REFOCUS
Breathe deeply as you focus on God’s presence, praying the first line of the Lord’s Prayer, “Our Father who art in Heaven, holy is your name.”
READ
Genesis 17:15-18
15 God also said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you are no longer to call her Sarai; her name will be Sarah.
16 I will bless her and will surely give you a son by her. I will bless her so that she will be the mother of nations; kings of peoples will come from her.
17 Abraham fell facedown; he laughed and said to himself, “Will a son be born to a man a hundred years old? Will Sarah bear a child at the age of ninety?”
18 And Abraham said to God, “If only Ishmael might live under your blessing!”
19 Then God said, “Yes, but your wife Sarah will bear you a son, and you will call him Isaac.
Genesis 18:11-15
11 Abraham and Sarah were already very old, and Sarah was past the age of childbearing.
12 So Sarah laughed to herself as she thought, “After I am worn out and my lord is old, will I now have this pleasure?”
13 Then the Lord said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh and say, ‘Will I really have a child, now that I am old?’
14 Is anything too hard for the Lord? I will return to you at the appointed time next year, and Sarah will have a son.”
15 Sarah was afraid, so she lied and said, “I did not laugh.” But he said, “Yes, you did laugh.”
Genesis 21:9
5 Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him.
6 Sarah said, “God has brought me laughter, and everyone who hears about this will laugh with me.”
7 And she added, “Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne him a son in his old age.”
REFLECT
Last Laughs
Have you ever thought about what makes you laugh? I don’t mean a specific joke or a favorite sitcom. I’m asking why some things are funny and others are not.
Those who have studied humor suggest that a major ingredient in laughter is the element of surprise. It’s called the “incongruity theory.” Two ideas or images that we don’t normally expect to be come together are placed in close proximity. The surprise makes us laugh.
It’s one of the reasons timing is so important to humor. For a joke to work the hearer is “set up” to expect one ending but given time enough for an alternative, unexpected “punch line.” Say the punch line too quickly or separate the setup from final surprise and the joke will fall flat.
Here’s a sample of some jokes that do work. As you read notice the element of surprise (I wasn’t expecting THAT ending) and how important the pause in the middle of the joke is to its success. These come from comedian, Steven Wright.
“It’s a small world… but I wouldn’t want to paint it.”
“I got a new dog. He’s a paranoid retriever… He brings back everything because he’s not sure what I threw him.”
“I’ve been getting into astronomy so I installed a skylight… The people who live above me are furious.”
“Why is it a penny for your thoughts but you have to put your two cents in?… Somebody’s making a penny.”
“I broke a mirror in my house and I’m supposed to get seven years bad luck… but my lawyer thinks he can get me five.”
“I spilled Spot remover on my dog… and now he’s gone.”
The story of Issac’s birth outlined in the scriptures, is accented with laughter throughout. Abraham is promised that he will be the father of nations, but for years he cannot even father a son. Then, after a series of missteps, and a “do it yourself” project, God tells Abraham that the time for the first born is right around the corner.
There is only one small problem. Sarah, Abraham’s wife, is 90 years old! Abraham’s response is to fall down laughing. Later when Sarah hears the news she laughs too. The idea of an old lady giving birth is so absurd, it’s funny.
Still, both Abraham and Sarah realize that laughing at God’s promises is in sharp contrast to believing in an all-powerful and trustworthy God. They don’t mean to be irreverent, but they are taken by surprise by God’s plan. So, when questioned about their laughter they seek to hide both it and the disbelief it reveals.
Yet, it seems that God had the last laugh. With the birth announcement comes Divine instructions on what to name the boy. They are told to name him “Isaac” which means “He laughs.” Just who it is that is laughing is unclear. I’d suggest that the uncertainty in the name is purposeful because, in fact, everyone laughs. God has worked in a way that is delightfully surprising. He has come through when it seemed preposterous, silly, even laughable to trust.
For Abraham and Sarah, the initial laughter of disbelief and incongruity has become the laughter of pure joy. Finally, they have a son!
For those who know or meet the family the name is a “set up.” Just imagine the conversation when someone asks Sarah her baby’s name? She answers, “His name is ‘he laughs.’” They wrinkle their brow and say “Who laughs?” followed quickly by “why would you name a child that.” And as she begins to explain and tell the story, a celebration of God’s grace, power, faithfulness and sovereignty in the face of disbelief begins all over again.
For God, it is clear that the joke is on Abraham. In choosing the name he is saying, “remember how you laughed when I told you that you were going to have a son? Now who’s laughing?” Or in the words of the old Yiddish proverb, “if you want to hear God laugh, tell him your plans.”
Again, it is the timing that makes it all so wonderfully funny. Had Isaac been born a year after God promised Abraham he would make him the “father of nations,” no one would be laughing. But the long pause—God’s perfect timing—results in heightened joy, and revelation.
Those who read the story (including us) have to ask themselves about their own plans and limits in trusting God. We, like Abraham, need to be reminded that “nothing is too difficult for God.” We, like Sarah need to know that our God is so good he turns even unbelief into an occasion for rejoicing. We need not and we cannot hide our sin.
Will we trust God’s promises even when it seems silly to do so? Will we realize that it is our plans, not God’s, that are truly laughable. Since he who laughs last is God himself, we might want to laugh with Him and realize that the joke is always on us. Wait for it—and know that our surprising God will deliver the punch line.
RESPOND
Questions to Consider
- How does thinking of God as laughing mesh with your image of God?
- Can you think of a time that God may have laughed at your plans or the silliness of your actions?
- What plans of yours do you need to trust Him in so that they do not become laughable?
- What is the most recent thing that made you laugh in celebration and joy?
Prayer
Almighty God,
I watch for you. I want to see You, to know You and to follow Your lead in all that I do and all that I am. Holy Spirit guide my thoughts. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.
Blessings,
Rev. James R. Needham, PhD, MDiv