Laughing Matters

Now the Lord was gracious to Sarah as He had said, and the Lord did for Sarah what He had promised.  Sarah became pregnant and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at the very time God had promised him.  Abraham gave the name Isaac to the son Sarah bore him.  When his son Isaac was eight days old, Abraham circumcised him, as God commanded him.  Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him.

Sarah said "God has brought me laughter, and everyone who hears about this will laugh with me." And she added "Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children?  Yet I have born him a son in his old age." (Genesis 21:1-7)

Sarah learned to laugh at the unexpected turns of her days.  At first she laughed rather inappropriately at God when she heard she would bear a child in her nineties.  She laughed with the pain of unbelief and doubt.  Later she laughed with God out of pure joy when she held Isaac, whose name means "he laughs."  She laughed out of pure joy at God's power and provision.

There are so many heavy challenges in life!  Will my toddler ever be potty-trained?  How will I survive the years of puberty with an eye-rolling preteen?  What about becoming a mom--again--at age forty-six?  Try Sarah's approach.  The next time you lack perspective on the chaos of your days, consider the lighter side of life.  Find something to laugh about!