October 2, 2016: “Living Between Grace and Gratitude: Laughter”

as-flyer-front-001An audio recording of the sermon from October 2 is available at this link.

The Scripture readings for the day are Genesis 18:1-15 and Genesis 21:1-7.

A PDF file of the worship bulletin for the day is available here.

“Sarah’s laughter resonates across the ages as vividly as any sound in Scripture. How you hear her laugh may depend very much on where you are in your life. Because there is more than one way to laugh. I imagine that if you could ask Sarah about her laughter, about what it meant to her, she might tell you that its meaning changed over time. Sometimes when you laugh it’s more like a sneer. It says whatever you’re laughing at is at best not true. You laugh because you can hardly believe someone would expect you to take that seriously. Sometimes you laugh, though, because you’re hopeful; it’s a way of saying, “that would be nice, but I won’t hold my breath.” And sometimes your laugh is an expression of pure joy and delight, and that’s the best kind of laughter.”