NOTHING BETTER!

Ecclesiastes 3:12  I know that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to do good while they live. 

Ah yes there is nothing better than a Ball Park Frank at a baseball game.  Why?  Well, baseball and hot dogs mean it's summertime here in Michigan and that is a big thing, especially after the winter we had.  I don't understand what it is about having a hot dog at a ball park that brings out the little kid in all of us.  I mean technically a hot dog is not special but when that hot dog is eaten in between innings at Comerica Park watching the Detroit Tigers win another game, well that's just amazing. I'm sorry this picture is making me hungry for a hot dog right now.  I'll be right back.  There is something about being at a Tiger ball game that makes me happy.  Something about sitting in the summer sun listening the the crack of the bat as it hits a ball, something about listening to the excitement in the announcers voice that can just put a smile on my face and a twinkle in my eye.  Sound funny?  There are many little things in life that put a smile on my face and a twinkle in my eye.  The giggles coming from my grandchildren, the laughter as my children relive memories from the past, the thrill of being licked by Stanley and Dudley (my daughters puppies),  the screams of joy coming from those we pull on the tube behind our boat, and the quiet stillness of a summer night as the sun sets.  These things and too many more to mention here, give me the opportunity to smile and enjoy life.  

There's nothing better than enjoying life.  Too many "Christians" walk around with sour faces and frowns.  It's almost as if this life they are living is a living hell on Earth.  Laughter in church?  "Oh my goodness no.  Church is not meant to be enjoyed, it's a very serious matter."  Clapping in church? "Well that's an outright sin."  Raising your hands in praise at church? "Heavens no!  Your hands should be folded in solemn prayer."  Seriously?  Get real!  People Jesus rocked the ideals of the Pharisees little world by being a little radical at church.  For Him to speak as if He really was the Messiah they had waited for, pushed them to their very core.  Having dinner with tax collectors and inviting them to a relationship with God caused outrage among the Pharisees.  Talking to a prostitute was an outright sin and then forgiving her instead of stoning her, He drop kicked their ideals and rituals right out the window of that temple.  He did things and said things that, back then, shocked the "religious" people of His day.  He revolutionized the church and believers.  Jesus liked a party just as much as anyone else.  Heck His first miracle was at a wedding turning water into wine, and might I say it was not just any ordinary wine, the waiter said it was the best.  We believers should be the happiest people in the world!  We should smile, relax and enjoy this life Jesus died to give us.  We should enjoy the job we have and be grateful for them.  We should enjoy church, it should not be some obligation we have to attend every Saturday or Sunday.  Is life serious?  Yes!  But that doesn't mean we have to walk around like chicken little waiting for the sky to fall down.  Gloomy Gus's check your personality's at the door and do not pick them up on your way out. Debbie Downers, get a new attitude an leave the old one behind.

You know I totally understand that life is rough and tough.  But we, especially us believers, need to lift our heads up and rejoice.  Church and life should be a celebration.  Celebrations cause laughter, clapping, and yes, hand raising!  I can tell you that the church I go to is amazing.  I actually look forward to it every Sunday.  I love listening to the music, laughing at life in general, clapping to the beat and raising my hands in praise.  I love listening to the pastor who is so filled with the Spirit of God that tears flow from his eyes and he reveals the lessons he has learned.  I love to be around the other believers who walk around with a smile on their face and twinkle in their eye because the love God and are enjoying their life.  In church we love, we laugh, we rejoice and we praise together.  We cry, we pray, we sing, we talk, we read the Bible together.  It is a true church that welcomes and loves everyone and anyone.  This to me, is the type of church Jesus wanted us to be.  To enjoy church, to enjoy learning about Him and to enjoy being with Him is amazing.

John 10:10  The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance (to the full, till it overflows). 

Do you understand that Jesus came so that we can enjoy our life?  Satan is the one who tries to steal our joy and kill the spirit of love we should have for others.  Satan also wants to destroy the life of the church by bogging people down with meaningless rituals and man made laws that have nothing to do with the Bible.  I know I may have offended some people by what I just said, and I a sorry but I truly believe that Jesus wants us to stop this denominations junk and get back to the Bible and being joyfilled, spirit filled, loving believers and churches.  I have been in too many churches and with too many believers who have no joy.  It really saddens me when I see someone who claims to be a believer and they look like they just bit into a lemon.  How can someone say they believe in Jesus and yet look and act like the devil himself?  Joy, unspeakable joy!  There is nothing better than embracing the joy of the Lord.  It will get you through the toughest of times and the hardest of circumstances.   There is nothing better than living a joy filled life.  There is nothing better than being in a church that is filled with true joy.  Join me in living a joy filled life.

May the joy of the Lord invade our hearts, our minds, and our spirits today.  May we learn to live a joyful life and may churches become a living example of the joy Jesus wants us to have.  May we learn to celebrate life and learn to laugh again.  In Jesus name I pray, amen.