Laughing With Jesus

Relationships go through a number of steps as we get to know each other better. We first meet people and we are usually friendly but not too warm.  We are a little reserved at first.  We evaluate the other person in an effort to get to know them and decide at what level our relation finds itself.  We walk away from an encounter processing and we usually make a decision if there will be any future reaching out to the person.  Are they similar to us in attitudes or beliefs?  Did we find them interesting or intimidating?  Often we will get in our cars and we may say to our mate, "I really liked them, maybe we should get together."  Or we might say, "don't even think about it!"  However, when relationships grow they evolve through relational processes.  We move from the first meeting to a second meeting where to get to know them at a deeper level.  If it all goes well true friendships follow.  One of the signs for me of real friendship is the comfort level of the friendship.  Am I comfortable with the person or is it just tolerable?  I think one of the deeper levels of friendship is humor.  How much do we laugh together?  I don't mean social or party laughter, I mean real enjoying each other's company laughter.  The better the friend, the more the laughter!  Oh, I know true friends also share pain and disappointment.  That is a part of real relationships too.  But I'm talking about healthy laughing and joy!  Who do you laugh with?  Certainly your personality has a lot to do with it.  It seems to me that the freer and happier a person is with their own identity, the freer and happier they are with others.  Those kinds of folks are fun to be around.  I have found in the last decade or so that Jesus is much more like that than I first thought.  He is my Savior, my Lord, my Healer and my Deliverer.  Yes, I'm not taking away from that but He is also my Friend.  My relationship with Him has come to a place of great joy and laughter!  Yes, I laugh with Jesus!  If you think I need to see a Doctor after hearing that, just leave me alone and let me enjoy! :) Why did it take me so long to learn to laugh with Jesus?  I think it was because I didn't know Him that well.  I knew Him within the religious confines of knowing "God".  He certainly is God!  He is also a joy to be with.  At times I weep in His presence and at times I laugh and rejoice in His presence.  I think one of the reason we enjoy the company of some more than others is that we believe certain people like us more than others.  I have found that Jesus likes me quite a lot!  Oh, yes, he loved me so sacrificially that He gave his life on the cross for me but...He also likes me a lot too!
He likes you a lot too!  The next time you pray or worship, just go ahead and drop the religious walls that keeps you from intimacy with Him and dare to enter into a special place of friendship with him.  As the relationship deepens, before long,  you will find that you too will be laughing with Jesus!