Humor heals, even when life seems to careen out of order.

I’m living that right now.

On Friday morning, November 22nd I’ll be having open heart surgery in my hometown. I expect to make a full recovery, but nothing is guaranteed. A percentage of folks have serious problems and pass away from aortic heart problems. The actor John Ritter did, many others as well. So, in anticipation of facing this operation Susan and I decided to do what seems only natural to the Mansfield clan – we held a party.

More accurately, we invited a lot of local people as our guests to join us at an improv theater, Recycled Minds, to choose joy and laughter. The past Presidential election cycle coupled with my pending heart operation BOTH encouraged us to put on this event! We ALL needed it.

Really? Laughing? Are you kidding me? Well, yes… kidding someone is “used when someone says something surprising or that seems as if it could not be serious or true.” But it IS true!

​One source tells us,

You see, humor has always been a major part of my life. I grew up the third of seven kids – the youngest of the first three and the oldest of the final four. Ok… the “middle child”! Ha. We enjoyed life, despite our father and mother. I write about the brokenness of my parents’s life in Finding Malone. As a child I saw how pain’s splinter can pierce the spirit of joy and deflate it ever so quickly. I also saw how looking at life through the lens of hope can re-inflate true joy.

When I surrendered my life to Christ, I experienced on-going joy and happiness that enveloped me, even calming my broken spirit when my son Nate passed away, almost 16 years ago. That’s me – what about you? What are you facing? What is it that’s sucking the joy out of your life? If you really want to re-balance your life there are some clear things that will help you.

• First, be honest and admit what you THINK it is that’s deeply scarring you. Dig into it and bring it to the surface.
• Next, be honest with whether that deep pain is REALLY what is bothering you. Probe, pray and pursue the truth. Don’t settle for emotional vomiting; “pump your stomach” and get it out.
• Finally, be honest about the missed opportunities, the unmet expectations and the squandered successes that you allowed to go sour in your life. Take responsibility for your sadness and your pain. It’s not what happens to you that defines you, it’s how you respond to it.

Let’s unpack these three things:

Be honest and admit what you think is bothering you.

In my case I had an appointment 25 years ago with my friend, cardiologist Dr. Dave Sim. Nothing was bothering me. It was a sort of “well baby” check, or so I thought. He found that I had a congenital (from birth) heart condition. He said I should be aware of it for potential future problems. I thanked him and went on my way. I was aware but not worried.

Five years ago we visited together again and Dave said my birth defect condition had caused an aneurism on my ascending aorta of the heart – and that it should be fixed ASAP. I didn’t feel bad, and so, I didn’t see the rush. I didn’t think ANYTHING was bothering me.

But something WAS wrong. What was bothering me was the truth that aneurisms are like expanding bubbles in a garden hose and will, given the right pressure, burst and most likely kill the patient before he hits the ground.

I went from what I “thought” the problem was to…

Becoming honest about what the problem really was.

I had a real health problem. So, a year ago we went to S. Cal to the world renown Cedar Sinai Hospital, upon the referral of our cardiologist to see what needed to be done. Open heart surgery was determined by the docs there, and a date was chosen.

Man, what a whirlwind. But something was still bothering me, emotionally. The idea of being far away from my home, my family, and friends for recovery didn’t settle well with me. The new problem was finding a local doctor who had the experience to successfully do the operation.

We found him and what joy…right here in my hometown of Boise! We switched hospitals and arrived at a date: November 22nd. I really did have a profound problem facing me.

Finally, I’ve had to be honest about the missed opportunities.

In determining that I would go forward with open heart surgery, I had to take a clear and convincing look at the fact that I could die during the procedure. I had to be honest about the things I would miss in my life, by having chosen (by my own volition) to be operated on.

I had to gamble. But then, I started thinking, “Was it really a gamble?” In other words, would I take the odds in Vegas? The answer was yes.

If I lost, what would I then gain? I looked fully in the face of that question and realized: I would gain everything. As a follower of Jesus, dying is not the end. He lived, died and lived again – to give me the REAL hope that eclipses even the best hint of hope on Earth. The odds are in my favor, either way.

And I smiled. I couldn’t help but think about what kind of patient I might end up being. Then I laughed. I thought of Brian Regan’s Emergency Room routine, and I roared.

​

So, my bride and I decided to create an evening of comedy this past weekend and add a dash of prayer.

And how great it was! I mean, my face muscles hurt from laughing so much. “Improv” by it’s very nature is creative spontaneity and it’s crazy fun.

Take for example when the comedian, Sean Hancock, invited my two grandkids, Cole and Amelia up on stage for a case of “Bad Lip Reading”. It’s a quick two-minute visit to see the joy we had this past weekend. (Col, embed the video of Cole and Amelia with Sean and the improvers here)

So, look at your life. Look at your problems and evaluate them. Look at your sense of humor and examine the top 25 things that the scripture says about humor. Here are a few that I love:

1. Psalm 30:11: “You have turned my mourning into joyful dancing. You have taken away my clothes of mourning and clothed me with joy.”
2. Ecclesiastes 8:15: “So I recommend having fun, because there is nothing better for people in this world than to eat, drink, and enjoy life. That way they will experience some happiness along with all the hard work God gives them under the sun.”
3. Matthew 2:10: “When they saw the star, they were filled with joy!”
4. Luke 2:10: “But the angel reassured them. ‘Don’t be afraid!’ he said. ‘I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people.’”
5. 1 Peter 4:13: “Instead, be very glad—for these trials make you partners with Christ in his suffering, so that you will have the wonderful joy of seeing his glory when it is revealed to all the world.”

Now go about your business and be refreshed.

I will do that this week, as well.

More later,
Den

Den's Latest & Greatest

• Here’s are some films that will make you laugh no matter what’s facing you. I keep coming back to them year after year for a fun time.
  • Dirty Rotten Sceoundrels with Steve Martin
  • The Pink Panther with Peter Sellers
  • Anchorman with Will Farrell
  • The Blues Brothers with John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd
  • City Slickers with Billy Crystal
  • (And for your holiday pleasure) Elf with Will Farrell
• The Brian Regan clip from earlier in this email comes from his performance in Hollywood at the Improv. Pop up some popcorn and sit back and laugh. Watch his overall performance here.
• Please put my surgeon on your prayer list, that the Lord would help him as he operates on my heart, so that I may return to health, to my family and to you!