A Reminder to Laugh; an Antidote to Anxiety
"Should we not see that lines of laughter about the eyes are just as much marks of faith as are the lines of care and seriousness? Is it only earnestness that is baptized? Is laughter pagan? … A church is in a bad way when it banishes laughter from the sanctuary and leaves it to the cabaret, the nightclub, and the toastmasters." -Pastor Helmut Thielecke
Writing for Christianity Today, Pastor John Coulombe Allen Klein, notes the power of laughter and exhorts Christians to not turn into the proverbial "cranky grouch" as we age, but rather be known for our joy. After all, being saved into Christ, we—more than anyone else—have cause for joy and that joy should be a testament to the world.
Coulombe believes King Solomon noted three things happen when we lose our sense of humor: "Our spirit breaks, we shrivel up emotionally, and we lose our vitality and health."
He quotes Norman Cousins, former editor of Saturday Review and professor at UCLA's School of Medicine, as saying laughter is inner jogging.
"Every system in our body gets a workout when we have a hearty laugh. Our cardiovascular and respiratory systems benefit more from 20 seconds of laughter than from three minutes of exercise on a rowing machine. Muscles release tension and endorphins are released into the blood stream, creating the 'runner's high' which long-distance joggers experience."
In The Finish Touch, Pastor Chuck Swindoll wrote: "Humor is not a sin. It is a God-given escape hatch … a safety valve … to lack a good sense of humor is a serious deficiency."
During these rollercoaster days of political angst and economic readjustments, laughter might be just the thing Dr. God has ordered.
