Daily Meditations
Lately I have realized that I would not have survived this long without a sense of humor. Often it is better to laugh than to cry. We have to remember that it is hardest to laugh at ourselves and our own mistakes. Laughing reduces stress. When things go wrong stop and think about your choice. Can it be laughter?
Dear Child of God, you are loved with a love that nothing can shake, a love that loved you long before you were created, a love that will be there long after everything has disappeared. . . . And God wants you to be like God. Filled with life and goodness and laughter—and joy. —Desmond Tutu
God doesn’t want us to go around with a sad or grumpy face. That kind of expression will certainly not cause others to come to God. A face like that will turn others away from God. Leaning on God every day and knowing that we are loved should bring on a pleasant face. One that will have others asking “what do they know that I don’t?” Show that God loves me! face.
Play is not an escape; it is the way to release the life-smothering grip of busyness, stress, and anxiety….(It is) a modern expression of hope, a celebration of the flickering light of the gospel that plays with the dark by pouncing on the surrounding darkness like a cat toying with a mouse.—————Michael Yaconelli in Dangerous Wonder
I love the image of the light of the gospel pouncing on the darkness like a cat. Play is important to our health as human beings and an expression of the joy that God has given us. Play is NOT wasted time. Be sure to find ways to be playful like that cat and enjoy it.
Unexpected God, you have gifted us with the ability to play and seek out joy. Remind us how important it is. AMEN
Death gives life its fullest reality. ——————Anthony Dalla Villa, Eulogy for Andy Warhol, St. Patrick’s Cathedral, April 1,1987
Death reminds us that our time in this life is limited. Knowing that there is an end pulls us to live each day to the fullest. God created life and a universe around us. Don’t forget to stop, look, and appreciate each moment.
Amazing God, you created everything. Help us to see that every day.
Rest and laughter are the most spiritual and subversive acts of all. Anne Lamott in”Plan B: Further Thoughts on Faith”
Heaven forbid that we should sit still and fold our hands in our laps. The world would fall apart if we stopped and rested, took an afternoon off to do nothing but laugh with our friends or rest in the hammock in the yard. Look what we have done to ourselves. We have lots of new technology so that we can have more leisure time and now even leisure time is work. Will we learn again what our forbears knew? How to enjoy each other ….how to sit and rest and think and listen for God.
Hear God in Other Voices 