Is laughter the best medicine?

Laughter can conceal a heavy heart, but when the laughter ends, the grief remains. (Proverbs 14:13)

Nicolas Chamfort said, "The most wasted day of all is that on which we have not laughed." Laughter is not always from a cheerful and giddy heart. There are many times it conceals a hurt much deeper than the naked eye can see. There is little mirth in fear, but someone who is fearful can giggle or laugh in their nervousness over the situation. Sometimes there is very little 'amusement' in what is going on in someone's life, but there will be laughter instead of tears. We may never know what a laugh really conceals, but when we are open to being led by the Holy Spirit, the opportunity to help someone past their fear, grief, or inner pain may reveal itself.

What makes a heart heavy? We all realize loss can weigh a heart down, sometimes for a long time. There are times when our heart is made heavy because of what we are feeling for others - experiencing just a bit of their pain over something catastrophic in their lives. Probably the worst kind of 'heaviness of heart' is when our sin-nature gets the best of us, and we fall for some temptation that we should have avoided completely. This one brings more than just a 'heaviness' of heart - it can carry a whole lot of guilt that just piles on over the top of our sorrow, making the burden quite heavy to carry at times. We might attempt to 'laugh away' that guilt and sorrow, but the only true means of being 'unburdened' from it is to confess it and let God restore your heart.

Some tell-tale signs that someone might be concealing a bit more under that laughter could be:

- Laughing when the topic is touched upon and then quickly changing the subject, so they don't have to dwell upon it

- Laughing as the subject is brought up, then continuing to use sarcastic humor to 'poke fun' at oneself

- Laughing at a suggestion that they might benefit from a little help, or perhaps confiding in someone they trust about whatever it is that is causing them so much pain

These are but a few, but you likely know of some ways we 'conceal' our heaviness of heart just by looking at how YOU do it on occasion. Realize that we aren't alone in this 'concealment' process - we all have our 'coping mechanisms' - good and bad.

How can we be sensitive to someone's heaviness of heart today? It begins by asking God to open our eyes, ears, and heart to others and their needs. When the Holy Spirit prompts, be ready to respond. Not all laughter will be the result of a heavy heart, but when one is being concealed, he will reveal it to the one who has asked to be used to ease the burden of others. Just sayin!

Hey, it is okay if you are hurting!

Laughter cannot mask a heavy heart. When the laughter ends, the grief remains. (Proverbs 14:13) Erma Bombeck once reminded us, "There is a thin line that separates laughter and pain, comedy and tragedy, humor and hurt." This "thin line" as she calls it is really very concerning - for if it is crossed, the laughter can certainly turn to pain quite quickly. We never really know what is just beneath the surface in the lives of those we meet with each and every day. We might think we really know them, but in truth, there can be very little 'space' between immense sorrow and loneliness on the inside from what we see displayed as confidence and friendliness on the outside.

We need to become skilled 'readers' of the human condition. We might not always recognize just how close to grief or sorrow a man's heart may be until we cross the line into that 'finite space' between the happier self displayed on the surface and the hurting self hidden just beneath. We often hear this referenced when someone takes their own lives - those who knew the individual well sometimes not even really recognizing the sorrow that was hidden in the recesses of the individual's heart. The final 'note' left behind can be the only 'telling' sign of their tremendous anguish which burdened their hearts until the final beat. The human condition is indeed frail - we just don't recognize the depth of this frailty.

Back in the day, I loved to read those funny quips in Reader's Digest, for they were designed to get us to chuckle a little, if not openly laugh out loud. Most of us would relish the idea of a world where there was no sorrow or grief, but the truth of the matter is that grief does a great deal to refine what is in a man's heart. It could just be the purpose behind it! Sorrow is better than laughter, for sadness has a refining influence on us. (Ecclesiastes 7:3) I wonder how different our encounters would be if we were to ask someone what is bringing them sorrow in their life right now? I wonder just how many of us would admit we are in the refiner's fire? Most wouldn't - but the brave will!

While all of life is not going to be fun and games, not all of life is going to be sorrow and pain, either. When it does come, though, do we embrace it, or do we bury it? Buried grief is not really going to do us any good - it just burns a hole deep into our souls. While we might want to display a cheerful life on the surface, just beneath is this tremendous weight we carry. Maybe the best thing we can do for a friend is to just hold their hand, allowing them to unburden their hearts, and coming to terms with the immense grief that has dug deep into their souls. It might just be that we connect more on the 'sorrow' level with each other than on the 'happiness' level! It might just be the place where our breakthrough comes in life. Just sayin!

Laugh a little - it couldn't hurt!

Back in the day I used to love to read the Reader's Digest little quips called "Laughter is the Best Medicine".  The short stories would make me chuckle and even evoke a smile from deep within.  In essence, the writers of the short one page segment in the magazine were trying to get across this idea of a cheerful heart going a long way toward changing our disposition toward things in life.  Laugh a little and the world might seem a little less challenging.  Learn to laugh at yourself and you won't be tempted to take yourself too seriously.  I don't know if the articles still run in the magazine, but I know how much joy they brought me each month as I'd read this one and "Humor in Uniform".  Those short jokes and funny stories might have been simple and kind of cheesy on occasion, but they accomplished their mission - they made us laugh!  E.E. Cummings once said, "The most wasted of all days is one without laughter."  Milton Berle said, "Laughter is an instant vacation."  Maybe we need a little more cheer in our lives and a little less seriousness - because most of us take life way too seriously more than we'd like to admit!

Being cheerful helps when we are sick, but nothing helps when we give up. (Proverbs 18:14 CEV)

I often know when a patient is going to do well in their fight against a disease or confounding illness of some sort - because I see it in their determination and drive to be well.  There is something inside of them which drives them and gives them the desire to fight often in spite of the odds.  Nothing helps when we give up - a positive attitude can determine the course of our destiny in life.  I think this may be what our writer had in mind when he penned these words.  They are simple, yet profound - attitude matters!  What we believe in our heart influences what we do in our actions - where our attitude peaks or wanes will be the highest and lowest spots in our day.

My mom suffers from a crippling spinal condition called spinal stenosis.  Add to this the advancing of her years and the onset of arthritic changes and osteoporosis and the pain can sometimes be way more than she wants to deal with.  She used to stand a proud 5 foot 5 inches tall.  Today, if she can possibly hold herself erect long enough to measure a full 5 foot 10 inches she'd be lucky.  Her spine has curved to where she no longer sits upright, but constantly leans to the left.  The curvature in her spine and neck are never so evident as when she is stooped over walking around the house.  

She sometimes struggles to rise from the sofa or chair, finding herself rising, losing her balance and plopping back down again.  The feeling in her legs has been affected by the crushing effect of her disease on the nerves of her spine.  Yet, despite her pain, she plods on. Why?  She isn't willing to give up!  She doesn't want to be crippled - she wants to be independent, functional, and able to do whatever she can in the course of her day.  Nothing speaks louder to me than her determination to "motor on" in the face of tremendous obstacles which would want to stop her in her tracks.  They disable her, but they don't disengage her from life!

I often hear her laugh at herself when she topples back, catches her foot on the carpet when she tries to take a step forward, or simply has to stand for a while getting her balance and "umph" back which will help her take the first step forward.  She'll make some quip if she stumbles a little such as, "Well, I shouldn't have had that last drink", then motor on, chuckling to herself.  She doesn't touch the stuff, but she will joke about her "instability" on her feet as though she had been tipping back the bottle a little too much!  It makes us all chuckle when we hear her say something like this because we know it is just a little humor to deal with the fear she has of falling and the challenges she faces because her body is failing.

We ALL face challenges in life - some more difficult than others.  We ALL have two choices - give into the pressures and pain, or motor on.  The choice we make in the attitude we will maintain toward the difficulties in front of us often determine if those difficulties will be our means to better ourselves, or the end of the fight for us.  There is such power in our attitude, especially when it comes to the changes God wants to create within our lives.  The changes are hard and the work is sometimes challenging, but the reward is great.  Let's remember to laugh a little, not taking things more seriously than we ought, and then to "motor on" in the face of the difficulties we face.  We might just find ourselves enjoying our journey a little more when we do!  Just sayin!

The gift of laughter

Did you ever stop to consider laughter a gift?  It seems our writer of this psalm did - and it suggests God is actually honored by our laughter.  Not by our mocking laughter, but the laughter of delight, joy, and overwhelming awe. If you have ever seen a little guy shoot a free throw from mid-court and land it with nothing but air, you might have experienced this free-will laughter - delight in his success, joy in his having done what others put down as impossible, or overwhelming awe that a little guy just sank the "hoop of a lifetime".  I wonder just how many times God lands the "shot of a lifetime" in our lives and we take the opportunity to celebrate with the gift of laughter?

On your feet now—applaud God!  Bring a gift of laughter, sing yourselves into his presence.  Know this: God is God, and God, God.  He made us; we didn’t make him.  We’re his people, his well-tended sheep.  Enter with the password: “Thank you!”  Make yourselves at home, talking praise.  Thank him. Worship him.  For God is sheer beauty, all-generous in love, loyal always and ever.  (Psalm 100 MSG)

Our writer suggests coming into God's presence with laughter and singing.  In other words - celebrate a little.  God's presence is not just a place of quiet repose - it is a place of delighted ecstasy!  We are to enjoy being there!  Getting into his presence is half the battle, isn't it?  It takes us a while to actually center our focus well enough to shut out the pull of everything else and actually find delight in just being there with him.  Maybe if we took the path of laughter and song a little more, we'd be inclined to travel this path with more frequency!

The statement, "GOD is God, and God, GOD", has some meaning we should not just gloss over.  As our writer instructs, he calls us to our feet.  In getting to our feet, what are we doing?  We are directing our attention because it takes some effort to move from a place of repose to a place of alertness.  Try standing up and see how long you stay in that position if you are not awake!  I think our psalmist is telling us to really enjoy our time with our Lord, we need to be fully aware of having entered into his presence - because we don't just get there accidentally.

So, what meaning does this statement have?  First, understand he uses two terms to describe God.  This was not uncommon in the language of Hebrew.  The attributes of a person were often described in the title they were given.  For example, if you were given a name, it described the foremost aspect of your character, or that of your family.  So, when we see various names of God in scripture, in the Hebrew language they are just proclaiming another aspect of God's character.  As the two terms are used, they have significant meaning:

GOD:  Jehovah - the unchangeable one.  As this term is utilized, it refers to the steadfastness of God's character - he is the unchangeable one who fulfills promises, becoming what it is we need, and every action emanating from his holiness.  

God:  Elohim - the creative one.  As this term is used, it refers to the attribute of possessing all things - having created all things.  In other words, he is the one with the right to govern all things - sovereign in all power.  As such, he is the one holding all things together, bringing life to all things, and maintaining covenant relationship with his creation. 

So, our psalmist invites us into God's presence, first by coming to a place of alertness and attentiveness, then enjoying our entrance into the very presence of the one who invites us into covenant with him and becomes the means by which we actually are able to enter into this covenant relationship.  He is saying we enter by the blood of the Lamb - Christ's shed blood - and we are maintained there by the same blood.  

One of the things we learn in the presence of God is the faithfulness of his love.  Of late, I have read many posts, listened to many sermons, and even caught several conversations by DJs on Christian radio proclaiming much about the unconditional love of God.  I don't think this is by accident.  As a matter of fact, my pastor said it so well this past weekend.  Pastor Chad said, "Our issue is not how much we love God, but how much we realize just how much he loves us."  Let that one sink in a little.  He was saying we spend a whole lot of time working to get God to love us - when all the while God is saying "I already love you beyond measure!"  

I think our psalmist really understood the love of God - it being beyond measure in his life.  No wonder he was comfortable enough to celebrate God's goodness with laughter!  I think God is honored when we can laugh and celebrate his goodness, faithfulness, and compassion in our lives.  There is nothing dishonoring about realizing God's presence and just letting out a little giggle!  I do it all the time - his presence bringing me peace, settling my emotional turmoil and focusing me on what really matters.  Try it some time!  You might just enjoy celebrating the one who gives you both the means of access and the full access into his very presence!  Just sayin!