Laughter Is The Best Medicine
Marriage Retreat
When my husband and I first got married, we were gifted a weekend get away at our church from his parents, a “Marriage Retreat” put on by the church we attended. It was fun, even though at that point we really just wanted to get away alone, we weren’t very social! We had already had some major trials having a blended family, and just needed to breathe. Our Pastor said something along the lines of, “You just have to learn to laugh, even in the tough times.” He detailed all of the trials of their marriage in the first couple of months and years and said they had learned to laugh and have joy in the midst of them!
Imagination Gone
At this point we all laughed, and sat and listened as a Great man of God exampled how to have a great marriage. I know we both were thinking, “How do you do that, laugh when your world seems turned upside down?” We both agreed later that was the case. Our imagination was gone at this point thinking of all the things that had come against us, our marriage, and of course just becoming one. Where does laughter come in?
Laughter
The bible tells us Laughter is the best medicine. In Proverbs 17:22 Solomon the richest and wisest man ever to live tells us, “A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones.” So laughter is good for you! It is said, that frequent and whole-hearted laughter actually helps your body to fight off harmful diseases. By altering levels of control in your body, laughter lowers stress and fights off diseases. What then does a broken spirit do?
Down In The Dumps
Have you ever just felt like Charlie Brown, nothing ever seems to go your way? Or you know someone who is always struggling? They probably don’t feel well either. This doesn’t mean that everyone who is sick is negative, Job was almost destroyed by his pain, loss, and body falling apart. He really wasn’t so happy about it. I don’t think any of us would be either, so have compassion on those who are sick and sad. But what happens if we learn to praise, laugh and be joyful in the center of our hurt?
Praise Changes The Atmosphere
I know I have personally had a lot of sickness, surgeries, and pain in my life. I know there have been times I too have had a rough time being positive in it all, but I have learned to praise, and praise to the Lord changes the atmosphere! It changes the way I look at things, and I have seen God heal my body over and over again. When I felt I had no hope, I found my hope in the Lord, by reading His word and by Praising Him!!
The Laughing Game
When I was younger, I was asked to try a game for a class that seemed so silly, but was fun to see the results. You would lay on the ground, and someone would lay with their head on my stomach, and then someone on theirs, and so forth. The first person would make themselves start to laugh and then, you guessed it, laughter was contagious!! Everyone was truly laughing at the end.
Finding Joy In Heartache
So what do you do when life throws you a curve ball? Do you drown in the pain of it, or sulk, or give up? What if your marriage is on the rocks, or an affair has happened, a loss of a job? You will probably cry, be hurt, feel the emotions God gave you. Then like David, after he had sinned and then lost his child as a result, you wipe your tears, pray, praise God for His goodness, and let the joy of the Lord be your strength. This isn’t a quick or easy answer.. this isn’t a slap in the face either. We have had hard times and we still have loss in our life, we still have things that catch us off guard, but we put our trust in God, and we learn to find joy and laughter in all of life.
Prayer
Our prayer for you today is for your marriage, that you learn to weather the storms of life with a little levity. A little bit of laughter, joy unspeakable and full of glory, to walk hand in hand, and find a way to laugh. We all need to move into a place of stability in our life, marriage, and family. We have learned to love hard, forgive often and quickly, and laugh at ourselves and even find joy in each moment we are given whether good or bad. The joy of the Lord is our strength!! Live, Laugh, and Love!!
Scriptures
Monday: James 5:13 says, “Is any among you afflicted? let him pray. Is any merry? let him sing psalms.” I know when I start to sing, this works both ways, I become merry! So sing a song today, maybe it will be off key and you and spouse will both laugh!
Tuesday: Proverbs 15:15 says, “All the days of the afflicted [are] evil: but he that is of a merry heart [hath] a continual feast.” Even in the worst of times, if you have a merry heart you are blessed! Pray today God help you to have joy!!
Wednesday: Proverbs 17:22 says, “A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones.” Praying you laugh today, take a walk with your spouse, play a game, tell a joke, but laugh together and often.
Thursday: Psalm 126:2 says, “Then was our mouth filled with laughter, and our tongue with singing: then said they among the heathen, The LORD hath done great things for them.” When this world is coming against you, your marriage, or family, wait to see what God will do and then you can laugh and sing! Because He does great things!!
Friday: Job 8:21 says, “Till he fill thy mouth with laughing, and thy lips with rejoicing.” Sometimes we just need to praise until He fills us!! It will change everything when you praise!
Saturday: Genesis 21:6 says, “And Sarah said, God hath made me to laugh, [so that] all that hear will laugh with me.” Laughter is contagious and can make you feel so much lighter!! Pray today to impart laughter into your marriage! Sarah was so joyful at the thought of God answering her prayer all these years later that she knew it would bring joy and laughter to all who knew her struggle.
Sunday: Ecclesiastes 3:4 says, “A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;” We have been given emotions to deal and express how we feel, we need to not skip the process of feeling, or we will see an explosion in our world one day. Pray God help you to allow yourself to feel but to have joy and laughter in each step.
Contact
Please feel free to contact us at janene@happilyevermarried.org or share and read more blog posts at http://happilyevermarried.org
Thank you for investing in your marriage and you to can have a happily ever married.
#marriageretreat #laughter #marriage #joy #love #trials #emotions