Laughter- a key to good health?

Eclessiastes 3:4

"There is a time to weep, and a time to laugh;
A time to mourn and a time to dance."

My wife and I were discussing the importance of laughter yesterday. She was reading an article about the link between laughter and heart disease. Medical research shows that you cut your chance of heart disease by 40% if you laugh often- March 2005 University of Maryland study.

We are drawn to joyful people, aren't we? Some people see the rainbow in the storm; others see only the clouds. Bitter, angry, resentful people wear on us like a steady leaking faucet. I believe there is a strong connection between stewardship and laughter. A steward is a person who is able to relinquish control. He/she realizes that ownership belongs to God alone. Our breath, money, abilities, time and health are in God's control.

An understanding that we are merely managers of God's resources allows us to travel light on this earthly pilgrimage. It allows us to be content and to always ask the question: why me? Why do I deserve so many good things from you, my God? It allows us to laugh at ourselves because we are not as important as we often think. There is a lot of humor in every day life if are eyes are open to it.

One of the many things I love about my wife- Amy- is her sense of humor. We have always laughed a lot in our marriage. Communication has never been a problem for us- sometimes overcommunication is, but that's another story. When God blessed us with our son- Hudson- the laughter has accelerated. Our two year-old does and says things daily that cause us to laugh so hard, it brings us to tears.

I met a guy who had read my book Stewardship Mandate without having known me prior. His impression in reading the book was that I was some serious minded guy that never smiled. I can understand due to the serious nature of the content of that book why he might get that impression. But those who know me, know that I love to laugh. Almost to the point where I am a goofball.

I encourage us to seek laughter daily. It is good for the heart. It is good for the soul. I believe we will be shocked at the laughter and joy that awaits the believer in Heaven. I suspect we will be equally shocked to see the misery and the lack of laughter in hell. Billy Joel had it wrong. We will not want to rather laugh with the sinners than cry with the saints. The sinners will not be much more fun. That may be a commentary on religion as Billy Joel saw it when he wrote Only the Good Die Young, but it is a bad map.

Of course, not all laughter is good. Proverbs 14:12-13, "There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death. Even in laughter, the heart may ache, and the end of joy may be grief." I think back to my freshman year at Baylor University. The guy on my hall that seemed to laugh the most, committed suicide that year. There was obviously not true joy in his heart. And there is nothing funny about an eternity apart from God. So we need to always temper our laughter with the seriousness of life.

There is a time for seriousness. There is a time for laughter. God ordains all these things for our continued progress in faith. He gives us a glimpse of a day when the laughter will never cease and the motives for it will be pure.

For His glory,

Ashley Hodge

Lessons from Spring

Spring is a time of re-birth. God has provided two books for our instruction- the book of revelation (Bible) and the book of creation. Job 12:8 says, "Look to the earth and it will teach you." Observe this world and you will see a great contrast between Winter and Spring. The trees and leaves that die in Winter spring to new life in March- at least in Texas this is true.

Yet men and women scoff when they hear teaching about the resurrection of the dead. Jesus Christ resurrected from the dead? Preposterous. Humans resurrected after they die? Impossible says the skeptic.

Open our eyes, we see it in nature every day and never question the truth. Let the earth teach us. I am looking forward to the resurrection of this earth and my body. As I write this, I am in good health. I am on the verge of turning 37 years old. But I am increasingly aware that the Winter is coming when this body will die. This body will lay in the grave awaiting the Spring.

There is another reason I love March- March Madness. I love basketball. I love to play and watch hoops. I play basketball with a group of guys a couple of times a week at Lifetime Fitness in Dallas. I am fortunate enough to be able to still play at a decent level (depending on how you define decent). But I need the practice. My mind is capable of playing a lot better than my body is. I have an eternity of pick-up basketball awaiting me when the earth is restored and I receive my resurrected body.

I grew up in Maryland- the heart of ACC country. There is nothing like March for a college basketball junkie like myself. It is a time of excitement, upsets, rooting for the underdog and buzzer beating shots. But like any passion that we have on this earth, it is only a glimpse. The real deal is coming- the true life that can only be gained through faith in Christ.

So I have picked my Final Four. My selections are a little unconventional. Texas (I detest even the thought), Gonzaga, UConn and Boston College. Boston College wins it all. I have a tough act to follow, I correctly picked the Final 4 last year- for the first time in my life.

March is a time to celebrate. It is a time to celebrate all of God's gracious gifts. None more precious than the resurrection. "So is it with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable; what is raised is imperishable. It is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness; it is raised in power. It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body." I Corinthians 15:42-44.

Martin Luther used to say there are only two days: Today and That Day. I eagerly await That Day.

For His glory,

Ashley Hodge

I deserve...

Those are the two most dangerous words in the English language. I hear them often. I have said them many times. What do we deserve? Punishment? Death? Suffering? When we understand how terrible our rebellion and sin is against a holy God, we must honestly say that what we deserve is not good. Life is unfair. But not in the way that we typically think. It is unfair that I am receiving good health, a sound mind (some might argue otherwise) and my needs taken care of daily.

God's goodness sends me to this question: why me? Why am I receiving all of these blessings while David Phillips, Kirby Puckett and Dana Reeves are struck down in the prime of their lives? There can only be one answer. It is to glorify Christ. Glorify Him with money, abilities, time and health. It is to show the world that something is terribly wrong here. But that there is a day coming for the people of God where all pain, suffering and death will be put into its proper perspective.


Jesus said in John 9:4, "We must do the works of Him who sent me while it is day; night is coming when no one can work." Night came early for David Phillips- a 39-old youth pastor of Christ's Chapel in Fort Worth- when his car lost control on icy roads in February of 2006.

Night came early for Kirby Puckett- a 45-year old hall of fame center fielder for the Minnesota Twins- when Kirby died of a stroke. It seems like yesterday when I was a high school kid going to watch my cousin- Eddie Hodge- play against the Baltimore Orioles. My cousin was Kirby Puckett's roommate- while they were both rookies. I have a mental picture of Puckett in his early 20s. His infectious smile and popeye forearms and now his life in this world is gone.

Night came early for Dana Reeves- the 44-year old wife of Christopher Reeves- when she died of lung cancer. Dana seemed to endure the struggles of life with such grace as she cared for her paraplegic husband. Then only months after his death, she is diagnosed with lung cancer. What can we learn from this? Is it that life is unfair and makes no sense?

For the believer in Christ, I think the lessons are clear. Our lives hang by a thread of sovereign grace. It is only by this grace that I take my next breath. If God wills for me to die as I am writing this blog, I will die. If He wills that I live another 50 years, I will live another 50 years. But my life is not my own. I am called to daily die to self and to live for Christ. I am called to seek purity of heart- Matthew 5:8. For it is only in purity of heart will I see God.

I urge each of us to make Christ the object of our faith every day. Colossians 1:27 tells us that Christ in us is our hope of glory. I pray that when we are reminded of life's brevity by the death of those we know, we don't lose the lessons. We will die. Life is short. Invest life in the eternal priorities of God. Rely on His promises. Do not allow the temporary to crowd out the eternal. One day soon everyone's perspective will change forever. I pray that many develop an eternal perspective focused on persevering faith in Christ before the night takes away all opportunities.

For His Glory,

Ashley Hodge