Greetings in the Strong Name of Jesus!!

Proverb 13:14 - “Laughter can conceal a heavy heart, but when the laughter ends, the grief remains.” NLT

Do you remember that little saying - “Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me”?  I somehow got bamboozled with that saying, because I never found it to be true.  Oh, the sticks and stones’ part is right, but somehow whenever people say hurtful things to me...they HURT.  I thought about that saying when I read this verse.  Many times, our response to hurtful things is to laugh it off and move on.  Move on to a corner somewhere to comfort ourselves, try to forgive the one who said what they said, and get on with life.

It makes me wonder how many people there are around me who are laughing on the outside and really hurting on the inside.  We use all kinds of mechanisms to cover up our hurts and make the world think we are wonderful and everything is “peachy”.  I have a friend who has walked through a number of hurtful times in their life. Most of you who receive this email have never even come close to the hurts this person has endured.  They have endured hurtful experiences as well as hurtful words and yet, this person is the first to laugh at a good joke, play a good joke on someone or even enjoy an evening around the table with friends.  But beneath the laughter there remains some of the hurtful things of the past.  There is grief for the loss of life and pain for the loss of living.                 

I say all of this to simply remind us of the many people around us who may be laughing at our jokes, laughing at the experiences of life in others, but behind the closed doors of their life there is incredible pain.  It is not as though they are harboring bitterness or hatred over the pain, it is simply that they have never had the opportunity to share their pain in such a way as to feel they are not alone.

Because of my personal experience with cancer, eye surgery, and saying farewell to both of my parents until eternity, I can truly say I can appreciate some of the difficulties life brings us.  I know, for my sanity, I must be able to laugh.  But I must also tell you that behind the doors, fears and the pain of the experiences and death are sometimes difficult.  Rather than laughter filling my heart tears would fill my eyes.  Look around you.  Find the one who laughs the most and the loudest.  Is it possible in the night hours the laughter turns to tears?  Pray for decrement when you are with people.  Listen for their tears.  Ask God to lead you to someone who just may need an ear for an hour or two and then a strong arm on which to lean for a day or two.  May we all be ready to offer an understanding moment in the life of someone who’s laughter turns to grief when the laughing is done.

You are loved and prayed for!
Pastor Roger