Holy Humor

Have you ever met some somber saints who think it's wrong to laugh in church? All I can say is, they must not be paying attention.

Funny things happen all the time at church. The great preacher Olin Hay told about the time he walked across the stage and prayed before beginning his sermon. Praying with his eyes closed, he reached down and tucked his shirt-tail in—or at least that's what he meant to do. When he said "amen" and opened his eyes, he discovered he actually had tucked a piece of the American flag into his pants.

Yes, even something as serious as prayer can have its funny moments. A minister meant to pray for a member of the congregation who was having a biopsy, but instead he prayed that the man's autopsy would go well. A young woman prayed, "O Lord, I ask nothing for myself. But will you please send my dear mother a son-in-law?"

Leading prayer for a group of hearing-impaired friends, I said through the sign-language interpreter, "Let's join hands, close our eyes, and pray." Even though my eyes were closed I could tell that everyone was laughing. They quickly informed me that sign language won't work very well if we hold hands and close our eyes.

When God made Eve he took one of Adam's ribs, but he left in the funny bone. A belly-laugh reminds us we're created in the image of the God of joy. "A cheerful heart is good medicine" (Proverbs 17:22). Even the Old Testament book filled with depressing reminders about the futility of life admits, "There is a time to laugh" (Ecclesiastes 3:4).

Wayne Smith tells about a woman who visited a very formal church and sat near the front. Enjoying the minister's sermon, she yelled "Amen." An usher whispered in her ear, "You will have to refrain from this." She called out, "Praise the Lord," and another usher told her, "Ma'am, these outbursts will have to cease." Soon she yelled "Hallelujah!" and the head usher came and asked, "Lady, what is your problem?" She said, "I've got joy." And he replied, "Well, you didn't get it here!"

You should find lots of joy in church. Jesus said there's rejoicing "in the presence of the angels of God" when a sinner repents (Luke 15:10). He was a man of sorrows, acquainted with grief; but when his disciples came back and reported about a successful season of ministry, the Lord "was full of joy through the Holy Spirit" (Luke 10:21).

The Ethiopian eunuch came out of the waters of baptism and "went on his way rejoicing" (Acts 8:39). So did the Philippian jailor and his household. "The whole family was filled with joy, because they had come to believe in God" (Acts 16:34). Paul wrote the Philippian church a short letter of 114 verses, but his epistle contains 19 references to joy, rejoicing, and gladness. "Rejoice in the Lord always," Paul wrote from prison. "I will say it again: Rejoice!" (Philippians 4:4).

There's nothing more serious and awe-inspiring than the holiness of God. But holiness means being set apart, and one thing that sets Christians apart is the ability to experience joy in all our circumstances—"an inexpressible and glorious joy" (1 Peter 1:8). If that doesn't make you smile, I don't know what will.