Sometimes I wonder if I am living in a time that requires me to do something greater. I think of Martin Luther, Gandhi, Mother Teresa, Vartan Mamigonian, and even those who have not reached worldwide renown. I think of them, and I wonder what it was about them that drove them to such a state of personal challenge against the wrongdoings of their times. I doubt that I could ever even venture there. It is a sobering thought; indeed, to compare oneself to such giants of character.

We each have but one life to live. We each have the freedom to do as we wish with that life. And yet, if we for but one second, allow ourselves to believe in a Supernatural power, a vast responsibility falls on us almost immediately. Believe - I mean, really believe - and you must do something about it. I think that's one reason why so many prefer to choose a path of atheism and unbelief, even in the face of God Himself, like a certain physics professor I know. The man is an utter genius, with the ability to grasp concepts that no one dares walk past. Yet, when it comes to the 'God-stuff' of our age, he refuses to face it. How could anyone so smart be so ignorant? It is an oxymoron in its existence. I believe that it is because of the very reason I have mentioned above - a reluctance to accept the responsibility that comes with belief.

But enough of this. I have moved very far from the giants. So, it is back to that land I climb. How does one utilize his single and precious life - which can end in a moment - in such a way as to procure its value fully?

I was recently talking with a young man of great virtue and intellect, not to mention a healthy amount of passion for His Creator, about just such an issue. We were seated in the lounge of an apartment building with some of his friends, waiting to get into a karaoke club. In frustration, he blurted out, "Why do we always have to wait?" That sparked an intriguing dialogue on the essence of life being 'waiting'. This life is like a waiting room - everyone has to wait, and wait once. What is important is what one does while waiting. You see, in a waiting room, some choose to sit idly and let time pass them by. Others read for entertainment. Still others consider the waiting room a place to get things done in an unspecified time slot.

The waiting room of life is very much like this. "That's not waiting anymore, though, because you're doing something," my young compatriot remarked.

"Ah, but it is," I replied. "It is active waiting, where all sort so of things can happen." The giants were aware of active waiting. They embraced it to the full. That's why we remember them.