Laugh more!

“We were filled with laughter, and…sang for joy.” Psalm 126:2 NLT

God created every human emotion you feel. He designed you to cry when you are sad and laugh when you are happy: “For everything there is a season…A time to cry and a time to laugh” (Ecclesiastes 3:1, 4 NLT). Jesus said, “These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full” (John 15:11). Question: how often do you laugh? Doctors say laughter has incredible healing effects on your body. It also has incredible healing effects on your mind and soul. Stop and think about the days you laughed, even though you really didn’t have anything to laugh about. You were far from God and bound by sinful habits, but He set you free, didn’t He? In the Old Testament we read, “When the Lord brought back his exiles to Jerusalem, it was like a dream! We were filled with laughter…sang for joy…And the other nations said, ‘What amazing things the Lord has done for them.’ Yes, the Lord has done amazing things for us! What joy!” (Psalm 126:1-3 NLT). If God has set you free, then you truly have something to laugh about. Stop being so “heavy” about everything: expecting perfection from yourself; your slow growth in God; your deficient prayer life; your failure to memorize more Scripture verses; your fear of sharing your faith with others, etc. We carry around such heavy burdens. If you’re “laughter impaired,” you may have to work at it. It’s easy to find plenty to worry about, but to be happy, you sometimes need to work at it a little. So the word for you today is—laugh more!

Bible in a year: Ezekiel 33-34 and James 5