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A Time to Laugh

The psalmist declares that God himself sits in the heavens and laughs (Psalm 2:4), and the writer of Proverbs describes the woman of strength as one who rejoices in (literally “laughs at”) times to come (Proverbs 31:25). Life can become taxing at times, and moments come when we desperately need a change. Laughter is one way the Creator gave us to switch gears and punctuate monotony with joy. Humor is an exit from the mundane road of life. Laughter is a simple yet reasonable prescription for some of life’s ills and most of its tedium (Proverbs 17:22). Physicians have assigned healing properties to humor, especially in cases of mental illness, such as depression. Certainly humor defuses tensions and helps put at ease.

With so much tragedy in life, choosing humor instead of despair is good scriptural advice. Humor generally involves an acceptance of the ups and downs of life and the determination not to take ourselves too seriously. To combat stress, to relieve tension, and even to provide delightful diversion in the midst of trials and sufferings, laughter and a keen sense of humor may prove to be previous possessions.

Jesus himself was unpredictable and witty and full of life in his responses. He used irony, word play, and hyperbole to get across his messages (see Matthew 22:15-22, in which Jesus cleverly eludes the trap of the Pharisees and unmasks their hypocrisy). Jesus asks a Pharisee for a coin with an image of Caesar and an inscription proclaiming Caesar to be god, knowing that to carry such a coin was breaking two commandments (Exodus 20:3-4).

At the end of life’s road we may all end up in the same place someday, but because of laughter along the way, some will have enjoyed the journey and arrived more refreshed.