I was listening to a sermon by C.J. Mahaney called, “Don’t Waste Your Humor“. I wanted to pass on one of the points he made. Our humor should reflect an attitude of humility in that we should be willing to laugh at ourselves. Listen, we give people plenty of reasons to laugh at us. If you are like me, you do things everyday that are funny. I’m not talking about you trying to be funny, I am talking about when you do things, by mistake, that are funny. Like mixing up the Georgia of the USA, with the Georgia that is currently in conflict with Russia. (I won’t say who has done this, you know who you are!!)
Are you on the defensive when this type of humor comes up? How often do engage in self-deprecating humor? I think the answers to these questions reveal what you think of yourself.
[Before I go on let me clarify, I'm not talking about people mocking you. I am simply talking about people observing and noting true things that you do, that are funny. This is not malicious by those individuals (at least it shouldn't be). Also, by self-deprecating humor, I'm not talking about being depressed and beating yourself up.]
If the humor you use is consistently based on the short-comings of others, rather than on your own, you must examine your heart for pride. In that case, it would seem as though you are using humor to build your own reputation, or make yourself look good. Also, if you are not able to laugh when you are the object of someone’s humor, then you are probably thinking more of yourself then you ought to.
If you are able to laugh at your follies, I think that demonstrates humility. You are acknowledging that you mess up sometimes, and even more than that, you are demonstrating that your highest priority isn’t looking perfect before others. Being able to laugh at ourselves will help us cultivate humility and spread joy.
