A Time To Laugh

7/14/2021

Written By: Kenny Scott

To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven... a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance... Ecclesiastes 3:1-5

How long has it been since you’ve had a good laugh? I mean a really good laugh that was so hard it made your sides ache? Recently I attended a wedding reception, and as is the custom, as soon as the dance music started it was rare to see someone brave enough to challenge the empty dance floor-except one fearless toddler who had the dance moves of a misguided tornado with twice the energy-“…a time to laugh.” I did my part not to join in, as that would’ve created a time to laugh (for a whole different reason), weep, and mourn.

There are over 48 references about laughter in the Bible. Proverbs 17:22 NLT says “A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit saps a person’s strength.” In other words, laughter can generate legitimate medical benefits.

According to a study conducted by the University of Maryland, laughter is a powerful remedy for stress, pain, and conflict. Nothing works faster or more dependably to bring your mind and body back into balance after a good laugh. Laughter lightens your burdens, inspires hope, connects you to others, and keeps you more focused on the positive. Furthermore, it relaxes the whole body relieving physical tension and stress, leaving your muscles relaxed for up to 45 minutes later. It boosts the immune system, triggers the release of endorphins, the body’s natural feel-good chemicals promoting an overall sense of well-being, and can even temporarily relieve pain. And laughter, protects the heart. God knew what He was doing when He gave us the prescription for laughter.

Somehow laughter interspersed with the days and weeks of deep grief and sadness can make the unbearable bearable. Life can get so heavy and laden with burdens, but laughter gives us a break so that we can carry on in the midst of them. It doesn’t take the pain away, but it does provide a much-needed emotional break. Again, Proverbs reminds us that laughter is good medicine for our beaten down souls. There will still be tears, but there can also be joy from funny, light-hearted moments.

God created laughter and humor because He knew that we would need the soul medicine it provides in this fallen world. So how do we take this soul medicine and make it part of our daily spiritual health regimen?

Find your funny bone and tickle it: One of the nightly rituals I started during some stressful months was to watch old school cartoons. They made me laugh and reminded me of less serious times during my childhood, and for an hour every night my weary soul was strengthened. Those minutes of mindless humor lightened the load of my heart and gave me a break. Find what tickles your funny bone and make it a regular habit to build laughter time into your life.

Surround yourself with people who live life joyfully: There’s a lot of truth in the saying “You are who your friends are”. Have friends in your circle who know how to have fun, have a good sense of humor, or can make you laugh. Those people who can find humor in the day-to-day events. Laughter is contagious. Laughter has a way of bonding us together, saying we’re in this together, so let’s have some fun along the way.

Ask God to help you find something to laugh about even when it seems like there’s nothing to laugh about: Look for the funny, lighthearted things in life. There are a lot of joyful things in our lives when we train ourselves to look for them. Even when there is nothing to laugh about, God can help find the humor in some small thing.

Develop a sense of humor: So often we take ourselves too seriously. Certainly, there are those times in life that are not occasions for laughter, but most of life is ordinary living and we can choose whether to find laughter and joy or not. I suggest learning to laugh at yourself and look for the funny around you.

From the beginning, God knew how important laughter would be in our lives long before the medical world would discover the incredible benefits to our physical and mental health. It’s an important practice to develop if we’re to survive in this broken world. So look for things to laugh about, especially at wedding receptions.