NOT AFRAID TO LAUGH

" All these years her immediate reaction has been to throw herself on the Lord and the Scriptures. As a child I (Gigi) remember her leaving her Bible open in a prominent place, so she could just get a verse every now and then."
Hanspeter Nuesch
Ruth and Billy Graham  p. 108

No matter what part of the world Billy was in, he also kept his Bible open. For him, an open Bible expressed his desire to stay connected to God.

Yet, with Ruth and Billy's serious committment to God's Word, Cliff Barrows and his wife portray Ruth as a woman who was "tremendously fun." Ruth's childhood is described as a happy one. "The Bells (Ruth's family) laughed a lot; this positive atmosphere had a great deal to do with the parents' strong faith."

How often do you associate laughter with faith? Yet, if we trust God with the details of our lives, rather than thinking that "we" have to fix every problem of our own and everyone else's, won't the absence of worry give room for laughter?

And if laughter punctuates our days, won't we be easier to live with? And won't unbelievers more likely be drawn to us? Won't WE be happier?

A picture of Ruth, from an earlier book about the Grahams, comes to mind. She is climbing on the roof to get to Franklin's room. As I recall, Franklin's door was locked and it was past time for him to get up. Ruth crawled along the roof, into his window, and threw water in his face. Please tell me you're laughing. I love that picture! My mom would too; only she'd be sorry that she didn't come up with the idea herself.

I want to follow Ruth's model--to be a serious student of God's Word--to be someone who, like her, is committed with every fiber of my being

YET

NOT AFRAID TO LAUGH!

And, I can if I remain . . .

Utterly Dependent On Him Who Is Utterly Dependable!
Lonnie