“a time to laugh …” Ecclesiastes 3:4b

Have you seen these cups that claim to keep things cold for hours? It’s fascinating. How can an ice cube stay an ice cube in ninety degree heat for such an extended amount of time? It seems impossible. It makes me laugh at how fascinating these simple things can be to me!

Ecclesiastes 3:1-9 states the many different seasons of life, and laughter is included. God created laughter. He is the master of sarcasm, as evident in Old Testament Stories and New Testament Parables. Our innate sense of humor and craving for a good reason to smile comes from our good Father.

He created the entire universe in six days, and then rested for one.

He created time yet holds the ability to stretch our minutes.

He flooded the whole earth and destroyed everything, but left one arc untouched.

He spoke to Moses through a burning bush.

He made Joshua march around Jericho once a day for six days before the walls came down on the seventh.

Jesus set up scenes and solve problems in a way that would make us remember. We’re still reading them to this day.

He fed thousands of people with a few fish and some bread loaves.

He healed a woman who touched His robe as He passed by to heal someone else.

His best friends sat at the cafeteria table everyone else is afraid to walk by.

He walked just about everywhere He went, but then rode into town on a donkey …

He washed his friends’ feet.

He almost sunk his friends’ boat with a huge catch of fish.

Why does all of this make me smile? Laugh, even? Certainly not out of disrespect or ill-intended sarcasm as we have grown so accustomed to in our society. No, this humor is born out of love and intentionality. God purposefully places people and circumstances to encourage our smiles …our laughs. With God, there is no coincidence. No impossibility. He is sovereign. There is definitely no coincidence in soveriegnty.

Jesus wasted no parables with the minutes He chose to spend on earth. We only have access to what was written down about Jesus. I like to imagine what other kinds of things He did that we’re not privy to. Jesus is a fun guy. Heaven with Him is going to be a blast.

It makes a really cold cup seem like a simple accomplishment. We are created in His image, wired to accomplish the impossible. And with great faith and a Savior like Jesus, who can stop us? Each created for a specific purpose, let’s not forget to revel in the humor of our Father along the way. And marvel at the simple joys and impossibilities …like un-melting ice!

Father, Praise You for happiness and laughter alongside our awe for You! Thank You for lacing lightheartedness into miraculous wonders. We confess that we think humor is our thing …and often use it inappropriately. Bless our innate craving to laugh to be for Your glory, and never at another’s expense. In Jesus Name, Amen. 

Happy Laughing,

Megs

This post was originally a part of the #jammed Daily Devotional Series from February, Dunked in Grace, Day 55: Grace outlasts the heat.

Throwback Update …

When I look back and read some of these devotional entries, I smile at the growth God has led me through since! The more I grow in my faith, and the closer I become to my Creator, the more I realize that His love is a joy-filled wisdom filter over every Instagram-able moment. I realize it’s no coincidence when I stumble upon a happy moment or a bust a gut laughing.

So often we are focused on the big things -good and bad – when we direct our attention to God. But the truth is, He’s in all the little moments of our lives, too. He cares so immensely for each one of us. When we realize how great His love is, it causes us to see things from a different, joy-filled perspective. Joy, that through ups and downs, sustains our strength. Moments of laughter that meet us in impossibly hard circumstances. What a journey …

Happy Laughing …