Leave a legacy

The legacy we receive from our parents and others we follow can take many forms—a certain faith, cultural ways, or planned gifts. The legacy we pass along is what we do with what we’ve been given. The recent passing of Packer legend Reggie White calls attention to the legacy of inspired play and passion for the urban poor. May there be something on our tombstone more than the dash between the date of birth and the date of death. What we put in that space will be the legacy we leave for others.

MOM’s legacy of caring was laid by St. Luke’s Church and the first MOM director, Gary Simpson, who gave birth to “Middleton Outreach Mission” on June 6, 1980. Eleven other churches, a second director, many more staff, hundreds of volunteers and donors have since built upon that legacy. As we approach our 25 th anniversary this June, we celebrate that legacy and ask questions about our future legacy.

Will you join us in that endeavor? One way you can do that is by identifying yourself if you were helped in the early years of MOM. We have a better idea of who are the “25 who made a difference”—and those folks will be featured in future issues of the MTT—but we are putting out an APB for 25 representative ones that we helped along the way. If you are one with a story to tell, please contact me at MOM, at 826-3408 or dietrich@mompop.org.

Now is a great time to stop, look and listen—to take a year-end inventory, and to gear up for lots of laughter, learning, living, and loving. If you laugh a lot, learn a lot, live a lot, and love a lot, you will leave a legacy for which those who follow will be eternally thankful. These five simple rules for life I hope will be my legacy as a happy and successful person.

Try them for 2005 and let me know how they work for you. If you need some help along the way achieving your goals, give us a call at MOM. We’re here for you—in 2005, and for another 25 years, Lord willing.

© 2005 Middleton Outreach Ministry

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