That Will Get a Smile

In 1907, a woman known simply as "Sober Sue" headlined a nightly performance in New York City. The show was cleverly simple. A prize of $100 was offered to anyone who could make her smile. The show’s producer upped the bounty to $1,000 for anyone who could make her laugh.

Sober Sue sat center stage while world class entertainers performed their best acts. Night after night audiences roared with laughter while Sober Sue stared blankly at the wall. The prize was never won.

The show was a callous scam. Sober Sue suffered from facial paralysis, possibly from

Mobius Syndrome. She physically could not smile.

Unaware audiences thought the answer to her frown was a funnier performance or a more entertaining show. But her somber face on the outside was a symptom of a painful condition on the inside. She didn't need entertainment. She needed help.

Sunday's truth still holds steady on Thursday. A child of God has the unique privilege and possibility of a happy heart.

The answer is not outward or inward, but upward. Our joy flows from who God is, what He does, and who He blesses.

How easily distracted we can become, though, and seek within or around to find happiness. How quickly our joy can fade when we stray from its source. Like the poor woman made a spectacle all those years ago, we sit unhappy as the world parades all it has to offer. Bigger, better, and always more - yet never enough. Not a real smile to be found.

If our hearts long to find true happiness again, we don’t need more entertainment or a distraction from life. We need help. We need an encounter with the Healer, who knows how to restore a smile. This week, let’s slip away and find a secret place to get alone with God. We’ll still find that “In thy presence is fulness of joy; At thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.” (‭‭Psalm‬ ‭16‬:‭11‬)