We give God thanks today for another New Year. We are eternal optimists, are we not? We somehow expect that this year will be better than last year. Deep in our hearts we agree with Lucy in the PEANUTS cartoons when she says, "I don't want ups and downs. I want ups and ups and ups!"

We are more realistic than that. Still, we hope for more ups than downs.

There is an old Eskimo blessing that goes like this: May you have warmth in your igloo, oil in your lamp, and peace in your heart. That is my New Year's wish for each of you.

Our lesson for the day from Luke's Gospel has to do with family life. The most important thing that could happen to many of us in 1989 would be that we might renew and strenghthen our ties as families. Thus it is entirely appropriate on this New Year's Day that we…