"The Humor of Christian Marriage."

The difference between bitterness and forgiveness is often found just there on the other side of humor.

Story after story can be told of how things that would split a couple up, have been relieved for us through my sweet mans silliness.
He has the gift of humor.
Now I on the other hand am very serious.
I need him so much.
Our boy too has his fathers gift.
Our children will sit in the car on trips and try to tell each other jokes and silly things to get a good laugh. It would amaze me that Dove would have Dash tell her the same joke over and over and the 20th time would just about be as funny as the first spontaneous tale.
Going to the library or book store we would get tasteful joke books for the kids.
When they turned five or so we would introduce them to knock knock jokes.
We have a strange little silly that I do, and have done with them for ever, I do not know where it came from. They will say "guess what?" and I reply "butter cup"?
"no Mom"...guess what?.......and then they tell of the thing in thought.
I get a second to shift gears and they share a smile in time with me. Relaxed they continue.

Now Pappy (God) and I do these silly things too.
There is the dime and the penny thing.
When we were young married if I was ever wondering if something was His way He would cause me to find a penny. I would always hear "take care of the small things and I will grant your greater things to tend to".
One time, it was a very intense time , with a great question on the thing that we had to choose. I was before Him and a penny on the curb was followed by a dime and a "I mean it! 10 fold girl"...
For many many years now it is a sweet humor he shares with me.
Like just this week end, The change back from having the truck fixed ...
Placed in my hand was ...yes a penny and a dime.
Hubby looked over as I showed him the coins, we smiled at one another that knowing "everything is alright" little grin.
Last night while resting here at my keyboard I heard laughter erupting from the family during story time with their Daddy.
I was drawn in,and heard Dove telling her tale. Now I have "pinked sworn" that I will not repeat it here. It was so wonderfully contagious. Daddy told her "tell mom"...
She repeated her story...we all rolled in laughter.
Then Dash told of his dream a few nights before. He described the sounds of the Lab gagging and then following dog puke all the way out side... as we laughed the embellishments became more and more colorful and silly.
He had us hooked on his every word and like Dove moments before became infused by our rapped attention.
We all laughed and were so silly .
It took a lot of time to get them wound down again, but the infusing of the healing powers of our laughter released stress and filled us .
Our cords were woven tighter.
Now, if we remind each other of a bit of the tale we have an everlasting connection of the silliness that can be brought back up in a moment of refreshing rest.
Christmas Morning at the table along with the Bible was a silly book of jokes that Dove had purchased with her own allowance.
We relaxed with a few knock knock jokes.

I just read this post, that far to the Daddy Man.

Dove just came up to him asking him where something was.
He told her that they would do the Vulcan mind meld. Dove said "what?" ...
He told her of the show Star Trek and that the funny race of Vulcan would do this and then showed her the thing with the fingers on the head..."oh the pain!...he acted out silly then said the porch..." ....and she stood there looking at her crazy daddy...She said dad where is it? He looked at her and lifted a hand in an exaggerated fashion...she said "Oh the porch" and we all laughed at his display. Now she knows about the fictional characters and that the process of mind meld is a fictional thing. You know one day she will face a New Age'er that will try to tell her they can do that. She will have a foundational experience of "oh ya, my daddy told me about the show where a fictional guy did that"...

Humor is a teaching tool that can cause wisdom to root deeply into the heart of a man and rest there comfortably.

Humor is also a defuse here in our home.
Many times for me having a Stress Disorder (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) can be a crippling illness. My beloved can cause me to come out of a lock up of triggered emotion (response to a similar historical situation that will cripple me).
He can change the tide as it were of the similarity.

You know humor was a rare commodity in my childhood unless it was at another expense.

Speaking of that, we have boundaries with our humor.

It is NEVER funny if it is at another expense.

We teach that.
We teach what cruelness is in humor.
We do not allow that humor.
It is always corrected, even if it is an adult or parent who miss judges the thought to be funny.
We also encourage and permit our children to respectfully speak up to an elder who finds it funny to humor at another expense. I will not correct my kids if they do so.

I think that is the biggest difference, in a humor that is Christ Like...
It is NEVER crewel.

Many of my siblings have a difficult time with humor.
For us it was crewel.
It was based in lifting one up by stepping on another.
It was a humor that was based in ridicule, embarrassment and shame.
A humor based in racial, socio/ecomic, or cultural defamation.
This is the type of humor that is found more acceptable in many churches and so called Christian homes and environments.
Often this humor is based in the wounds of war, job loss and territorial losses suffered by a minority or majority that fears for it's survival.

This is unacceptable!
This is repulsive to me.
Fat jokes, jokes about drunkards, the mentally or physically challenged ar NOT Christ like.
They must, as we are wielders of a greater sword, be stood up to!

Humor in a Christian Marriage must never be given license to participate in such crewel behaviors. The "r" jokes (retard), are the most offensive to me.
If your humor is based on someone or something that is defenseless your error is vast and consuming. For words of that kind, are a death to the speaker, as well as the audience.

Well... told you I was serious.

Humor though in the beauty of a pure heart and a clear conscious is a light and a good medicine.

knock knock??
who's there...
banana...

knock knock??
who's there...
banana...

knock knock??
who's there...
banana...

knock knock??
who's there...
Orange,

orange ya glad I didn't say banana
:)

Shortybear's Place will be our hostess this coming Monday. Our topic is, "The Humor of Christian Marriage." Sharpen your pencil and tell us a funny story! Then, be sure to stop by Denise's blog and leave your permalink in Mister Linky. Afterward, take some time to sprinkle your comments around the Marriage Monday blogosphere.

Hey! Bring a Friend
Feel free to copy any part of this announcement and post it on your blog. The more participants we have,
the better.