God is a God of laughter
Methodist Pastor Karl R. Kraft of Dover, DE, found this passage in Catherine Marshall's book, A Man Called Peter, a biography of her husband, the great Presbyterian preacher Peter Marshall, Chaplain of the U.S. Senate, from one of his sermons:
"God is a God of laughter, as well as prayer,
a God of singing, as well as of tears.
God is at home in the play of His children.
He loves to hear us laugh.
We do not honor God by our long faces, our austerity.
We must try to make the distinction between worship and work and play less sharp.
If you can't take God into your recreation,
there is something wrong with the way you play.
If God, for you, does not smile
there is something wrong with your idea of God."
Catherine Marshall added this comment: "Jesus Himself demonstrated to us, at times like the wedding feast in Cana, that Christianity can be fun, that fun can be Christian, and that it is the King's joy to share our good times."
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