A New Form of Rest

A few nights ago, we had the privilege of joining two other families for an evening of belly laughs at a Tim Hawkins comedy show.  It was great!  I highly recommend this event if you ever have a chance to see it.  If not, YouTube some of his sketches.  You won’t be disappointed.

My throat hurt after it was over, and I’m pretty certain my make-up was non-existent after many tears of laughter were shed.  Turns out I’m a knee slapper when I laugh hard—even my right knee is sore.  Who knew?

Tim Hawkins poked fun at the church, politics, technology, the President, marriage and parenting.  I could relate on some level to all of it.

Towards the end of the evening, Tim sat down on the steps of the stage.  His voice took a more serious tone.  And he shared some profound thoughts that I wouldn’t have expected to hear from a comedian.

Tim admitted that when he started his comedy career it was all about getting laughs from his material, now it’s about giving people a break from real life through laughter.  There’s a purpose to his work that goes beyond entertaining.  In a world full of broken people, laughter heals, if only for a couple of hours one evening.  It’s a chance to escape and rest from the brokenness of this world.

“The question is not what would Jesus do?  It’s, what has Jesus already done?  It’s about resting in His finished work,” said Tim.

But here’s the statement he made that has me thinking:  “It doesn’t start with walking with Christ, but resting in what He’s already done.”

Resting in what He’s already done.

That’s a loaded thought that has consumed me all week.

Could it be that I need to quit striving to find answers to my own brokenness, and rest in the healing power of Jesus?  Rest in the marvelous things He’s already done for me?

I think so—even when rest shows up in a form I wouldn’t expect—laughter.