It’s Mother’s Day…. so I gave my mom a copy of this sermon and told her to look it over and mark out anything that she found to be irrelevant, inappropriate or just plain boring”.……………….so in conclusion.

When I called my wife, Nancy, earlier this week she said, “I have a surprise for you, I bought a monkey for my Mother’s day gift!”

I said, “You’re kidding…where’s he going to eat?”

She said, “At our table.”

I said, “Well, where’s he going to sleep?”

Nancy said, “In our bed.”

I said, “What about the smell?”

She said, “Well…I’ve gotten used to you, I guess the monkey can, too!”

Laughter in its highest form is an expression of joy.

When we experience the reality of God in Jesus Christ we can live life out of a deep sense of joy. That joy can overflow into the lives of others, bringing hope and encouragement. “Rejoice in the Lord, always, again I will say rejoice.”  

The gift of laughter can bring God’s perspective to our lives, filling us with the ability to cope with difficulty and adversity. Laughter can be a healing gift from God….laughter is therapeutic and cathartic.

Henry Ward Beecher, 19th century American congregational minister, wrote, “A person without a sense of humor is like a wagon without springs, jolted by every pebble in the road.”

You’ve probably seen those church bulletin bloopers and one liners:

• The peacemaking meeting scheduled for today has been cancelled due to a conflict.

• “Don't let your worries get the best of you, remember, Moses started out as a basket case.”

How many of you remember Mae West? She said about a former husband or boyfriend: “His mother should have thrown him away and kept the stork.”

It is wonderful to be able to laugh!

The Psalmist writes, “Oh Lord you have healed me.  You have brought me up from the pit.  Weeping may linger for a night but joy comes with the morning.  You have turned my mourning into dancing.”

Jesus promises his disciples that even though he was going away their sorrow would turn to joy.

Jesus promises his disciples that no one will take their joy from them.  Sin, sickness, evil and death do not have the last word. The resurrected Christ has the last word. We live and work on this earth with that eternal perspective firmly anchored in our hearts and minds. We know life on this earth is short and we are called to live each day to the fullest.

In Revelation 21:4 there is the promise that every tear will be wiped away, death will be no more; mourning and crying and pain will be no more.

Did you see the news release: “Pillsbury Doughboy, Dead At 71:” 

“Veteran Pillsbury spokesman, The Pillsbury Doughboy, died yesterday of a severe yeast infection and complications from repeated pokes to the belly.  He was 71.  The memorial service was attended by dozens of celebrities including Mrs. Butterworth and Hungry Jack, Betty Crocker, the Hostess Twinkies and Captain Crunch.

The graveside was piled high with ‘flours’ as long-time friend Aunt Jemima delivered the eulogy, describing Doughboy as a man who never knew how much he was kneaded.  Doughboy rose quickly in show business, but his later life was filled with many turnovers.  He was not considered a very smart cookie, wasting much of his dough on half-baked schemes.  Still, even as a crusty old man, he was a roll model for millions.  Doughboy is survived by his second wife, Play-Dough.  They have two children and one in the oven.  The funeral was held at 3:50 for about 20 minutes.”1

Even in difficult times, people can find humor.

In his book The Healing Power of Humor, Allen Klein notes that Abraham Lincoln (one of my distant relatives) had an ability to laugh even in the bleakest days of the Civil War. People who worked with him were often astonished at his perspective.  When Stephen Douglas accused Abraham Lincoln of being two-faced, Lincoln said, “If I had two faces, I certainly wouldn’t wear this one!”

Many great comedians have experienced tragedy and sorrow in their lives. Jackie Gleason’s father deserted him.  W. C. Fields ran away from home because his father was going to kill him.  Carol Burnett’s parents were alcoholics who constantly fought.  Charlie Chaplin’s father died of alcoholism and his mother suffered from mental illness.  Perhaps the water of their tears cultivated the gift of laughter that they brought to others.

In Proverbs 15:13 the writer says, “A glad heart makes a cheerful countenance.” Proverbs 17:22-  A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a downcast spirit dries up the bones.”  Many studies have related our mental attitude to our health—a cheerful heart is actually healthy for us. Norman Cousins calls laughter inner jogging.

Laughter releases endorphins.

Endorphins are endogenous opioid biochemical compounds. They are polypeptides produced by the pituitary gland and the hypothalamus and they produce a natural sense of well-being.  I call them your “inner-dolphins!”

Since this is Mother’s Day did you hear the story about the three sons who left home, went out on their own and prospered? After Mother’s Day had passed, they had a conference call with each other about the gifts of love they were able to give to their elderly mother.

The first son, Milton, said, “I built a big house for our mother.”

The second, Marvin, said, “I sent her a Mercedes with a driver.”

The third, Melvin, said, “I’ve got you both beat. You know how Mom enjoys the Bible, and you know she can’t see very well. I sent her a parrot that can recite the entire Bible. It took 10 monks in a monastery 10 years to teach the parrot. I had to pledge ten thousand dollars a year to the monastery for 10 years, but it was worth it. All Mom has to do is name the chapter and verse, and the parrot will recite it.”

Soon thereafter, Mom sent out her letters of thanks:

“Milton,” she wrote her first son, “The house you built is so huge. I only live in one room and the whole place has to be cared for.”

“Marvin,” she wrote her second son, “I am too old to travel. I stay home all the time, so I never use the Mercedes…and the driver is rude!”

“Dearest Melvin,” she wrote to her third son, “You were the only son to have the good sense to know what your mother likes – that little chicken was delicious!”

Several years ago the largest survey of worshippers in America was conducted. The survey included the 400 fastest-growing Presbyterian Churches (USA) -  93 returned the survey. Laughter in the worship service was ranked in the top five characteristics of growing Presbyterian churches.

I think the reason for that laughter is the experience of having our lives firmly anchored in the resurrected Christ. That reality makes the gathering for worship an oasis of joy and hope in a desert of depression and fear. We do not gather to escape the problems of the world or the needs of others but to refresh ourselves with God’s perspective.

As the late Catholic theologian, Karl Rahner, commented: “God laughs the laughter of the divine superiority over all the horrible confusion of history that is full of blood and torture and insanity…”

We see that blood, torture and insanity portrayed before us every day. But we love God and serve others in hope and confidence, knowing that sin, sickness, evil and death do not have the last word. The resurrected Christ has the last word.

We go forth from this place to extend God’s love and joy to others. May God grant us the healing Gift of Laughter. Amen.

1 Source unknown