Give me a word, Lord: JUST SMILE

Proverbs 15:30 “A cheerful look brings joy to the heart; good news makes for good health.”

Proverbs 15:13-15 “A glad heart makes a happy face; a broken heart crushes the spirit. 

Psalm 126:2-3 “Then our mouth was filled with laughter, and our tongue with shouts of joy; then they said among the nations, “The LORD has done great things for them.” The LORD has done great things for us; we are glad.”

I love that silly movie “Elf”, and my all time favorite line from the movie is, “I just like to smile…smiling’s my favorite!” Have you ever thought about the power of a smile? A smile is a powerful weapon, and smiling is quite contagious. I’m not talking about fake smiles that are forced. I’m talking about those smiles that are derived from the great joy that starts in the heart and ends up spreading all over the face. I’m talking about the kind of smiling that makes your cheeks hurt with delight. When is the last time you wore a genuine smile on your face?

I can remember stopping by our small town grocery store a few years ago. I was walking behind this older fellow. He stopped abruptly, turned, and almost ran me over. Instead of responding grumpily, I smiled at him and said, “Hello, Sir! How are you today?” He snorted and said, “I’m old and I’m GROUCHY!” Instead of responding in kind, I looked at him, put a big old grin on my face, and as sweetly as possible said, “Well, maybe you could try smiling! It wouldn’t hurt anything. Might even make you feel better.” Before I rounded the corner of the next aisle, he was next to me with his buggy telling me a joke. I think he even cracked a smile. Smiling is definitely contagious!

When I look back on that simple little memory, I think about it with joy. What if I hadn’t been faithful in my christian walk that day? What if I had responded just as grumpily as that old fellow? What would it have accomplished? Not a thing! But because I am filled with the Spirit of the true living God, even on my worst days, my heart is full of joy. I could keep that joy all to myself, but that wouldn’t do any good. Just that one kind word with a smile on my face changed the whole demeanor of what could have been a very mean old man. I don’t know why he was feeling so old and grouchy that particular day, but I do know that simple kindness changed his whole attitude and outlook.

Y’all, that’s the way God works! He fills our hearts with joy, and we can’t help but let that joy leak out and spread all over the place. I think God designed us with the ability to smile so that others could see Him in us. Smiling isn’t just the upturning of our lips. Smiling is what our face does when our heart is glad. In the world, we haven’t had a lot to smile about lately. But if we have a glad heart, we can’t help but have a cheerful face. We can seek fame and fortune, always chasing the next big thing, trying to get more stuff and better things, but all that stuff won’t give us glad hearts. The pleasure of that stuff will last a little while, but in the end, it will just leave our hearts and our pocketbooks empty.

I know the answer for a glad heart and a cheerful face. His name is Jesus. If you invite Him into your heart, EVERYTHING changes! You start to see everything through the light of Christ. Those bad days don’t seem so bad anymore, and those good days are oh so much better. Through Christ, our hearts are slowly transformed and pump with gladness and joy. Your heart controls your face. If your heart is grumpy or sad or gloomy, your face will appear grumpy or gloomy, but if your heart is happy, you can’t help but have a cheerful face. The face is the mirror to your heart, and your heart should be a reflection of the love of Christ.

Put a smile on your face today! Turn that frown upside down! Feel the joy of Jesus, and let other see Who fills your heart with joy! If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a hundred times, “I’m drinking from my saucer because my cup is overflowing,” and “I just like to smile…smiling’s my favorite!” I’m going to keep on smiling. How about you?