Laugh at Yourself

I was boarding a flight out of Orlando with a very tall pastor friend and someone on his staff.

The three of us were walking past the first-class cabin and my pastor friend turned around, looked way down at me and asked, “Have you ever bumped your head?” I laughed! 

Sadly, a close friend of mine arrived home from the hospital and was placed in hospice care. Another friend, Mark, and I arrived quickly to visit him in his final hours of life. We approached the hospital bed that was tucked against the side of their family room. Mark turned to our friend Kennan who was lying in the hospital bed and said, “Kennan, you have more hair than me and Tim.” We laughed!

Laughter is a gift, and when I reflect on the source of it I have to share with you some secrets from the study of comedy and the reason we respond with this external reaction called laughter. However, first I need to share something that has truly changed how I look at laughter and this powerful medicine God gave to us. Did you know the first language a baby learns is laughter? Before the newborn will ever learn the language of their mother’s tongue, the baby will laugh. I am not a theologian or a Bible scholar, but I will ask the question: Is God’s favorite language laughter? Here is another secret fact about comedy. Did you know comedians take the stage and have a conversation with the audience and the two-way communication is effectively measured and determined by the number of laughs per minute? True professional comedians will study their act by recording themselves...and then they count the laughs! 

Now, let’s reflect back to the fact about the baby laughing before speaking the native tongue of their family. According to the National Library of Medicine, children generally laugh more frequently than adults. Estimates have it that children laugh 400 times per day, while adults may laugh only 15-20 times a day. Maybe it’s time we count our laughs and start laughing at ourselves. Psalm 126:2 says, “Our mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with songs of joy. Then it was said among the nations, ‘The Lord has done great things for them.’”

Then we can turn to what’s probably the most famous Bible verse on laughter. “A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.” (Proverbs 17:22) According to the Mayo Clinic, laughter increases your immune system. It’s time we laugh more! But, how?

First, go laugh at yourself. I don’t have much hair at all and I’m not tall to say the least. I have to laugh at myself. What’s funny or fun about you? Second, spend time with children and see the wonder all around you. My eight-month-old granddaughter has not spoken one word to me, but she has giggled and smiled. My heart has heard loud and clear the joy of the Lord in her life. Third, listen to some good clean comedy.

I believe God gave us the gift of laughter for another big reason. Laughter is a shared experience. Technically, it’s social. We laugh more when we are with other people. Thankfully, God made us for community and togetherness. ~Tim DeTellis