I was brainwashed early in life to believe that churchgoing was very serious business! Scrubbed, buttoned into white shirts, and donning a southern classic seersucker suit, my siblings and I were led to church by our parents with a marvelous display of decorum and military precision. 

We were frequently reminded that proper behavior in church required the absence of pinching, slouching, paper crumbling, unnecessary page turning, staring, and-God forbid-any hint of a giggle or laugh. According to my father, nothing in church was ever funny or even faintly amusing. His view was shared by the minister who had a passion for solemn pageantry and assorted medieval mysteries. Father and he enthusiastically concurred with Mark Twain’s assessment that, “There is no humor in heaven.”

It has taken a number of years and not a few worship-inspired laughs to free myself from this burden of solemnity, but I think I have it just about conquered. I knew its power was waning several months ago when my eye caught those of a fellow choir member and we giggled through a large part of a Sunday service. I don’t recall what struck us as being funny, but it was a thoroughly exhilarating morning!

Let’s agree to have more smiles and our share of laughs in worship. Let’s allow giggles and even a good-natured pinch or two. Let’s decide that worship can be fun and sometimes even funny! Indeed, let’s be human. We are, after all, living proof that God has a remarkable sense of humor!