Christian Rock Band We Are Messengers – Darren Mulligan – Laughter as a Spiritual Discipline

“You know, we don’t think of having fun as being a worshipful thing. I read the Gospels. I look at what Jesus is doing. He’s laughing, he’s dancing, he’s with his friends. Yes, he’s mourning and weeping and all of those things. But Jesus knew that life was to be enjoyed, it was to be lived. So, one of my spiritual disciplines is laughing.”

Laughter isn’t usually something that we Christians think of as a “worshipful thing,” which is why we love this Worship Sound Bite so much. Darren has the heart of an evangelist and uses his music to put on rock shows, worship, and bring people closer to Jesus. His focus on “having a laugh” brings more joy to his ministry and likely helps him do a better job at spreading the Gospel.

Psalm 30:11 (NLT) You have turned my mourning into joyful dancing. You have taken away my clothes of mourning and clothed me with joy…

New Music by We Are Messengers

Transcription

You know, we don’t think of having fun as being a worshipful thing. I read the Gospels. I look at what Jesus is doing. He’s laughing, he’s dancing, he’s with his friends. Yes, he’s mourning and weeping and all of those things. But Jesus knew that life was to be enjoyed, it was to be lived. So, one of my spiritual disciplines is laughing.

Even coming over here today, me and Kyle, my guitar player, were just laughing in the car. And that’s good for the soul. I think it’s beautiful, and honorable, and worshipful. Every day I read the scriptures, I make it very clear to myself, every morning, that I am a sinner in great need of the mercy of God. So one of my worship spiritual disciplines is to read, is to pray. Saying sorry, I think, is a very worshipful, beautiful act. Holding my wife’s hand is an act of worship, giving our time to pregnancy resource centers, supporting organizations that protect the right of the life of the unborn and of mothers in crisis pregnancy. That’s an act of worship. Simple things… Dude, we make worship so complicated and we make all of our actions in the church so valiant and, like, mighty.

It’s the small things. It’s smiling at someone. It’s saying hello. It’s asking them how they are and meaning it. It’s having a conversation with you and not looking over your shoulder for somebody more important. Those are the things that honor and glorify God. As I get older, I care less about the big things and I realize that Jesus is in the small things. Jesus is less engaged in what I’m doing for the hour and a half that I’m performing.

And he’s more engaged with what I’m doing with security guards and caterers and truck drivers and bus drivers. And so my spiritual act of worship is giving my body, my mind, my time to the people that maybe society look over. They’re my people, the underdogs. I’ll be one of them the rest of my life. Because I got to say this and I’m going to- I’ll not be too long winded.

I think sometimes the worship movement has endeavored to build a highway to God. But the Scripture make it very clear there is no highway to heaven. It is a narrow road. We have made a very narrow road appear very broad. And in doing so, many a soul has been shipwrecked on the seashore of terrible theology.

If you’re going to sing over my kids in Sunday morning, for the love of God, sing the truth over them. Metaphors won’t cut it if they’re not filled with the Scriptures, if they’re not filled with the Spirit of God. And I implore worship leaders to do so. I’m not a good enough man to do it. Or else I’d do it full time.

So I implore you to do it. Take your responsibility very serious.