I hope you were able to join us the other night at the Volunteer Celebration. Though I was able to interact with many of you, with so many volunteers in attendance I know that I missed seeing some of you. What a great night. I especially enjoyed our time with comedian Tim Hawkins. I was fortunate to sit between my sister and my wife and laugh hysterically with them as Tim helped us view life from a different perspective for just a few moments.
One of the best parts of the night for me was being able to touch base with Tim backstage before the show to see if he needed anything. When I poked my head into his room about ten minutes before the show, he was laying back in a chair with a guitar on his lap, intermittently making up a song with his young son Levi and playing catch with a Twinkie. Tim was at ease with a huge smile on his face, and Levi was having the time of his life. I saw in that moment that this guy’s ministry is born from a spirit of joy.
I was reminded during the show how healthy it is to laugh. We can get so caught up in the busyness of life, the frustrations of our days, the troubles of this world. But Scripture repeatedly talks of a joy that is to be experienced for those whose trust is in Christ. Both the Old and New Testaments speak of the joy of the Lord as something more than a feeling, as an attitude of life that supersedes emotion, as a way of being. (Is. 35.10; Gal. 5.22) Those who follow Christ are to live in joy, regardless of situation or circumstance. This isn’t a dismissal of the reality of the difficulties and trials of life, but rather a means of viewing them with proper perspective with our gaze set toward eternity. I appreciate how Habakkuk states this: though the world around me is dismal, “yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will take joy in the God of my salvation.” (Hab. 3.18)
Tim’s message of laughter reminded me of this. If we know the joy of the Lord, then we can be at ease and allow ourselves to laugh. How great it was to see and hear the church laughing together the other night, sharing in the joy of the Lord. I’m convinced that what we were a part of Friday night in our worship center was just as much a foretaste of heaven as what we do in that space on Sunday mornings. So here’s the application for your small group: laugh together? Make some time in group to share the lighter side of life together. Watch some funny videos or share some stories or play a game that gets everyone laughing. And then celebrate the joy of the Lord together.
