by Dave and Jan Dravecky
Jan and I loved the movie Patch Adams. So did a lot of other people. It was a box office hit. Humor sells, especially when it is presented as the bright spot it is in the dark world of suffering. Humor allows us to momentarily step out of our reality and get perspective, balance, and endorphins-the feel good" chemicals our body produces when we laugh.
We know it isn't always easy to find humor or to be humorous in the face of adversity. And most of us don't have Patch Adams for a doctor. At our lowest point, God brought into our lives friends who laughed all the time. Their laughter was contagious, and through their influence, we learned to choose to laugh when things went awry. They helped us see that we could look at a situation and be frustrated and use up our endorphins, or we could laugh at the situation and build up those endorphins.
The ability to laugh benefits us today as well. Not long ago we spoke about pain and suffering during all three services at our home church. For Jan, it's always a little traumatic when we speak together. She is "Miss Organized" and has to have everything planned out. I'm more spontaneous and it drives her nuts. So we sat down and worked out our outline in detail. One of the last things she said to me was, "Dave, please don't digress. When you do that, I don't know what to say." I'll let her finish the story.
Our talk went well Saturday night and at the 8:00 a.m. service, so by the 9:15 service-the only service they videotape and audiotape-I'm feeling good. I'm really comfortable, perhaps too comfortable. In the middle of the presentation, instead of saying "prolonged stress affects the brain," I said, "prolonged sex affects the brain." I immediately saw the audience react and realized what I had said.
For a moment I was horrified and didn't know what to do. Then I realized the humor in my mistake, so I looked at David and said, "I can't believe I just said sex." That honesty gave everyone permission to laugh-and the congregation howled! Dave was rocking back and forth on his seat and had tears running down his face. Then he picked up his notes and said, "I don't know about you honey, but that isn't in my notes!" Then I started laughing and everyone started laughing harder.
There we were, in the midst of talking about pain and suffering, and we were laughing. After a few minutes we regained our composure and continued. After the service, they sold a record number of audio and videotapes!
Laughter is a gift. It doesn't mean we deny the reality of what is happening, but it does provide a momentary distraction from the pain. It is a healthy diversion-good for the body as well as for the soul. When we choose to laugh, our difficulties become easier to bear.
So through this issue, we encourage you to laugh. Look for the joy that "comes in the morning." We want to give you the opportunity to put all the hard stuff on hold and enjoy a good belly laugh.
We also realize that you may not be in a place where you can laugh right now. If that is your situation, don't feel guilty. Put this issue aside for today, but remember it is there. Sooner or later, you will be ready to laugh again. We want you to enjoy it."
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