Christian Living

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G.K. Chesterton said, "Angels fly because they take themselves lightly."

He is correct. The value of laughter is well recognized in both medical and sacred literature. The Bible, for example, identifies laughter as "medicine to the bones." French surgeon, Dr. Henry de Mondeville, affirmed the medical or healing power of jokes or humor. He prescribed that family and friends should tell jokes while the doctor takes care of the medicine of the patient for recovery purposes.

One time, I visited an American friend of mine who was fighting cancer. Surely, he was experiencing pain, stress, and suffering. What impressed me the most about him is the fact that he would laugh at his woes and even be thankful for it! Eventually, he recovered faster than what the doctors expected.

We should be laughing at and be thankful for our sufferings! You see, without the suffering, there would be nothing to laugh at! When we laugh at our sufferings, they could disappear. Or, at least, the laugh makes our suffering more bearable, so we facilitate our healing and arrive at inner peace.

The science of medicine does point to this role of laughter in boosting our body's immune system. Doctors call it "body-mind connection" or "psychoneuroimmunology." It establishes the truth that our behavior and our mind affect the healing or condition of our physical bodies.

Another benefit of a sense of humor is you tend to make more friends. Everyone loves a colleague of mine on campus who has a gift for easily making people laugh. One of us calls him "stand up comic." The more you see his face and hear his jokes, the more you'll laugh! Having him around is like exercise. His funny face can massage the organs of your body!

Develop your sense of humor. Don't wait until you are sick before practicing laughter therapy. It is spice to your life as salt is to your boiled egg. Laugh, my friend!

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