The Party’s Not Over
I’ve decided I’m going to have fun. And I am going to enjoy my life. I know God wants me to enjoy my life. And I know He wants me to have fun!
The Bible says God richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. (1 Timothy 6:17) Unfortunately, there are many people who have difficulty believing God wants them to enjoy their lives. They REALLY think the party is over once they become a Christian.
Nothing could be further from the truth.
God loves you just the way you are. He loves you so much that while you were still a sinner, His Son, Jesus Christ, died for you. (Romans 5:8)
God accepts you as you are. Period. He wants you to feel secure in His love. Rather than trying to live up to someone’s interpretation or definition of Christian living…
Live life knowing that you are fully accepted and completely right before God regardless of what you’ve done (or what you’ve yet to do). This is the freedom that we have in Christ! (Galatians 5:1) It is a freedom rooted in knowing that we are secure in His love (no matter what). So just be yourself and enjoy your life.
Kick back, smile, and laugh a little.
Appreciate what you have, who you are, and what God has in store for you. Remember God’s plans for you are good. The Bible says a merry heart does good like a medicine. (Proverbs 17:22) But sometimes the heart needs a kick start.
So go ahead and laugh out loud. You see, laughter has tremendous power over the human body and psyche. Even if you are in the midst of a stressful situation, go ahead and laugh.
Laughter makes a difference.
If it seems like you can’t laugh right now, pray… “Jesus, in your Word, you said the joy of the Lord is my strength. Fill me with your joy. Remind me that I am accepted in you. Give me the strength to laugh right now. Thank you Lord!”
Now laugh. Your laughter is a sign that change is on the way. Joy comes from the inside out. Joy is contagious. Pretty soon, people will want to have what you have. The smile on your face is proof that the Lord is good. His love and mercy endure forever!
As I end this blog, I want you to remember that happiness is not dependent on what other people think of you. It’s based on what God thinks of you.
And we are here for each other….
Why not post a little thing that made you chuckle when you read it to make others laugh now? Got a one liner (clean of course – lol) or a cute story? Let’s start sharing and spread the smiles as far as we can.
Thanks for always being here for me and greeting me with love. I truly appreciate your kindness and value your friendship. Love you lots~ Hugs!! Have a BLESSED week Pastor Nicole~
Tracy
pastoe david always makes me laugh . love you guys
This speaks life to the younger generation about how having a relationship with Christ is not boring and ‘uptight’. It brings freedom because we know God wants us to enjoy our youth! Our God is fun God 😉
My first (and undoubtedly best) smile for the day came this morning when my little boy (age 2), who had crawled into our bed at 4:30am, rolled over to me and, without me asking for it, said, “kiiiisssss” and grabbed my face to give me a kiss, followed by “hhhhuuuugggg” and gave me a hug. It makes me forget all of the trying behaviors of a toddler 🙂
And this part – happiness is not dependent on what other people think of you. It’s based on what God thinks of you – yeah, I needed that today.
Thank you, Pastor Nicole!
Growing up I always heard “stop that *@#) laughing, nothing is ever that funny”. I will pray the prayer you shared and know, it’s ok to laugh, it’s ok.
Love your blogs and all your posts, Pastor Nicole! I was blessed once again the day I found Faith Church and Pastor Nicole!
Thank You, Dear Lord!
Christine
Have a cute story. My granddaughter (5 yrs) was talking about the family cat (Rascal) that had got sick and was now in heaven with Jesus. I was being very sympathetic and said “yes Mommy took him to the doctor and he went to heaven. Isabelle said to me “no Grandma, Mommy didn’t take him to the dr. she DROVE him to heaven”.
Love the faith and trust of a child in their mother, shame we can’t always have this faith and trust in our heavenly father.
Evelyn
Here are 3 that made me laugh:
ATTORNEY: Now doctor, isn’t it true that when a person dies in his sleep, he doesn’t know about it until the next morning?
WITNESS: Did you actually pass the bar exam?
____________________________________
ATTORNEY: The youngest son, the 20-year-old, how old is he?
WITNESS: He’s 20, much like your IQ.
____________________________________________
ATTORNEY: She had three children , right?
WITNESS: Yes.
ATTORNEY: How many were boys?
WITNESS: None.
ATTORNEY: Were there any girls?
WITNESS: Your Honor, I think I need a different attorney. Can I get a new attorney?
This is what I love about both Pastors Nicole and David Crank – they are SO funny and joyful Christians:)! When I daydream about a message I would like to give, or follow-up to one they’ve opened my mind to, I find myself singing and laughing like Pastor Dave. Thank You both for being so real and down-to-earth. So many Christians today are so down about their faith and whatever in the past that they either forget, or never knew, that it’s okay to be Positive, Joyous, Constructive Christians! And that’s not just ‘prosperity gospel’ feel-good words: it’s what Jesus would do. Amen.
I have a cute story to share Pastor Nicole My family and I just celebrated my mom’s birthday on April 29th. For her Birthday I got up extra early to fix her breakfast in bed with a very special birthday card my dogs Lilly and Rusty decided to help me surprise my mom with her breakfast. I told my mom after she ate breakfast to just relax and that I would take care of everything for the rest of the day. My dad and I went out and got my mom flowers and he helped me fix my mom her birthday dinner. At the end of the day my mom was in tears. My mom gave me a big hug and said to me “Your the best daughter any mom could ask for I’m so glad I have a daughter like you.” I always like doing nice things for my mom. Growing up with three older brothers I learned its better to give.
I have found that when things get really rough, I will laugh at the insanity of the situation, the point of “it-can’t-get-much-worse”. In that small bit of laughter, I laugh a bit more, then I feel silly and look silly and that makes me laugh more and now I’m laughing at myself and I laugh harder and get to the point where it’s that silent, can’t breathe, mouth open, no sound coming out laughter. At this point, those around me get tickled because I look utterly ridiculous, I might even snort when I try to take in a breath and THEN they all bust out laughing. Nothing funny has happened (other than my mortifying snort), our situation did not improve, but now our stress has been released, we are more relaxed and feel a little bit better and it’s all due to laughter. Great blog topic!
Needed this.
Hey Kim,
Thanks for sharing! 🙂