A Heaven Full of Napkin Brassieres.

Today is the birthday for my 11-year-old twin boys. Yep, April Fool’s Day birthday. They are numbers 3 and 4 of my 5 boys. Yep, you heard that part right too. 5 boys. If I had gambled on the odds I could have cashed in big time. 5 boys and a set of twins. But I digress.

God’s sense of humor. Does He have one? Do you think He has the time for or interest in laughter? I think He probably does. I mean, after all, have you ever seen a rainbow-butted baboon?

How could He not have a sense of humor and create that?

Humans laugh, in fact, it’s one of the most enjoyable parts of being alive. When you are laughing with friends to the point of crying, when have you ever been happier? You forget life’s worries for a time. We are created in God’s image. I like to believe that laughter is a quality of God that He gives to us. I envision a Heaven full of laughter.

My mother-in-law died several years ago. She was one of the happiest people I have ever met. She loved nothing more than to entertain, and laugh, and even better if she could make a boring person laugh. Yes, she worked very hard at making me laugh. I think it was one of her goals in life. And she would tip the scale like no one else. I have never laughed as hard as when she was on a roll. I cannot imagine a Heaven that would hold her if it did not have boisterous laughter.

So, back to my subject. My twins. I always thought God played a joke on me, giving me twins. And for them to be born on April Fool’s Day sealed it for me. God was, in fact, laughing in Heaven. Not mean spirited, but just enjoying giving to the point of overflowing. The real jolly Saint Nick.

When the doctor broke the news to us during an early ultrasound, I was immediately excited. My wife . . . she bawled. Not because she didn’t want them; she just wasn’t expecting the volume. And she didn’t want our second child to feel like a middle child. But in that moment, I believe God was laughing. Not at my wife (that was my job) but because He enjoyed that gift. He gave us more than we thought we could handle, but He knew better. He knew what joy those rascals would bring us and Him. And these boys are amazing. My best friends. My joy. God knew what He was doing, and He enjoyed doing it.

I don’t think we appreciate that God is not a robot. He enjoys His creation. He rejoices with us, He grieves with us, and He gets frustrated and disappointed with us. I get a glimpse of this as a parent. Nothing brings me greater joy than my wife and 5 boys. Nothing frustrates me more than when I see my kids straying from the right path. And nothing hurts more than when they are hurt. All of these emotions, God also experiences. The parent/child relationship models God’s relationship with us. We put Him through those same emotions.

Once we grasp that concept–that the emotions we experience as parents are a reflection of what God feels–we should have a new appreciation with the goings on of life. When we sin, we grieve God just as our kids grieve us. And when we enjoy His bounty in laughter, I have no doubt He is laughing in Heaven with us.

And I know for certain my mother-in-law is in Heaven teaching Jesus how to make napkin brassieres (that was one of her favorite gags). No, that’s not sacrilegious. That’s God enjoying all that He has made.

So, happy April Fools Day! God tipped my scale just like my mother-in-law. And I thank and praise Him for His good and perfect gifts.

And, happy birthday twins! I know Jesus has His arm around my mother-in-law’s shoulders in Heaven, and they are both looking down, laughing with tears in their eyes as those twins make napkin brassieres, tell jokes, and prank their brothers.

The Twins squeezing a friend.

 

See a common theme?

 

God has a sense of humor. He has emotions like we do. When we laugh, He laughs. The smile on the twins’ faces fill Him with joy. We need to focus on making Him laugh more.