GOODNEWSLETTER
Number 372 May 18, 2011
LAUGHTER
"Sorrow is better than laughter: for by the sadness of the countenance the heart is made better.
The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning; but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth," Ecclesiastes 7:3 & 4.
I just turned 70 years of age on May 16th. Do I feel old? Compared to Methuselah, I'm 599 years younger. So, no! Neither am I coaxing a present out of anyone. It's that my age allows me to remember back when the population was a whole lot more serious about life. The folks took things; especially eternal matters, very seriously. The rule of that day was WISDOM. Today, in this thrill seeking, laugh-track kind of life that has been shoved in our faces, it seems that no one cares about anything but fun, fun, fun.
My grandparents were serious folks, I recollect fondly. In fact, the entire state of Alabama walked seriously back in the 40's and 50's. Church was well attended, too. Of course, there was much laughter in the South, and even in California, where I was moved to in the early 40's. In Chowchilla, my cousin Richard thought he could ride the pig that roamed around the farm. He didn't! It was "a time to laugh" (Eccl. 3:4) and, we certainly did.
We used to ride the calves in Dad's corral, too. My other cousin, Leon, got on a calf that bucked him right in the watering trough. Now, that was a side splitter; another "time to laugh." I still chuckle, thinking about it. Life was serious and life was wholesome back in those days. It was a great time to live in, but things have changed.
This article isn't about our time, however, or any time, for that matter. It's about life, in general. When we get serious about this life, we find that the Bible teaches on this subject in nearly every segment. Certainly, I believe what the Book says. I attempt to practice what it reveals. And when I do, I see clearly the meaning of life's seriousness. Over and over we read "Seek," "Ask," and "knock." The blessed idea is, when we do what the Book says, the meaning of life comes to the forefront. We realize that we don't have a whole lot of time on this earth. We learn what is required of us and, sometimes, we tremble. God is Holy and, He is serious.
When life's meaning is before our eyes, thinking matches up with Solomon's. Does yours? Solomon lived the best of lives with everything at his fingertips. God's word puts him as the third king of Israel; the wisest man that lived. Just ask the Queen of Sheba about that!
Solomon lists some of those things he did to find happiness but, finally concluding that, "laughter was mad: and of mirth, What good is it?" (Eccl. 2:2). In the end, Solomon states that mankind has to find out just how serious it is to be alive.
It does matter how we live; for, one day soon, all of us shall stand before the Lord of heaven and give an account of how seriously we took His word and applied it to our life. It seems that Solomon learned about life after living many years. But, he wrote it down so others can know how to spend out their time on this terrestial orb. His final words of the Bible were: "...fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil," Ecclesiates 12:13.
Again, we are speaking about life in general, not any specific time period. But, we think that the 2000's have produced some of the nuttiest people that has ever lived. Everybody does his own thing. In these final years before the return of Jesus, man wants is his freedom, that's all. Church is not well attended, anymore.
But, with a mind-set of what Solomon concluded, we can overcome and please the Lord in all that we do. And, there's Jesus. His message was exactly as Solomon's. Yes! Jesus taught about the seriousness of life. Man o man, did He? In fact, His total life was about the seriousness of time and what we are to do with it. In every example, we are clearly shown that Jesus sought out the way to please to His Father, everytime.
Jesus taught His disciples to do the same; even, telling us them the outcome of being serious minded. In the beatitudes, Jesus said, "Blessed are ye that weep now: for ye shall laugh," Luke 6:21. There is a change for the good that is coming to the serious minded. However, to show that He means business, Jesus turns it around in verse 25. "Woe unto you that laugh now! For ye shall mourn and weep." We can laugh now or, we can act like the Father is in the next room and we had better follow the rules. You know what, He is! The Heavenly Father knows everything we do, all the time.
Today, everyone wants to be happy; cracking up all the time. In order to follow the world, laugh-tracks have been produced to encourage us to join in with them. However, we don't need no stinkin' track! There's another aid that we go to. It's God's Word, the Bible. The Holy Writ explains to us the seriousness of life by putting us within the Spiritual realm. When we get close to God, there's no other choice for the serious minded man. Rather than seek men's advantage, we go to the Bible and follow what it says about life. Only in the Book will we find the complete and final words for life and of life; whether, it's this life or, the one coming!