He Laughs

 In the Bible, names are very important. They have meanings and are not just random sounds. Our modern names are the same. Look up the meanings of your personal name and/or surname. For example, The male personal name Robert is derived from the name Hrodebert which comes from two Germanic words, hrod (glory, fame) and berht (shining, bright). The female personal name Melissa is a direct transliteration of the Greek word μέλισσα (honeybee).

In the story of Abraham, Sarah, and Isaac their names are extremely important.  They show that God is directly and personally involved in history. I believe that, in this biblical account, God shows himself to have a sense of humor and he shows that what he announces and promises will happen. He uses Isaac’s name as a reminder.

God promised to the elderly Abram and his 90+ years-old wife, Sarai, that he would give them a son. They both quietly chuckled to themselves at the seemingly absurd promise, not realizing that God would know that they thought it was funny.

Commenters have pointed out that God directly inserted himself into human history when he changed the names of Abram (Strong’s H87, אַבְרָם) and Sarai (Strong’s H8297, שָׂרַי) to AbraHam (Strong’s H85, אַבְרָהָם) and SaraH (Strong’s H8283, שָׂרָה). Many believe that the H (ה)  reflects the tetragrammaton JHWH (Yahweh, Strong’s H3068, יְהוָֹה), one of God’s names.

God told the couple to name their child Isaac (Strong’s H3327 and H3446, יִצְחָק). The name means he laughs. Some might see this as a sarcastic response to the couple but most commenters say instead that this is a reminder that God can do what he says he will do. Whenever they said their beloved son’s name, they would be reminded that they laughed and doubted but that God fulfilled his promise.

“For the LORD of hosts hath purposed, and who shall disannul it? and his hand is stretched out, and who shall turn it back?” Isaiah 14:27. The obviously expected answer here is no one.

Genesis 17:5, 17:15-19, 18:10-14; Isaiah 14:27.

There is Power in the Blood

Lewis E. Jones (1865-1934) was a YMCA (Young Men's Christian Association) worker who wrote  the hymn, There is Power in the Blood (1899). He is recorded as having said, "I want to be so full of Christ that when a mosquito bites me he flies away singing there is power in the blood."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SeTE0W7K4sU

Biblical Sources of Common English Phrases: Laughter is the best medicine

 

Laughter is the best medicine is a popular saying in English. The origin of the phrase is believed to have come from Proverbs 17:22 (NIV): "A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones."  (שָׂמֵחַ sameach joyful, gleeful, happy, merry: Strong’s 8056)

לֵב שָׂמֵחַ יֵיטִב גֵּהָה וְרוּחַ נְכֵאָה תְּיַבֶּשׁ־גָּרֶם

Religious Humor: Laziness

The Bible actually contains many instances of humor which we may not readily recognize today because our modern culture does not understand the ancient worldviews. Their humor was often based on sarcasm, hyperbole, metaphors, absurdity, ridiculous visual images, and displaying idiocy in full view.  The humor is intended to make a spiritual point. An example occurs at Proverbs 26:15.

A literal translation of this verse from the Proverbs is: Hides a lazy one his hand in the bowl it wearies him to bring it back to his mouth.

The pleasure of eating is not enough of a reward for the lazy man to raise his hand to his mouth. He is too much of a sluggard, too lazy to move at all.

This is a warning against spiritual laziness. If you are too lazy to act on spiritual matters of the moment, like prayer, charity, and Bible study, you will miss out on the immediate pleasures of the spirit and will eventually starve.

In 1 Corinthians 9:24-27, Paul uses sports examples while speaking about being intentional, practicing self-discipline, and working to win rather than just being a participant, an also ran. 

Trout Ice Cream

 If you enjoy making homemade ice cream, why not be adventurous? Try ice creams made with uncommon ingredients: pickles, corn, carrots, tofu, bacon, ham, avocados, butterbeans, etc.  Some of them sound as if they might be quite good. 

Japanese Iron Chef Hiroyuki Sakai is known to have made cod roe ice cream. In 2019, on Iron Chef America, chef Morimoto Masaharu, a fish expert, made trout ice cream. The judges unanimously told him to never make it again. 

A Christian understanding which can be taken from this event is that, in our Christian freedom, just because you can do something, that does not mean that you should or even that you must do it.

Surprisingly to me, the Google AI function expressed this very well. "Christian freedom does not mean a license to indulge in sinful desires or do whatever one pleases, but rather a freedom from the bondage of sin and an opportunity for serving others through love, as well as doing what is good, true, and beautiful in obedience to God's will. It is freedom to live a holy life, act in love, and serve others, not freedom to pursue fleeting desires or self-indulgence."

Broke

 I stay broke more often than the Ten Commandments.

The Voice of God

Today, I went to The Waffle House, a local restaurant, to get takeout breakfast for myself and my wife. When I got home, my wife was still in bed so I called her name and said "Get up!"

Out of a deep sleep, she suddenly shot straight up and looked around the room, breathing heavily. Then she laughed.

"I was dead asleep, " she explained. "I thought it was the Lord calling me home!"

One day we will all hear the Lord's voice, some to their great delight, others not so much.

Just Under the Surface

While in line at the grocery store I noticed the text on the tee shirt worn by the man standing behind me. He was grumbling about the current shortages of some items on grocery store shelves. I suppose that he thought his tee shirt was witty or funny but it may have spoken more than he meant to express. The text was


                                DON'T MAKE ME VIOLATE MY PAROLE! 


The message is a subtle threat. He is expressing that "I am angry and seething inside and if you irritate me in any way I may respond with physical violence." Any police officer can tell you that there are many people like this. I suspect that the numbers of these sociopathic people would horrify you. We live in a fallen lost world.

(For those who may not know, parole is the early release of persons from criminal incarceration based on their good behavior while incarcerated.)

Peanuts

I do not know the source of this story. Those viewing this in translation may wish to read the synopsis below because this story will probably not translate well.
____________________________________________________________________________
The new preacher in town had for several days been visiting all the church's elderly members and especially those who were "shut-ins" in poor health. Blanche was the last person on his list.

Blanche was a kind old lady who had long ago lost all her teeth. She absolutely refused to get dentures and therefore had the sunken lips look of a very old person with no teeth. Her speech was affected by her lack of teeth. She was delighted to see the preacher.

"Oh, preachah! I'm tho happy to thee you!"

"Blanche, I'm glad I could come by."

The two sat on the couch and talked about the church and Blanche's health until the phone rang.

"O, preachah,  I gotta go get that. Ith probably Hortenth.  The callth me every day about thith time. I'll be back ath thoon ath I can."

"OK, Blanche. I'm not going anywhere."

 The phone call seemed to drag on and on and the preacher felt a rumbling in his stomach. He saw a bowl of peanuts on the end table and knowing that Blanche would not mind, took a small handful. Then another handful. Then another. Suddenly, to his dismay, he realized that he had consumed the entire bowl of peanuts.

When Blanche came back into the room, the preacher apologized profusely, but Blanche was not concerned.

"Oh preachah, thath OK! I done thucked all the chocolate off of 'em anyway!"

________________________________________________________________________________
This is a joke story: A new preacher visits an elderly church member and in her brief absence to answer a phone call eats all the peanuts from a bowl on a table. When the preacher apologizes for having eaten all the woman's peanuts she tells him not to be concerned because she had already sucked all the chocolate off the peanuts.

Cat chases it's tail.

Cat chases it’s tail.

Jesus laughs as Zebedee

yells and shakes his hands


Boanerges is an Aramaic word meaning "sons of thunder."  Jesus gave this nickname to his disciples James and John. The term is never explained further and has engendered many attempts at interpretation.

The Bible says that Jesus knew the hearts of men (John 2: 24-25) and some commentators believe that Jesus gave the nickname to the men in reference to the two brother's loud and hot-headed nature as shown in Luke 9:54.  This may well be the correct interpretation, but there are others.

Dr. James Blevins, my Greek professor at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, believed that the meaning of the phrase laid in "thunder" rather than "sons." The nickname was humorous. He envisioned Zebedee as red-faced and spitting and bubbling as his sons tossed away their fishing nets and followed Jesus.

Dude With a Limp

Michael Jr. tells you that he is a stand-up comedian. His jokes and stories have people rolling in the aisles. Then, he pulls out the Sword of the Lord and thrusts. This is a man of God. This is an evangelist.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tX1_5DzWNxw

Junior, the French Bulldog Joins In

Junior, a French Bulldog, joins in as his owners sing along with the Josh Groban song, “You Raise Me Up.” The two men in the video are Emanuele Tiburzio and Walter Ledenmueller, who live in Köln, Germany.

Josh Groban, who has never publicly declared his current religious status , was raised as an Epicopalian.  His father converted from Judaism in order to marry Josh’s mother.  Groban has a large Christian following because of the inspirational nature of his songs and has sold over 20,000,000 albums in the last ten years.

The Prime Minister of Humor

Grady Nutt, an ordained Southern Baptist minister, was professionally known as The Prime Minister of Humor.  He appeared weekly on the country music and comedy based television series, Hee Haw. His hilarious church-related comedy was based on the culture of the southern region of the United States. His appearances at churches and religious events always led to a sermon based on the jokes with which he began his talk.

Grady Nutt died in an small airplane crash.

http://www.the-cartoonist.com/Nutt/Nutt.html

http://www.gradynutt.com/about.html

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I6w-HkQrxgQ

But I Don't Want to Go!

I am posting this video simply because I can.  Bella is swimming and enjoying it very much until it is time to go home.

http://theilovedogssite.com/gone-viral-dog-throws-hissy-fit-when-told-its-time-to-stop-swimming/

Does this look and sound familiar?

What They Think of Us: The Success of United States Soccer Goalie Tim Howard Spawns Jesus Jokes

Tim Tebow found out what happens when a celebrity is open about their faith.

United States Soccer goalie Tim Howard gave the world a brilliant performance versus Belgium in the World Cup round of 16, making a record sixteen saves on some point-blank close-in shots. He has openly declared his allegiance to Jesus and has dedicated his play to Jesus’ glory. Soon afterwards, people began calling him “Bald Jesus” for his numerous saves.  Then the jokes started appearing.

http://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/29syvs/whats_the_difference_between_tim_howard_and_jesus/

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/worldcup2014/article-2677575/Tim-Howard-virals-The-best-internet-pictures-praising-USA-goalkeepers-great-display-against-Belgium.html

http://theodysseyonline.com/charleston/tim%20howard-%20more%20saves%20than%20jesus%20christ/60993

You Will Be Unable to Keep a Straight Face

Everyone has at times been fidgity or sleepy or distracted at church.  Mr. Bean just takes it to extremes.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bh__g-ZZ6WA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=01-ndBVwf3U

Another Light Bulb Joke: Hebrew Prophets

One.
How many Hebrew prophets does it take to change a light bulb?

Another light Bulb Joke: Fatalists

How many fatalists does it take to change a light bulb?
What's the point?  What difference does it make?

Another Light Bulb Joke: Thanalogists

How many Thanatologists does it take to change a light bulb?
They would not change it because thanatologists prefer dead bulbs.

Another Light Bulb Joke: Scientologists

How many Scientologists does it take to change a light bulb?
A pre-clear and an auditor need at least six auditing sessions.