At a seminar, students entering the room for lunch found a sign on the buffet table that said, ‘Take only one 
apple. God is watching you.’
At the other end of the table was a large tray of chocolate cookies with a hastily scribbled sign which read: ‘Take as many cookies as you want. God is back there watching the apples!’
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I need to begin this journal entry with a special note about Christians. We come in all shapes and varieties. This means there are many things we may not always agree on, but the basic issue never changes.
It isn’t our astute knowledge of Scripture that make us Christian. A Christian is a Christian based on a heavenly birth. This means that Christians can be right with God in their hearts, while their heads may need to be screwed on a bit more tightly.
For that reason we Christians often learn to laugh at our own shenanigans and mistakes. Yes, we do plenty of goofy things. Keep that in mind as you read this journal entry.
I want to share with you some of my own goofy stuff.
Journal,
It begins with me.
I will never forget the first two sermons that I preached as a young minister. One was on the word, ‘Charity’. The other was on the word, ‘Peculiar.’
My Charity text came from the love chapter of 1 Corinthians 13.
What I did not know at the time was that the word ‘charity’ as used in the King James Bible literally meant love. I managed to preach on charity and on giving, but never once mentioned the word love.
After the sermon an older minister asked me, “Brother Martin, did you know that the word charity means love?” I needed say nothing. My red face embarrassment said it all.
The other sermon was entitled, ‘God’s Peculiar People.’ My text came from 1 Peter 2:9, which reads in the King James Bible,
“But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light.” (1Pe 2:9)
At the time I thought the word ‘peculiar’ had to do with our appearance. Of course coming from a strict fundamentalist background, the sermon went over quite well.
It was only later that I gained a better appreciation for what the Greek word translated as peculiar in the King James Version actually meant. It actually spoke of God’s ownership.
Just a quick look at the Greek – The word translated ‘peculiar’ in the King James, is ‘peripolesis’. It comes from two words. One means, ‘to be’. The other means, ‘around’.
Peripolesis carries the ideas of ownership, possession, encircling, and protection.
This term can be set forth as a dot within a circle. The dot is the Christian. The circle is God. Because of our God encirclement, the only way anything can happen to a Christian, it has to be allowed by God. The people of Christ are in the sphere of God.
So, what is it that makes a Christian peculiar to the world? It can’t simply be his appearance. A Christian is a possession of God and of no one else. We are citizens of a heavenly realm.
Anyway, that preaching was nigh forty-eight years ago.
Since then, I’ve done plenty of other goofy things. But I’ve also learned to…
Laugh With the Angels
So, are we a peculiar people? Yes indeed. But, in all this we must appear very funny to the angels at times.
I must tell this story of when I heard laughter and wasn’t sure whether it came from me, from the Holy Spirit, or from my guardian angel. (Yes, I am a firm believer in guardian angels.)
It’s been close to forty years ago. We were pastoring another church. A friend of mine was holding a tent meeting not far from us.
The point is that all the money I had was a hundred dollar bill and a dollar bill. If I could change the hundred, I’d be glad to give my friend a twenty dollar offering.
For some reason I forgot all about getting the hundred changed. So, here we are in the meeting – And here comes the offering plate. And here I am squirming.
I reached in my bill fold and placed the dollar in the offering. The struggle began. I just couldn’t stand it. So I called the brother back and placed the hundred in the plate.
On our way home I am musing over what had happened. That is when I heard laughter. It went something like this, ‘Had you given the hundred up front, you would have a dollar now. But as it was you had to give the hundred and the dollar.’
Was it an angel? I don’t really know. What I do know is that a great lesson came out of that. I was able to trace many of our forthcoming blessings to the time that I had to give it all.
The Laughing Pastor
It’s hard for me to be around people who take themselves too seriously. Ever since my semi-retirement, I tell people that my son, Nathan, is pastor and I’m the aggravating pastor. Of course I mean that from my heart of laughter.
I love to laugh, I love to see people laugh, and I love to make 
people laugh. I plan to laugh my way all the way to heaven.
Laughter is one of the greatest healing medicines that a Christian can enjoy.
To me laughter is as much a part of the faith walk as anything else, and perhaps even more. Laughter and joy are sounds of the victorious believer.
The Bible teaches that Christians are born as the children of laughter. We come out of sorrow into great joy.
You probably didn’t know that.
Oh, we have our times of sorrow. We have our trials and our disappointments. But there is something deep inside every true believer that speaks of an abiding joy.
With this in mind, I want to point my readers to my most popular journal entry. (By far the most read entry.) It is titled, ‘Passing through the valley of baca (tears).’ — Baca means ‘tears’ —
Take time for that entry. It will encourage you.
http://buddymartin.net/blog/2010/01/passing-through-the-valley-of-baca/
Well, I have so many funny stories to share, but I’ve said enough for how.
In the meantime take time to listen to this song, ‘Joyful, Joyful We Adore Thee’ by Michael W. Smith.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NHm_p7xj5uQ[/youtube]In Christ always,
Buddy
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