This past Sunday, I sat in church with my family. Well, most of my family. Angie left briefly to use the bathroom, leaving just the kids and me. I decided to use my wife’s absence as an excuse to act goofy. I really don’t know why, but I started lapping the coffee out of my cup like a cat would lap up its milk from a bowl. I stuck my tongue into the now lukewarm beverage and started splashing my tongue up and down, spilling some of the drink into my mouth and the rest down the sides of my cup. I was making a slurping noise that only my kids could hear. After all, I’m not one to totally disrupt a worship service.

My son, Tyler, looked over to see what was happening. Caught off guard, he immediately started to laugh. And then he couldn’t stop. Out of fear of getting in trouble for laughing in church, he buried his head in his chest, but the row of chairs continued to vibrate from his bouncing up and down. His silent laughter was making him shake uncontrollably. Then I noticed tears were streaming down one of his flushed cheeks. He couldn’t compose himself and he knew he was destined to get in trouble if his mother reappeared and witnessed this scene. So he did the only logical thing he could think of and acted like he had to use the bathroom and left the fellowship hall.

Later that same day, I reflected on the morning’s events. Tyler had laughed so hard, he couldn’t control himself. So hard, in fact, that he had cried. And then I tried to recall the last time I had laughed that hard. Sadly, I couldn’t remember a time in recent history. Then I became thoroughly depressed as I continued to ponder this. Why hadn’t I laughed like this recently? When I was a kid, this kind of laughter was an everyday occurrence. When did it stop? And more importantly, why hadn’t I noticed?

I came to the solemn realization that as adults, we just don’t laugh as enthusiastically and heartily as we did as children. And then I tried to rationalize why this is. As adults, we have more responsibilities. We’re not quite as sheltered as we once were. We have others depending on us. We’re concerned about health issues, not just ours but those of our loved ones. We’re anxious about paying our bills on time…or even at all. We’re troubled about this and that and eventually worry occupies a permanent place in our hearts. And when that happens, too much laughter seems inappropriate or unfitting for our situations.

But what would happen, and bear with me here, if we made a conscious decision to replace the worry in our lives with laughter? Not ‘chuckle’ laughter, but ‘crying until we can’t breathe’ laughter. Genuine, authentic, from-the-gut laughter. How can we make that change and how would that shift change us? I’m glad you asked. If we sincerely concentrate on going cold-turkey with our worries, casting them off completely, I think we’ll find that the real laughter we experienced as children will return to fill the void that worry had previously occupied.

And how will this change us? For starters, we’re happier and healthier. Worry tears us down physically, mentally, and spiritually. We’re much better off without it. That’s why ‘Don’t Worry’ is one of the over-arching themes of the Bible. And why you can never truly get Bobby McFerrin’s ‘Don’t Worry Be Happy’ tune out of your head. We also become contagious. In a good way. When we’re free with our laughter, others respond by…guess what? Laughing too! Laughter is infectious and we can all be carriers. The more we spread it, the better the world will be.

Deep down, we want to laugh. If we’re honest with ourselves, we need to laugh. Sometimes it’s the only action that can move us past tough times. And that’s just another of its beauties. Never feel guilty for laughing. It’s therapeutic. One of my favorite, and in my opinion, most poignant scenes ever in TV sitcom history occurred on the Mary Tyler Moore Show. The main character, Mary herself, is attending a funeral for a clown name Chuckles. The pastor reminisces about Chuckles’ life and starts to recall his numerous aliases such as Peter Peanut, Billy Banana, and Mr. FEE FI FO. Then, much like Tyler this past weekend, Mary starts to laugh uncontrollably. As the pastor continues to talk about seltzer getting sprayed down Chuckles’ pants and other clown pranks, Mary’s laughter becomes more noticeable. As much as she tries to hide it, she eventually cannot be ignored. The pastor actually stops the ceremony and calls Mary out for laughing. He asks her to stand. Just when I thought she was going to be reprimanded for her inappropriate behavior, the pastor tells her this is exactly what Chuckles would have wanted…to make one more person laugh this way.

It’s a hilarious scene, but it also delivers a message to which adults should pay close attention. It’s okay to laugh. Whether it’s for coping or just for fun, laughter is one of the finest gifts we’ve been given. And the more we use it, the greater it becomes. So if it’s been a while since you’ve had a real uncontrollable laugh, allow yourself to do just that.

Worry wears us down while laughter lifts us up. Whichever one we choose to exercise is completely up to us.