Rev. Dr. Bary R. Fleet - Pastor
June 15, 2008 - 5th Sunday after Pentecost
Genesis 18:1-15
Romans 5:1-8  
Matthew 9:35-10;8

Sarah Laughed

Let me remind you of two biblical narratives which concern the announcement of unexpected births. In each case, the husband and wife are beyond the age when pregnancy is expected -- yet the Lord tells them that a son will be born to them.

In the New Testament book of Luke, we are informed of how an old priest named Zechariah and his wife, Elizabeth, were to become parents of the fellow we know as John the Baptist. Zechariah was at work in the temple of the Lord in Jerusalem when an angel appeared to him. This angel blurts out: "You are going to become a father."

As an aside, let me note that the appearance of an angel is, even under the most ordinary circumstances, a bit unsettling to anyone. The news this angel offers nearly prompts a coronary to this old man, Zechariah. For he is told that his wife of the past 30, 40, 50 years is going to have a baby. The Scripture tells us that when he received the information, Zechariah was struck dumb and remained speechless until the child was born nine months later.

That reaction should not surprise any of us. We do not appreciate hearing that we are expecting about the time we have the golden wedding anniversary. The Scripture goes on to tell us that Elizabeth is so embarrassed at wearing maternity tops she doesn't leave the house for five months. Once again, that strikes me as a very understandable response to a difficult and unexpected circumstance. The condition of Elizabeth must have given the ladies of the local Bridge and Gossip Club plenty to talk about. Those nine months of waiting for the birth of John the Baptist must have been extremely difficult for Elizabeth and Zechariah.

In the book of Genesis, we are told of another unexpected birth to an elderly couple. In this case, however, they handled the news differently. Abraham and his wife Sarah were in the midst of a grove of trees when three strangers arrived and announced to Abraham that his wife was going to become pregnant and deliver a son.

Sarah was sitting inside the tent and overheard this announcement. It cracks her up. The Bible tells us she laughed at the news of having a baby at her age. Hence the child will be named Isaac which means "one who laughs." Two birth announcements and two very different, but understandable reactions. Zechariah is struck dumb. Sarah laughs. Neither reaction changed the outcome. In both cases, sons were born nine months later. I do believe, however, that there was a marked difference in the ways Elizabeth and Sarah experienced their pregnancies.

Personally, I believe that Sarah had a much easier time of waiting than did Elizabeth. There is no "proof" of that. The Bible doesn't actually say there was a difference. I believe it was easier on Sarah, however, because she took advantage of one of God's greatest gifts -- the gift of laughter.

In the face of an awesome surprise, she laughed. She applied laughter as an active ingredient to make things move more smoothly. As human beings we often find ourselves in very difficult, painful, squeaky-tight situations. Laughter is the God-given oil, the lubricant which reduces the friction and helps us get through tough, tight problems. Laughter is a marvelous gift of a loving God and as such it is a gift we should carefully nurture and frequently use.

We talk about this on Father's Day because research suggests that children get their sense of humor from their fathers ... and the ability to laugh at ourselves is a gift from our Heavenly Father. 

Of course, laughter can be abused and abusive. Any of the gifts of God can be wrongly used. If we laugh to hurt people or as a way to avoid facing the issue, we abuse this gift. We should not, however, lose sight of laughter as a marvelous gift which strengthens and eases us through tough times.

For centuries people have recognized that, more than a pleasant pastime, laughter is good for us. Aristotle called it "bodily exercise precious to health." Carl Sandburg said, "Laughter is medicine for the soul." In keeping with the Reader's Digest feature, "Laughter Is the Best Medicine," scientific evidence has been added to the claims of psychology and philosophy for the beneficial effects of laughter. Apparently, laughter actually stimulates secretions from the endocrine system which reduce pain and stress.

In his well-known book, Anatomy Of An Illness, Norman Cousins tells how he treated a very painful illness by reading joke books and watching funny movies. He claimed that ten minutes of Laurel and Hardy film provided sufficient release from pain to get two hours of uninterrupted sleep.

Laughter is a gift our Lord Jesus Christ understood and practiced. Jesus, like Sarah, knew laughter can help ease us through an otherwise tight problem. Jesus frequently used humor to make a point or to lessen tension. When the Master spoke of such things as "a camel passing through the eye of a needle" or the need to "take the log out of your eye," his audience laughed. These words of immense exaggeration were spoken in tense situations. Laughter, properly applied, is the God-given lubricant to squeaky human relationships.

If you will remember, old Zechariah the priest met the problem with all seriousness and was struck speechless. His "take it all so seriously" attitude didn't change the end result. His wife delivered a nine-pound bouncing boy and they named him John. Between the announcement and the delivery, Zechariah was miserable.

Sarah on the other hand, decided to greet the news of her pregnancy with a bit of lighthearted laughter. Her laughter didn't change the end result. A son was born to her nine months later. The difference, however, was in how she experienced that wait. I suspect Sarah found the time of waiting much easier than Zechariah.

Quite frankly, that is one of the things we know about the value of laughter. So, the "moral of the story" for today is simply this:  Take God's promises very seriously ... and laugh at ourselves!  Humor is a wonderful gift of a loving Father.

Sermon taken from a sermon entitled:  "The Oil For Squeaking People" by R. Robert Cueni, found in: Tenders of the Sacred Fire, R. Robert Cueni, CSS Publishing, 1995, 0-7880-0450-6

SERMON IN A SACK:  The Comics.  Talk about which section of the paper we read ... and the importance of finding something funny every day ... something to make us laugh.