On any given day, the newsfeeds tell us about murders, wars, and insults.  It’s not just happening over yonder- in some other state or country.  It’s happening in our neighborhoods.

Our personal issues are real– bills, schedules, family members, feelings, choices, health, and death.  If we spend some time thinking about everything that’s happening, we might just lay in the floor crying.  But cry and pray as we may, some issues stay around longer than we’d prefer.

When our situations don’t change, we can change the way we deal with them.  When we’re tired of being tired, weary from our load, sapped of our energies, and need something to change, there’s nothing like a good laugh.

Laughter is God’s gift to the weary soul.  It has medical benefits like allowing us to take in more oxygen to feed our organs, gets our stress response in right order, improves the way our blood circulates, allows our muscles to relax, reduces the impact of illnesses, and helps the body develop its own painkillers (mayoclinic.org).  Laughing allows us to get that mental break.  When we chuckle a bit, our brains recharge and our thoughts shift.  It doesn’t matter what we’re dealing with.  If we can laugh, we can feel just a bit better.

So, what’s so funny when life is so serious? When we love ourselves enough to infuse laughter into our day, we’re better people to be around. If we decide to do the unexpected, we may be shocked at how available we are to think through our issues,  encourage others and gain a new the level of strength.    

Only God knows what there is to laugh about, but in the midst of everything we face, He’s allowed us to get our chuckle on.  So let’s live well by spending time with people who make us laugh until our bellies jiggle.  Tell a ‘knock knock’ joke that’s too corny to be believed, read an encouraging book or story, or trade a joke with a child.  

Some issues are just not funny, but God can lighten our load by cheering our hearts. Today, we can live well by laughing often.