By Randy Maxwell, vice president for administration
A happy heart is good medicine and a joyful mind causes healing, but a broken spirit dries up the bones.
Our granddaughter, Sydney, did it again. The mind of a 7-year-old is a fantastical and often hilarious place.
Case in point. Our family stays connected through the Marco Polo video chat app. We send video messages to each other, watch basketball or football games through the app, and sometimes send text messages that we react to with emojis or a video response.
This past Wednesday night we get the following video text from our oldest daughter, Candi: “Overheard Jesse [her husband] talking to the kids about dads having sperm and moms having eggs, and Sydney says, ‘I don’t want to lay an egg.’”
If you didn’t just now explode in laughter like we did, you need a joy injection.
We were destroyed and received mega doses of healing endorphins over that bit of first-grader wisdom and logic.
Life is too serious.
We all need a seven-year-old’s view of the world to evoke spasms of laughter and bring refreshment to bones dried up by our adult world view which is often too cynical and jaded.
It's not that life isn’t hard. Of course, it is. Anyone who has just lived through the Covid-19 pandemic and its fallout is very well aware of how tough live can be.
But as Chuck Swindoll says in Laugh Again,
Without exception, people who consistently laugh do so in spite of, seldom because of anything. They pursue fun rather than wait for it to knock on their door in the middle of the day. Such infectiously joyful believers have no trouble convincing people around them that Christianity is real and that Christ can transform a life. Joy is the flag that flies above the castle of their hearts, announcing that the King is in residence.
Is King Jesus in residence in your heart today? Could someone tell by your face or by how easily you smile?
Go ahead, live a little… and laugh a lot. Actually, if you laugh a lot, you’ll probably live longer…and better. If you don’t, take it from my granddaughter, Sydney, you might just lay an egg.
Activity Prompt
It's time to laugh as a family! Tell stories about a memorable family trip or occasion. Remember and laugh together! Look up some clean family jokes to make some new memories!
Prayer Prompt
Lord, You are a God of great joy! Help us to find joy in You each and every day! To spot the moments of joy You delight to give us in the special family interactions, the cherished memories, and the meaningful details of life. May we share Your joy freely with everyone we meet and interact with. Amen!
