Lighten up a little, reverend says

Laughter is like inner jogging, says the Rev. Steve Goodier of Salt Lake's Christ United Methodist Church.

He goes out of his way to add a light touch to his sermons, and he also teaches specifically about the importance of laughter in a person's life.

"I use humor all the time," the Rev. Goodier said. "I try to never preach without using it."

He presented "The Healing Power of Humor: Why You Need More Humor in Your Life" on March 16 at the church.

"I'm by no means a comedian," the Rev. Goodier said. "But all of us can bring humor into our lives."

His light approach isn't unique to Methodists, it's more a matter of personal style.

"Laughter makes us more balanced emotionally. Besides, those who can laugh at themselves will never run out of good material," he said.

The Rev. Goodier said Abraham Lincoln used humor a lot, while Adolf Hitler and Josef Stalin apparently had no sense of humor.

Laughter is also especially important to the Rev. Goodier because a lot of what he does as a minister is to deal with the problems of people. "Humor helps give us perspective," he said. "Life is not easy. Humor gives us coping power. . . . It helps relieve stress."

He also believes humor gives strength during difficult times and is an excellent coping device. "If you can laugh about anything, you can survive it," he said, quoting Bill Cosby.

The Rev. Goodier said there are four key coping skills in life: work, prayer, friends and humor.

Good humor can take the edge off anything. For example, the Rev. Goodier said that during the Cuban Missile Crisis of the early 1960s, when American and the Soviet Union were at the brink of nuclear war, negotiators were stalled until a Soviet told a joke and got true conversation going.

In control studies, even people who faked smiles felt better than those who lacked them, he said. Find an assortment of jokes and all of them will make at least some people laugh.

"Everyone has a different profile of humor," he said. "Get to know your profile. Bring more of it into your life — angels fly because they takes themselves lightly."

He also said if you go somewhere intending to laugh, you will. But if you make an emotional contract to be serious, you won't laugh. His presentations tell how to make better inner contracts to laugh with ourselves.