I think a class on humor ought to be a requirement at every Seminary in America. That’s my crazy idea of the day.

I think I value humor above just about every other personality trait when it comes to friends and staff. You can’t work at NCC if you aren’t really good at laughing

Fun and funny. They are etymologically inseperable.

Not only is laughter biblically mandated. I think the healthiest and holiest people are the people who laugh at themselves the most. I don’t think there is near enough humor in the average church.

Anywho.

I just read a fascinating study in Psychology Today on humor. They identified four types of humor: Put-Down Humor, Bonding Humor, Hate-me Humor, and Laughing at Life.

I think put-down humor is unhealthy, but we ought to cultivate the other three types.

Bonding humor is laughing at the challenges all of us face. It is the ability to defuse a situation or reduce tension by finding something funny to laugh at. Seinfeld is the master of bonding humor. The sitcom was a show about nothing. But everybody resonated with the humor because we’ve all “been there” and “done that.”

Hate-me Humor is making yourself the butt of your own jokes. You can take this too far, but this type of humor is also a form of humility. You don’t take yourself too seriously. In the words Chris Farley, the quintessential hate-me humorist: “Let me tell you why I suck.”

Laughing at life is the ability to cope with life’s challenges via laughing at them. I think this is the only way to survive some situations. You just have to laugh.

I think most of us underestimate the spirituality of laughter. I honestly believe it is part of the imago Dei. Sure, hyennas cackle. But true laughter is unique to the human race. It is a God-given gift that ought to be cultivated to its God-given potential.

I enjoy my children’s laughter as much as I enjoy anything else they do. I think our Heavenly Father is no different. God loves our laughter.