Lighten Up! - Jodi Crago

Lighten Up!

By Jodi Crago

Lighten Up! I often get asked about being a Christian and having a sense of humor. Is having a sense of humor a godly characteristic? Is it appropriate? Shouldn't we be more stoic and scholarly?

One afternoon, God spoke to me in a loud and clear voice about being so serious, and He didn't need great wireless coverage or texting ability!

Earlier this year, when I was alone at home, an unusual sound outside caught my attention. The very moment I stepped out onto our front porch, THOUSANDS of black birds descended on our neighborhood . . . or maybe it was tens of thousands. I had never seen so many birds in one place - ever! In one giant wave of motion, the entire flock lifted off of the ground, and I literally FELT it. It made me catch my breath.

Blessed (and cursed) with a completely bizarre imagination, I started waxing poetic and getting philosophical: God, this is amazing...wow ! The power! Your great wings...they shield us... and we soar on them... The harmony of the flock, the sheer mechanics of it all, lift and drag ratios, blah blah blah... I felt like I could have written a haiku, a sonnet, and a thesis right at that moment. What are you showing me here, God? Is this a metaphor or wh--? Suddenly, my multi-tasking brain had no thought whatsoever. Nada. I heard God say: (after a noticeable vacuum of silence): Uhhh...well. That's great, Jodi. Really. I love your use of powerful metaphors there, but I sent them because I know you LOVE birds. WHAAAAT??? That certainly wasn't God, was it? A "just-because" from God? Come on! What is that supposed to mean, God ??! I mean, aren't I supposed to be serious-minded and long-suffering (do you cringe when you hear that, too?) and all of that Christian mumbo-jumbo ?

     Immediately, I was struck at how "funny" those birds were. My whole life I have found a lot of things humorous, including the erratic behavior of birds. There they are, hopping around on their little spring-loaded legs with no direction or rhythm whatsoever, like they were on some crazy chess board or something. When I was a little girl, I watched them bounce around our yard. I would imagine dialogues between them. I would tell myself funny little stories and just laugh and laugh. I do this now with my kids in front of fish tanks and we all laugh ourselves silly!

      I can think of numerous times where well-meaning friends have accused me of NOT taking things seriously:   "You can't turn everything into a joke...that's denial ! And GOD is NOT a comedian, OK? He is like the ultimate un-funny kind of dude...on high." Au contraire! A person cannot find real humor in anything without first acknowledging its existence! And, God NOT being "funny"? Have you ever seen armadillos? What is up with THAT blueprint? I like to think God is giggling in the background when we stumble on some of [His creations! He is the master of the practical joke.

      OF COURSE there is a time and place for everything. including joy and laughter and pure delight. I think it is too easy for Christians to get infected with "somberitis" and end up exhausting other Christians around them by draining the joy out of their own lives. Remember that God gives us free will. We can choose to use our free will to deny the fullness of God-given pleasure, joy and personality, which I suggest leads us to be marginal, judgmental, and boring.

   Lighten Up! - myfriendDebbie.com I know from my own personal walk with Christ that I got stuck in "humble student" mode for years. I approached God's throne with utter fear that He was just waiting to strike me down for my failure to learn. Years of hating myself and wrong thinking didn't just go away when I became a Christian. Those lies needed to be pulled out by their roots as God was remolding my heart. I reasoned that because I didn't deserve anything and that I was responsible for every misfortune in the world. Why would it be different with God? I thought my newly-found relationship with Jesus Christ would help me deal with the vast wasteland that I was and bring me to a place where I would gleefully accept my nothingness. That sounds like a lot of fun. No wonder non-believers doubt and are put off by some of the Christians they encounter! Yikes.

     The term a 'walk with Christ' alone implies movement. God is dynamic! It's time to move on to another level of relationship with God. God is just waiting to reveal more and more of Himself to us. God's Word says: "Jesus came so that we could have life and have it more abundantly." God does not clip coupons or order only from the a la carte section. He is not cheap and dull... and what about the God in the Bible who "gives us all of these things for our enjoyment"? Not to throw under a spiritual microscope and painstakingly look for the lesson, the point, the purpose, the agonizing truth... but simply to enjoy! I know this is hard to grasp; I barely understand it. Frankly, it makes my brain hurt!

      Finding humor in almost every situation is completely doable. Ask God to SHOW YOU. I am constantly thinking of unusual analogies, metaphors, and one-liners from God. I don't come up with this stuff by myself. I'm just not that clever. Understanding and experiencing the fullness of God applies to every facet of our lives. God is a God of abundance. All you have to do is ask.