{"id":381,"date":"2010-10-20T07:00:00","date_gmt":"2010-10-20T13:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/69.195.124.95\/~redletu4\/what-do-we-laugh-at\/"},"modified":"2010-10-20T07:00:00","modified_gmt":"2010-10-20T13:00:00","slug":"what-do-we-laugh-at","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davidrupert\/what-do-we-laugh-at\/","title":{"rendered":"What do we laugh at?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

If you\u00a0know me only by the words on this page, you might think I\u2019m a somber man, writing these weighty tomes. Looking back at the hundreds of posts in this blog, I sometimes gasp at the tone. That\u2019s one serious dude!<\/span><\/p>\n

But spend a half an hour with me and you\u2019ll see that\u00a0I\u2019m a joker, maybe even a jester at time.<\/span>\ufeff \ufeff\ufeff <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
\"MANCHESTER,<\/span><\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\nImage by <\/span>Getty Images<\/span><\/a> via <\/span>@daylife<\/span><\/a>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

\ufeff<\/span>I\u2019m a lover of laughter. <\/span>

<\/span>
Much to my mother\u2019s chagrin, who hoped for something much better out of her eldest son, I was voted the class clown by the George Whittell High School Class of 1980. And I\u2019ve never quit.<\/span><\/p>\n

When I\u2019m in a tough spot, a light joke helps lighten the mood. When things are tense at work, they look to me to find the levity.<\/span><\/p>\n

For the most part, it works.<\/span><\/p>\n

Laughter is a universal langauge. Go to a foreign country, where words cannot be understood, but a smile and a belly-chortle can break down any barrier. Laughter is rare when you are alone. It\u2019s a community activity that builds relationships.<\/span><\/p>\n

But what I laugh at is a reflection of the soul. What I laugh at is a reflection of my character.<\/span>When I laugh at a quip or a witty retort, it\u2019s good for the soul. But when I laugh at someone\u2019s else expense or their shortcomings, at a sexual innundo or a crude observation, it digs away at my heart.<\/span><\/p>\n

The snide, rude and the obsene have no place in my life. And when I do laugh at those things, I never really feel good about it. I cannot love the dark side of a world where I don\u2019t belong.<\/span><\/p>\n

Because Satan has misused what God intended for good, we tend to overreact with legalism. \u201cBe sober and grave<\/em>\u201d we preach with all Scriptual authority.<\/span><\/p>\n

But that\u2019s not what God intended. After all, \u201c<\/span>A merry heart is good Medicine\u201d<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

He gave us the ability to let it loose. He gave us mirth and joy and fun.<\/span>
Somehow I think that Heaven will a place of great laughter.<\/span>

<\/span>
What do you laugh at? What do you see others laughing at? <\/span>Comment here\u2026or else<\/span><\/a>!<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

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