These past few weeks have been quite difficult for so many of you that the ''pray with ceasing" scripture has been easy to follow. Through all the troubles, tests and trials has it been hard for you to find anything to smile about let alone laugh? Believe me, I can relate!
However, although I can sympathize (and empathize), God's way of doing things somehow always causes me to look at things differently, and yes at times, even makes me laugh!
"God made me laugh."
In your quiet time have you ever found things you can laugh about with the Lord? Try it ... it won’t be as difficult as you think, trust me.
In my Bible study time I found some things that, in my eyes, God must have seen as "humorous" from His perspective. Maybe not, but I sure did, especially because they connected with me in some way.
Scripture teaches in Genesis 21:6 of a time where God caused Sarah to laugh when He did a miracle in her life. Sarah had longed to have a child of her own and even though she was up in years, the desire never went away or stopped being part of her dream of being a mother. Not having children myself, her situation was easy to understand having had simular prayers for a child along my own journey.
Everyone thought it was crazy for her to have a child at age 90, but not God and He gave her the desire of her heart ... it just took a looooooong time!
"And Sarah declared, God has brought me laughter (her son Isaac). All who hear about this will laugh with me."
If Jehovah was not laughing at how ridiculous this looked to mankind, surely He had a huge smile on His face. After all, what would be your reaction to seeing a 90 year old woman carrying her first born? I know, pretty amazing! No wonder her tears from trialsome times turned into laugher!
The story begins with Elisha and the prophets gathered by the Jordan River because it was a larger area for prayer and meetings. This new location would be perfect, so they assembled with tools in hand to begin cutting down trees to create a log area for sitting.
Suddenly as one man was chopping, his ax head flew off and landed in the water! I know that situation probably wasn't funny at the time, but the way I envision this happening, it must have been a sight to see the ax head flying off the handle and through the air into the river.
I can picture the men watching and their heads follow the action as the ax head soars up into the air and crashes down into the river sinking with a big splash!
In desperation the man cutting the tree yelled to Elisha, "Oh Sir, it was a borrowed ax!" In other words, "Oh no!!! Do something! I will have to pay for that!"
Can you picture this ... Elisha takes a deep breath, then walks over to the man. Ok ... calm down.
This is what really happened.
Elisha asked, "Where did it fall?" When the man pointed to the place, Elisha then cut a stick and tossed it into the water at the exact spot the man showed him.
Immediately, the ax head floated to the surface and Elisha shouted, "Grab it." The man reached out into the water and grabbed the ax head that was borrowed!"
What a relief that man must have felt when the ax was retrieved, and what extraordinary favor in the way it happened! After the fact and perhaps years down the road, the story of the floating ax head told by this man probably incorporated a bit of laughter.
There is always going to be something that challenges and tests our faith, yet in the midst of those events God provides a way out with unusual opportunities where He shouts - "Here, grab it." In other words God is saying - trust Me, here is the answer, grab hold of it by faith before it slips away and is gone!
A few weeks ago we found ourselves having our own tool mishap. Our beloved KC kitty was having another asthma attack. We administed her medicines and tried the inhaler but nothing was working this time. Hubby did mouth to mouth as I held her, but her tiny body did not respond and she went to Jesus in my arms almost immediately.
Hubby was experiencing pain from kidney stones again and was not up to what he needed to do for our sweet girl. The weather was brutal, cold and snowy with the ground frozen solid. For days we worked the land trying to dig a final resting place for KC. Losing daylight I held a flashlight for hubby as he dug and dug to no avail.
Suddenly the shovel broke and the end flew across the yard. We watched as it went into the air landing away from the dig site. Okay, it was dark ... but it went somewhere!
Turning to one another we began laughing ... now what are we going to do? ...oh Elisha ...
No, the situation did not change - it was a sad time with difficult circumstances, but our attitudes did and God worked everything out for our favor including Hubby passing a kidney stone and not needing surgery.
So,what is the point I am trying to make?
The lessons we can learn from Sarah and the prophet's ax head are that God does care about all the details, small or large, He is aware of our circumstances and in the midst of trouble God is always there with answers, even though they may seem strange, unlikely, impossible or humorous.
If we truly trust God and bring our cares to Him, He may provide or supply our need in surprising unusual ways of favor. Somewhere in it all there is something that will cause us to smile or laugh; not at the problem, but because God will come through with the solution and it might cause you to break out in laughter!
In the beginning there was unbelief, but in the end Sarah found laughter and new joy. The awkward flying ax story changed from a terrible unfortunate accident to a terrific impossible event that turned the prophet's crying into leaps of thankful joy.
The psalmist reminds us of God's promise when he triumphed over his enemies:
"Sing to the Lord, all you godly ones! Praise His Holy name. For His anger lasts only a moment, but His favor lasts a lifetime! Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning." (Psalm 30:4-5 NLT)
I do not know what you may be experiencing at this time, but encourage you not to give up on God - joy is coming! He holds nothing good back from you and is your hope of favor when faith seems weak.
"For the LORD God is a sun and shield; the LORD bestows (unique) favor and honor; no good thing does He withhold from those whose walk is blameless." (Psalm 84:11)
Like the anointed worship leader Don Moen wrote in an amazing song, "God will make a way, when there seems to be no way."
Believe God will do something new that will help you get through whatever it is by granting His unique favor to your situation as He did with Sarah and the perplexed prophet.
He will make a pathway to victory that you did not expect; it will cause joy and laughing to your spirit, soul and body. Then you will proclaim like Sarah, "God made me laugh!"
Until next time, favored blessings!
