Humor
Experience outrageous joy
How is your sense of humor? Are the times in which we live beginning to be reflected in your attitude, your face, your outlook? Solomon . . . says three things will occur when we have lost our sense of humor: a broken spirit, a lack of inner healing, and dried-up bones [Proverbs 15:13, 15; 17:22 ] What a barren portrait! . . . Humor is not a sin. It is a God-given escape hatch . . . a safety valve. Being able to see the lighter side of life is a rare, vital virtue.1
A refreshing sense of humor is never distasteful, ill-timed, or tactless. Instead, it lightens our spirits and energizes our thoughts. It helps us step back and not take this fleeting life quite so seriously.
“Three tests of good humor: Can you laugh at your own mistakes? Can you restrain when it isn’t fitting? Can you enjoy it all alone?”2 If you can’t yet answer yes to these questions, we invite you to enjoy these resources. You may feel your strained muscles relax as your troubled thoughts are chased away by good old-fashioned laughter.
- Charles R. Swindoll, The Finishing Touch: Becoming God’s Masterpiece (Dallas: Word, 1994), 220.
- Charles R. Swindoll, Swindoll’s Ultimate Book of Illustrations & Quotes (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1998), 283.
Featured Audio
Featured Video
Laughter and Joy
When people think of your faith, does a smile come to their face?
Too often, Christians are known for what they are against, or for a stern, somber demeanor that suggests godliness is synonymous with gloom. But I want to challenge that notion. The joy of the Lord isn't a quiet, hidden secret; it is meant to be a contagious force that brightens every room you enter.
In this delightful video, "Laughter and Joy," we explore the magnetic power of a cheerful heart. An infectious faith isn't just about winning arguments or quoting scripture; it's about radiating a warmth and happiness that makes others ask, "What is it that you have?"
In this refreshing reminder, we will see:
- The Ministry of Smiling: How a simple expression of joy can be a powerful testimony to God's love.
- Contagious Christianity: Why laughter and lightheartedness are essential tools for drawing others to Christ.
- Breaking the Gloom: Overcoming the stereotype of the "angry religious person" by living out the true joy of the Spirit.
Let's decide today to be the kind of believers who spread laughter as freely as we spread the Gospel. After all, joy is the serious business of heaven!
Featured Article
A Joyful Heart . . . It’s Good Medicine!
By Pastor Chuck Swindoll
Chuck Swindoll recognizes the ability to laugh and to find the humor in things as a gift from God to every believer.
Related Articles
Laugh It Off
By Pastor Chuck Swindoll
February 14, 2023
Seven Ways to Cultivate Joy
By Insight for Living
November 2, 2022
How to Waste Your Time This Year
By Pastor Chuck Swindoll
October 8, 2015
The Winsome Witness
By Pastor Chuck Swindoll
October 8, 2015
A Reason to Smile
By Insight for Living
October 8, 2015
The Fruit of the Spirit Is Not Lemons
By Phil Callaway
October 8, 2015
Funny Truth
By Pastor Chuck Swindoll
October 8, 2015
It’s a Guy’s Life!
By Colleen Swindoll Thompson
October 8, 2015
Free to Be Funny
By Steve Johnson
October 8, 2015
Things My Mother Taught Me
By Colleen Swindoll Thompson
October 8, 2015
Things I’ve Learned from Raising Kids
By Colleen Swindoll Thompson
October 8, 2015
