If anyone needs an ark, I happen to Noah a guy.
My 8 year old nephew was looking though an old family Bible with his grandmother when an oak leaf fell out. My nephew said, “Well, I guess that must be Adam’s shorts.”
I’m here all week, and don’t forget to tip your waitress.
I need a laugh! We all need a laugh right now! There is power in laughter. But I don’t recall any of my favorite Bible stories involving laughter, joy sure, but not an all-out good old fashioned belly-laugh. I can’t think of one chuckle, chortle, guffaw, giggle or even a tee-hee in the Bible.
One of my wife’s favorite quotes is from Martin Luther, “If I’m not allowed to laugh in heaven, I don’t want to go there.” But where do we find laughter in the Bible?
After a quick internet search, the first reference I found in the Bible for the word laughter was from Genesis 17:17 Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed and said to himself, “Shall a child be born to a man who is a hundred years old? Shall Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear a child?”
We know how this one ends, but let’s not leave Sarah out of our laugh fest, Genesis 21:6 Sarah said, “God has made laughter for me; everyone who hears will laugh over me.” Not exactly stand up comedy, but we are after all, reading the Bible. At 90 years of age, she had a 100 year old husband and a new born, and she chose to laugh. Sarah had a sense of humor. She had to. Would you be laughing after giving birth at 90 or being a father at 100? And it is not a surprise the name Isaac means, “to laugh” or “he will laugh.”
After more review here are several passages in the Bible where God encourages us to laugh, Job 8:21, Proverbs 17:22, Proverbs 31:25, Luke 6:21, James 4:9, Ecclesiastes 10:19 to name a few. I bet if we look again, some of our favorite stories include some humor. You can’t tell me that God wasn’t having a little fun with Jonah.
As Christ followers we have been provided a well within us which is full of compassion, caring and healing. And in today’s world we face daily struggles with fear, pain, frustration and exhaustion which deplete us. God doesn’t want us to forget that perhaps there is no quicker way to replenish our well than by the simple act of laughing. After all, there is a time to weep and a time to laugh, Ecclesiastes 3:4
And if you need the scientific proof, researchers from the Mayo Clinic have found that laughing replenishes our well in the short and long-term.
- Laughter enhances your intake of oxygen-rich air, stimulates your heart, lungs and muscles, and increases the endorphins that are released by your brain.
– Did you know the worst time to have a heart attack is during a game of charades?
- Laughter can also stimulate circulation and aid muscle relaxation, both of which can help reduce some of the physical symptoms of stress.
– I have great muscle memory, I totally remember when I was in shape.
- Laughter and positive thoughts can actually release neuropeptides that help fight stress and potentially more-serious illnesses.
– I told Stacia that both of our boys got their brains from me.
She replied, “I think they did too, I’ve still got mine.”
- Laughter can also make it easier to cope with difficult situations. It also helps youconnect with other people.
– Yesterday my wife shouted down to me from upstairs. “Do you ever get a shooting pain across your chest, like someone’s got a voodoo doll and they’re stabbing it with a needle?”
“No,” I called back.
She shouted, ‘How about now?
- Laughter can help lessen your depression and anxiety and may make you feel happier.
– I used to hate facial hair, but then it grew on me – a classic dad joke.
Keep your wells full!
Doug Dowell
11/10/2020