A Merry Heart Does a Body Good…
Various Scriptures
July 22, 2007
I’d like to think that I’m overall, a pretty positive guy.
I like to joke around, I like to laugh, and I try not to take myself too seriously.
But every now and again I have to stop and wonder if I really am that positive of a guy.
I tend to worry about stuff, even though Scripture says we’re not supposed to. I have my bad days, and sometimes I’d rather just roll over put the pillow over my head and stay in bed.
But overall, I think I’ve got a pretty positive outlook on life.
I think that we’d all like to have that, right? I’m not sure I’ve met anybody who’s purpose in life is to be sour about everything.
“God’s put me on earth for the sole purpose of making everybody’s day a lousy one. And boy, I’m good at it!”
Some people are sour about everything, but I doubt they set out to be that way.
I’ve always been of the opinion that Christians should be the most joyous people around.
Not because they never experience pain or heartache, but because they understand that life isn’t defined by circumstances, but rather life is defined by who we belong to.
I’ve mentioned before that happiness depends on circumstances but joy depends on our clinging to Christ in spite of circumstances.
I believe that Christians have the most to be joyous about, the most to celebrate, the most to laugh about, the most to enjoy about life.
Why? Because Christians have access to all the good God has for us, and a shelter from the bad the world has for us.
We spent the last four weeks looking at how to handle conflict between believers and what to do if it needs to involve others in the church.
Last week I talked about why we can’t be people who allow unforgiveness and bitterness rule our hearts. And I mentioned that these things poison our spirits.
They not only affect our relationships with those we refuse to forgive, but it poisons our enjoyment of life in general.
It’s hard to go through life and enjoy it when you are angry and bitter toward someone.
On the other hand, as you will see in the message, God wants us to be joyous and merry people.
Being joyous and merry is good for us. It’s completely the opposite of bitterness.
So my hope for you today is two-fold:
1. That if anyone here is not experiencing the joy that God wants for us to experience, that you will find new-found freedom to do just that.
2. That the rest would find some ways to enhance that enjoyment.
We’re going to look at a few Scripture passages, and they are all in your note-taking guide.
This is obviously a bit of a departure from what we’ve been doing by walking through the gospel of Matthew, but I think you’ll be okay with it.
I’m operating with the mind-set that says God wants us to enjoy life, and that He makes it possible.
So with that in mind, I want us to look at six ideas to help you either gain a merry heart or help an already merry heart become even more so.
Here’s the first one.
* Remember the source of life: Jesus.
John 10:10 –
“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”
This passage is really at the base of where I get my thoughts on this.
Jesus wants us to have a full life. And who wouldn’t agree that a full life should be an enjoyable one?
Can you think of anyone who thinks that a life of bitterness and rage is a full one the way Jesus describes it?
I think I can safely say that the full life Jesus wants for us – indeed died to give us, is not one defined by bitterness and unforgiveness, but rather one that enjoys the blessings of God, His Word, and His people.
When you think of the phrase, “full life,” do you think of the negative right away? Highly doubtful. Rather, we think of a “full life” as a positive, joyous thing, right?
I hope so. Jesus wants you to have a full life – and abundant life. And the source is Jesus.
Here’s the second idea:
* Resolve to look for the positive whenever possible.
This doesn’t mean that you ignore the negative or pretend that everything’s all right when it’s not.
But you refuse to let the negative define you.
I was talking to my father-in-law last night, and we got to talking a little bit about this message, and this point.
He’s been in physical pain for a greater part of the last 10 years or so, because of auto and motorcycle mishaps, as well as just general health decline.
But he told me that even in the midst of some of his bigger health crises he can think of things to be joyous about, even if was only the fact that he was still breathing.
We simply can’t let the negative in our lives define us.
I’ve printed Proverbs 17:22 in your note-taking guide, in a couple versions and I’d invite you to read this first one with me –
A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones. (NIV)
I really like the way Today’s English Version has it. Read it with me –
Being cheerful keeps you healthy. It is slow death to be gloomy all the time. (TEV)
Can any of you relate to that?
Notice what this verse says – being cheerful, having a cheerful heart is good medicine.
That’s exactly the opposite of what bitterness and unforgiveness do to us. Those things poison us – but having a cheery heart can heal.
Now folks, that’s good news. Resolve to look for the positive.
Paul tells us in the book of Philippians to rejoice. The word “rejoice” is all over that letter.
But do you know where he wrote that letter? From prison! It wasn’t a maximum security lock-up, but he was in prison.
Can you imagine Paul sitting there going, “I’m so depressed about my situation. I think I’ll write a letter to the Philippians telling them to lighten up and rejoice…”
Paul knew that even when circumstances were not in his favor, he could rejoice and find the positive because Christ was still on the move.
Here’s the third idea for gaining a merry heart:
* Intentionally bring in positive input.
If you’ve been here for very long you know that one of my favorite words is the word, “intentional.”
And in this context, I need to tell you that you must be intentional about bringing in the positive.
The “default” position of society is negative, wouldn’t you agree? If you don’t believe me, just watch the TV news or listen to talk radio, secular and Christian.
We’re at war, people are killing each other, children are dying, gas prices are up, etc.
There is so much negative that if a person wants to be a person with a merry heart, they have to be intentional about finding the good stuff.
Let me give you a few suggestions that might help you bring in positive input.
- Read, listen, and watch the Scriptures.
- Listen to Christian music.
- Watch Christian movies (and plays!)
- Stay away from talk radio!
If it’s true that you are what you eat, physically, then it’s doubly true about our spiritual life.
If all you take in is negative, then that’s what you become. It’s really that simple.
So bring in the good stuff.
Idea number four for gaining a merry heart is to…
* Invite the humorous.
There are some Christians who you’d think believed that it’s a sin to laugh about anything.
You won’t find that in Scripture. In fact, you’ll find just the opposite.
Ecclesiastes 3:1,4 –
There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven…a time to laugh…
I can’t imagine a world without laughter, can you?
- Look for the humorous.
- Cause the humorous.
- Join in the humorous.
Let humor become a big part of who you are. It helps us get through the tough times and it helps us enjoy the good times even more.
You know what my favorite part of Reader’s Digest is? The joke pages, especially those that tell true stories.
I love that stuff.
Here’s one of the best ideas I can find for helping a person become someone with a merry heart:
* Don’t take yourself too seriously.
Folks, too many people think that the world would collapse if it weren’t for them.
They’re just too important, and they don’t have time for fun and frivolity.
They take themselves way too seriously. And it’s a huge mistake.
Growing up, I always wanted to seen as older. I was the short, skinny kid with the high-pitched voice, and was always seen as younger than I really was.
On my 18th birthday, I bought my first pitcher of beer. The lady at the Pizza Hut carded me, and it was with a sense of glee that I handed her my license and heard her say, “Happy Birthday!”
For most of my adult life I’ve wondered if people would see me as a grown-up or as a kid.
Fast forward to last Wednesday.
I’m at the check-out line at Econofoods, and I noticed on the screen that the lady was taking 5% off every item.
So I asked if this was like a promotion or something. After a moment, she told me that she was giving me the “senior discount.”
Now I could understand a teenager doing this – they think everyone’s old. But this lady had to be 20 years older than I am!
So I said, “You know what? That’s okay, because I’ve been a senior twice – in high school & college.”
We had a good laugh.
And just for the record, I’m only 42, until September.
Rick Warren says, “Show me someone who takes themselves too seriously and I’ll show you someone who doesn’t take God seriously enough.”
And I think that that’s because people who take themselves too seriously are actually self-centered instead of Christ-centered.
A Christ-centered person can understand the balance between concern about their life and walk with Jesus and allowing themselves to enjoy God and all His benefits.
Don’t take yourself too seriously. No one else takes you that seriously.
Let’s look at the last idea I want to cover today about how to have a merry heart:
* Give it away.
This is actually very easy to do. If you have a cheery heart, it’s the most natural thing in the world to want others to have it as well.
Proverbs 15:30 –
A cheerful look brings joy to the heart, and good news gives health to the bones.
You may not have a lot of money give someone, you may not be able to give someone a place to stay when they need it.
But you can always give a smile and a cheerful look.
You can always give someone a pat on the back and a comment of appreciation.
You can always tell someone something good.
Don’t just sit there thinking about good things about someone. Tell them – in person, in a letter, a phone call, or an e-mail, or something.
But let someone hear something good, and let them see a smile.
Give that stuff away. And you know what? You just end up getting more.
And did you notice something here? Here is another passage talking about how positive stuff brings health.
Pretty cool, don’t you think? I do.
Folks, the good news of Jesus is news of hope. And boy, can’t the world use a bunch of that nowadays.
The news of Jesus is good news. But so many Christians look as though Jesus came to give them nothing but gloom and doom.
I think that if we would focus on the fact that Jesus came to not only redeem us for heaven but also to give us a full life on earth, we would show the world that following Jesus isn’t an issue of following a strict bunch of do’s and don’ts but rather an issue of enjoying all that Jesus came to bring us.
If you’re short of joy in your life, ask God to bring you the joy that He wants you to have.
Do your part by using some of these ideas to open the window of your heart to being merry.
And when the world sees that hope in Christ brings joy to our hearts, we’re more likely to be able to reach the hurting in the world around us.
I think God would like that. What about you? Let’s pray.
