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 Laugh More, Live
Better
If you are looking for a
speaker for your upcoming church, business, or
banquet audience, ask me about providing some
edu-tainment on the topic of therapeutic
laughter and humor.
Merry Medicine for the
Soul!
One day
while working with Hurricane Katrina victims, as
a hospital chaplain, I was struck by the
quick turn-around one patient took, when he
suddenly found something to laugh about. On a
follow-up visit, he began to tell me about how
he was thinking about something a comedian once
talked about.
As I
was listening to him tell the story, I wanted to
jump in and finish for him - because was
reciting an old George Carlin comedy bit, called
"Stuff." The bit was one of my favorites!
He shared how he realized that all
he lost, was just stuff. He said he got to
thinking that he really is thankful that none of
loved-ones were lost. I was simple nodding my
head, trying not to interrupt. Then he started
to recite the comedy bit again, and this time he
stopped and said, "Rev, you're
smiling...You don't know who George Carlin is do
you?"
 I said, "George Carlin? Of
course I do. Before I was 'Rev' is was 'Irev' -
I grew-up in the 70's near Toledo, Ohio - I know
George Carlin."
He
then said, "Well, then you would remember
the bit he did on 'Stuff.' We both rushed to
recount that comedy bit and laughed in his
hospital room as we took turns reciting the
lines to that comedy bit!
I was
amazed by the emotional and physical healing
that took place for him after that
unscheduled session of comedy, humor, and
laughter.
That
encounter set me off on a serious two year study
of the dynamics of humor and laughter and its
place in our emotional, physical, and spiritual
well being.
In that process, I became
a Certified Laughter
Leader and discovered medical research
and therapeutic practices of laughter that
goes beyond entertainment. I learned
that laughter helps us break down communication
barriers, it fosters teamwork, it builds
employee morale, empowers leadership
effectiveness, it increases mental
attentiveness, promotes open interaction, it
decreases stress hormones, improves the immune
system, it boosts good endorphins, it aids
in better breathing and it just plain old makes
us feel good!
Humorous Story Ilustrations -
Comedy &
Humor
In my presentations, I draw
upon the humorous stories and funny
experiences from my life, to help
illustrate who we can benefit from laughter and
humor within our
everyday stress.
I share real-life humor
from my days as a child growing up in the
1970's in the small town of Rossford, Ohio,
serviing as the pastor of a
small family church in the deep South,
being a father of four children whose ages span
16 years, getting a phone call from CMT's
Redneck Wedding television producer and having
to tell him that he was 1 week too
late, officiating weddings gone bad, and
losing over 100 pounds, 14 belt lopes, and all
my wardrobe!
Yorkfellow
Stories - The
Yorkfellows
You will
enjoy my funny stories about the Yorkfellows
family from my introduction to being a Yankee
pastor in the Southern world of a family-led
church, the  first First
Baptist of Macedonia, South Carolina.
The Yorkfellow's
give me a vehicle to share the hilarious, but
sometimes personal stories of church events and
parishioners without embarrassment.
The Yorkfellows
family is lead by the matriarch, Ma Yorkfellow and
her seven adult children, who are listed from
oldest to youngest: LeRoy
(Charlene; son Junior) Head deacon of the
first First Baptist Church of Macedonia,
South Carolina; Rachel (Walter, LeRoy's
businessman brother-in-law), Healy,
Danielle, Camile, Merrill, and Tad (short for
Tadacious).
Some of my
Yorkfellows stories are
...
Ma Yorkfellows and the Harley, LeRoy and
the Debate, Junior at the Wedding,
Walter and the Auto Accident. Walter Goes to
Las Vegas ,Officer Healy and Bro.
Newell, Healy and the US Marines,
Ma Yorkfellows’s Beef Lasagna, Dr.
Merrill's visit with the 91 year old
Millionaire, Dr. Merrill's House
Call
Therapeutic Laughter - Wellness &
Laughter
If you visit
this YouTube link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ch7uL5syt8
you'll be able to view a clip of me leading
a special therapeutic laughter event. (It will
open in a new
window.)
If you are interested, I
have also presented my message of therapeutic
laughter with a focus on wellness and my own
journey of losing over 100
pounds!
Stress prevents weight
loss and by managing it, we can enjoy
laughter and "being transformed by
the renewing of the mind"
(Romans12:2)!
Bob Newhart has said, "Laughter gives
us distance. It allows us to step back from an
event, deal with it and then move
on." Every life has its share of
struggles, difficulties, and issues that could
leave the best of us on a downward spiral.
However, having a sense of humor and a
willingness to laugh, gives us a powerful
defense against the circumstances of
life.
Bill Cosby said it this
way: "Through humor, you can soften
some of the worst blows that life delivers. And
once you find laughter, no matter how painful
your situation might be, you can survive
it."
If you are looking for a
presentation for your leaders, go to "Laugh More,
Lead
Further."
Humor with a
Purpose
I enjoy helping audiences to help
people laugh more and stress less, because our
world has a way of keeping us living on the edge
of worry, fear, and even sadness. And like the
good book says, "A merry heart doeth
good like a medicine, but a broken spirit drieth
the bones" (Proverbs 17:22).
Read what audiences have said
about my presentations: Audience Comments.
Check
my Speaking
Availability
Please
visit my Scheduling
page for a no-obligation request to see if I may
be available for your upcoming banquet, meeting,
or conference.
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