A joyful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit dries up the bones. Proverbs 17:22 HCSB
If we had a joy-o-meter, would yours be so low it doesn’t even register right now, or would it blow up with the amount of joy it registered in you? I have often heard it said that a grumpy Christian is an oxymoron.
Yesterday I had the opportunity to spend the day with a couple of dear friends. Last month we were supposed to go away for several days to the beach, but thanks to a couple of other friends cancelling out and tropical storm Barry, we were unable to make our journey to the beach. So, we opted for a day of shopping and dining instead. We had so much fun that we decided to go again yesterday.
We didn’t go anywhere really exciting, just a couple of good restaurants for lunch and dinner with lots of shopping at various places in between. We didn’t buy a whole lot of stuff, but we laughed a great deal. Each of us has things going on in our lives that could suck the humor right out of it, but we were able to look at the bright side and find humor even in the darkest of situations. I think it’s safe to say that each of us can look at the good that God has done in our lives and see how that easily overrides the wrong that others have done against us or any bleak circumstances that we may face. We also understand that God works all things out for our good and His glory (Romans 8:28-30). We know that if God is for us, who can stand against us (Romans 8:31)? We know that we don’t have to worry about vengeance because God takes care of that (Romans 12:19). We know that the battles we face in life belong to the Lord and that He fights them for us (2 Chronicles 12:15). We know that God protects us (Psalm 91). We know that God has good plans for us (Jeremiah 29:11). We also know that God not only wants us to have life, but he wants us to have a good life (John 10:10). Psalm 126:2 explains it well by saying, Our mouth was filled with laughter, and our tongue with shouts of joy; then they said among the nations, “The LORD has done great things for them.”
I think one of the reasons that my friends and I can laugh and have such an enjoyable time despite whatever is going on in our lives is that we all three love the Lord. We all understand and appreciate His goodness. We understand that He loves us and wants good things for us. We understand that He wants all things to work out for our good.
Ecclesiastes 3:4 tells us that there is a time to weep and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance. We all have situations and circumstances in our lives that cause us grief and sorrow, but we all also have the opportunity to embrace the love that God has for us. We have the opportunity to appreciate the good Christian friends that God puts into our lives to help us celebrate the small victories and to find humor even when things are going as we had hoped.
My prayer for you today is that you have the support of a good Christian friend or a dozen good Christian friends. Allow God to fill you with His Holy Spirit. When we are filled with God’s Holy Spirit, peace and joy overflow and spill out. Laughter is not only good medicine, but it’s contagious. Won’t you make it your goal to infect someone with joy today. Show them the awesome love that God has for them and let them know that it can bring peace and joy to a heart that is troubled.
Have a great day!