Laughter Is A Hearty Response; Not A Requirement

Joy is characteristic of the Christian walk, the second part of the fruit that the Apostle Paul mentions in Galatians 5, and the first of Jesus' signs in the gospel of John in turning the water into wine.  It is not to say that joy is a moral requirement for Christian living.  Some of us experience events that are full of sadness, pain, and rejection.  Some of us descend to low points in our lives when joy seems to have prominently departed.  We should not use that as the final proof that I am not a good Christian. 

I believe that it is good when our mouths are filled with laughter and our tongues with shouts of joy.  It is not a sign that you are a Christian and it certainly doesn't meant that if you don't have it that you are not a good Christian.  It is not what we have to acquire in order to experience the Christian life.  It is what comes to us when we are walking in the way of faith and obedience.  I am talking about joy.  Eventually it comes.  "Then was our mouth filled with laughter, and our tongue with singing..." (Psalms 126:2).