No One Laughs at God

Let’s get the fine print disclaimer out of the way early so I don’t get blamed for proselytizing later on. I‘m one of those nut cases that actually believes there is a God (capital G) and all the baggage that relationship brings with it. With me, it’s personal, not complicated, and based on life experiences of failure and success that have led me to believe that some power, much larger than me, has had my back from the start and seems to know that I have the ability to be a persistent screw-up but worthy of second chances.

No one laughs at God
When the doctor calls after some routine tests
No one’s laughing at God
When it’s gotten real late and their kid’s not back from the party yet

It seems however, that every time I make an attempt to explain to someone why I hold such beliefs my mind is far more eloquent than are my lips ….. so much gets lost in translation. Much of it illogical and without explanation, and frankly, unbelievable to those that have no use for such things. There is a part of me recently that has wondered if there is a way to make my thoughts more intellectually, realistically and personally palatable for my friends of ‘disbelief’. I may have found it in a very unlikely place; Pop Culture.

No one laughs at God in a hospital
No one laughs at God in a war
No one’s laughing at God
When they’re starving or freezing or so very poor

Most of my enjoyable and enlightening conversations come from discourse with those that have worldviews far removed from mine; politically, socially, economically, experientially, and spiritually. Living in a region of the US where existentialism or secular humanism are prevailing philosophies offers great opportunities for discourse. These conversations with really bright people are typically circular in nature and tend to lead to the same sources; the ‘anything and everything goes’ essence of relativism, human morality, ethics, agnostic or atheist labels, and the total contradiction to their enlightenment of anything as big as something like a God.

No one laughs at God
When the doctor calls after some routine tests
No one’s laughing at God
When it’s gotten real late and their kid’s not back from the party yet

I just don’t see life like them. How could I convey the idea that life does not begin and end with what they think, feel or have experienced? That they have infinitely less control over things than they imagine and quite possibly they are light years away from understanding all there is to understand (let alone comprehend). Whether they want to believe it or not – there likely will come a time when they search for some supernatural security blanket, or a reason to explain or blame where their comprehension and understanding falls short. It’s during these times when one realizes just how small and powerless we really are.

No one laughs at God
When their airplane starts to uncontrollably shake
No one’s laughing at God
When they see the one they love hand in hand with someone else
And they hope that they’re mistaken

Regina Spektor is a Russian born singer songwriter living in New York City. She wrote a song titled Laughing With (click for music and lyrics), lyrics highlighted nearby. She has nailed what I think about but have heretofore been unable to verbalize about the proportion of God in terms of us and the stuff we face in our own lives. When my kids didn’t get home before curfew, or my dad didn’t wake up from his nap, or I failed miserably in one way or another; my thoughts didn’t focus on my ability to right the wrong. They centered on something where hope had a fighting chance; God.

No one laughs at God
When the cops knock on their door
And they say we got some bad news, sir
No one’s laughing at God
When there’s a famine or fire or flood

I have no idea where Ms. Spektor stands spiritually other than what can be gleaned from an interview quote; “”I’m always fascinated with faith, religion, and spirituality, and what those things are to each other, or how they come together or don’t come together”. That tells me she falls somewhere between Billy Graham and Christopher Hitchens. Laughing With may simply have been a fleeting thought for Regina that turned into music, but for me, it was a thought clarifier in terms that I understand.
                                                                                                                                                        No one laughs at God in a hospital
No one laughs at God in a war
No one’s laughing at God
When they’ve lost all they’ve got and they don’t know what for

Thanks Regina.  I can relate.

No one laughs at God
On the day they realize that the last sight they’ll ever see
Is a pair of hateful eyes
No one’s laughing at God
When they’re saying their goodbyes

{Regina Spektor, FAR (2009), Sire/Warner Bros. Records}