Dear Church with the Corny Marquee Sign,
Charlotte Avenue was bumper to bumper traffic as one would expect at 6 pm on a weekday. Why I chose this route instead of taking the highway is beyond me.
As I inched up closely to the next stop light, I glanced up to read your old fashioned marquee sign with the archaic plastic letters, aged and tired.
I rolled my eyes at your corny Christian saying.
After what seemed like an eternity, the light turned green and I finished my excursion to The Mecca of Things Unnecessary: Target.
Picking up my prescription (and contributing an additional donation of $64 to The Mecca), I traveled home, back on Charlotte Avenue once again.
Back to you again.
But instead of rolling my eyes again, I flashed back to my formative elementary school years when I’d pull down the boxes containing the same plastic letters in my dad’s workroom in the church where he was a pastor. He’d leave me a quote with a saying for the sign not so different than the one I’d read on yours today. Cautiously, I’d climb the church’s four foot ladder and meticulously line up the letters on the sign to form the words just right.
Because I was just as compulsive then as I am now.
I imagine your pastor similar to my father in those days.
Balding.
The only person “on staff.”
Away from his family.
Putting those little golf scoring pencils in the pews while picking up last week’s bulletins that people had left stuck behind the hymnals.
His office is a mess of old Matthew Henry Commentaries and prayer requests and he sits back in an old office chair with cracks in the leather, and as he looks at a photograph of a picture of his family, he leans back and takes a deep breath.
And I’m really sorry for rolling my eyes at your sign earlier.
It was immature and inconsiderate. Because your boldness to say something positive on a street that sees so much darkness is nothing short of noble and redemptive.
And to your pastor I say thank you for being the man you know you’re supposed to be. It’s not an easy or popular job, and definitely not one that’s financially rewarding, but my own back yard is a better place for having you love and give the way you give.
And I can’t roll my eyes at that.
=====
Comments
51 responses to “Dear Church with the Corny Marquee Sign”
I also used to change signs for my dad at our church. And I know it is hard to come up with something. But I saw one last week that said, “This Blood’s For You.”
I was just disturbed. I don’t know what signs are for at most churches. They don’t have any information about the church, they just have a knock off advertising slogan.
I drive by this one little church with a “church sign” almost every day. I confess to rolling my eyes and finding it a mild form of entertainment on most days, but for a couple of weeks the sign read, “Pray. God likes to hear from you.” And I’ll be darned if I didn’t pray every time I passed that sign. Thanks, little church.
Beth?s last blog post..Easter Menu
missed your perspective and your writing…
i’m there in the office and see those commentaries…i see this girl on a ladder changing the sign…i just wonder if you used your trapper keeper to hold the letters and get them out to the sign…?
more than anything i missed you sharing simple lessons learned!!!
jon mark?s last blog post..underestimated!?!
Thanks for that, Anne.
Steven Rossi?s last blog post..Antidisestabli-what? Longest Word in the English Language
We got a sign like that. Fortunately, it’s so small we can’t get most sayings on there, and the mini sign with the service times on there is too small to see at the street, so I just put the worship time in big letters.
I can’t get my daughter to change the letters (like to put the Easter musical up there) because of all the dead flies under the “vandalism guard”, she says it’s too nasty.
yep – i like those little signs w/ the corny sayings better than those that scream out “HEY, I AM NOT SO FAMOUS PASTOR SO AND SO AND THIS IS MY KINGDOM. WANNA COME IN!!!”
This post was a breath of fresh air! I have read so much that is critical of one church or another lately, mostly, the area of the rating on some-one’s personal trendiness meter. Reading such negative comments reminds of schoolyard chatter, with the trendier kids bashing the out-of-date, mis-fitting styles of others on the black-top. Your paradigm shift was great!
Melinda?s last blog post..Season in Life, Preface
I love those little church signs. I think they are clever (most of the time). I commend you, Anne, for redirecting your thoughts and finding the positive. It’s hard to do sometimes and I think we all fall short. I am trying to improve on that aspect of myself, but it’s nice to see that others stuggle with it as well, sometimes.
Tsk, tsk, Anne. Don’t you know that the hip Christian response to things like that is over-analyzing, condescending, and bitter? :)
Thank you. That was lovely.
And I’ll confess here: There’s a little Catholic (I think) church on my way to work and all last week their sign pointed to a Lenten organ recital on Thursday. I started the week making fun of it, but by the end of the week was thinking about going.
Lex?s last blog post..Soliciting your continued prayer
When I saw the headline on Twitter, I expected a tad of snark in your observations. Instead, I found hope.
Keep looking for new growth among thorns.
W. Mark Whitlock?s last blog post..The Future of Radio
Oof. This one hit home. And made me cry.
My dad is “that pastor,” too. The balding guy who does everything for the church. The guy who has a part-time secretary and types his own sermon outline. The guy who spends Saturday nights sitting at his kitchen table folding and stuffing the Order of Worship for the next day. And he LOVES. IT.
I don’t live in the same town as my parents, so I don’t get to drive by their church very often. I will, however, remember to pray for that little church with a lot more urgency than I did before.
Thanks.
Robyn (3GirlsMom)?s last blog post..Good Friday
Good stuff.
I remember in Middle school having to change our Marquee sign. Thankfully my dad never made me put corny sayings on it :-)
Nick?s last blog post..Meet My Mom
How refreshing.
In a sea of criticism and complaint about how the church keeps getting it wrong, it is nice to see someone looking beyond the obvious.
Thanks for my first smile of the day!
Beth Hoover?s last blog post..Jazz Appreciation Month
Good reflections. I had memories of my Dad come rushing back to me this week and wrote about it. I am thankful for memories.
Joey?s last blog post..The Power of Touch
i was scared to read it, because my skin crawls each time someone constructively criticizes a fellow teammate who is merely trying to score the same goal.
and, now i have hope i will be reading fewer and fewer unproductive rants.
thanks, anne.
carolyn?s last blog post..rock church community fun festival pics (part 2)
Anne, you never cease to amaze me. I have now officially placed you on my list of heroes. Don’t worry, I don’t believe in pedestals, they’re too easy to fall off of and I know you’re going to screw up at some point, just because you’re not Jesus. Thing is, you’re looking more and more like Him every day.
Thank you.
Faye?s last blog post..hiking
Thanks for sharing this reminder! I pass a similar sign each day in my neighborhood, and all I can say is the King James version verses are growing on me…
Terry Foester?s last blog post..remembering summer and sunsets?on this cold wet snowy evening
Oh. Nice left turn.
Great post. It’s so easy to criticize other believers that are trying to do the same thing…bring others to Christ. I’ve done it too often to admit.
The church where I am on staff has a sign with those little plastic letters. I’m sure most ministry people (whether they’re on staff at a church or laypersons) can relate to feeling like they don’t measure up to the bigger churches in town. At least I do.
So it was very encouraging to read your post. Thanks.
Isaac Downing?s last blog post..Death & Taxes.
The post went in a direction I wasn’t expecting, but one that caused me to think. You see, my first job out of college was working as a youth pastor at one of these traditional churches with the sign out front. That experience cased a lot of hurt, pain, frustration and bitterness for numerous reasons to detailed to explain in a comment field. So, I roll my eyes for a different reason every time I pass by a church with one of those corny signs and say “those” people just don’t get it. It’s a way in my warped mind to get back at the hurt that was caused me. Twisted I know, but this is the lens I viewed the post.
Anyway, on another note, the best are the signs that reference details of Bible stories that the average “heathen” sitting in traffic would not get at first glance. There is one church in town that does this and they leave me scratching my head trying to figure out exactly what they meant by their clever sign. For instance, “Don’t worry…Moses was a basket case too!” It wasn’t until I was a mile or two down the road that I got their point. Yet, my all time favorite church sign is a church in a strip mall across the street from my house. Their sign says “Pimp Slap Religion!” Sadly no one knows the name of the church as the church is referred to in town as the Pimp Slap Religion church.
wow. convicting. love it.
Josiah?s last blog post..Grandfather Mountain
When they are encouraging, yes I agree. Some people need those little unexpected reminders (like me)! However, a couple months ago I saw one to “Come in and get your FREE coupon to heaven.” I couldn’t help but giggle. Really? Someone still considers this church marketing. Poor guy (or gal). :)
Andrea?s last blog post..Practicing the ways of Jesus
I’m supposed to be a trendy church person; but I’m also a WOMM kind of person; and those little signs are probably the most consistent face the community sees. It’s what they know that body for. There’s was one little free methodist church where I grew up on the main drag, and they had great signs. Poignant, decent theology, cute, but not obnoxious or redundant. (here in nashville there are far too many “Jesus: the real volunteer” for my taste)
Kyle
Just when I thought that I had it bad. Praying for all my “brothers” and “sisters” who’s labor is NOT in vain even if grammatically incorrect.
Kenyon?s last blog post..Culture: Create v. Dictate
It’s good to take a step back and put yourself in someone else’s shoes for a bit. Totally changes your view on things! What a great reminder that what we do in ministry… whether at a mega-church or a small town corner church… makes a difference in someone’s life.
Graham?s last blog post..EASTER Sunday Setlist [4/12/09] – The Gathering
Thank you Anne. :-) Thank you from all us oldsters that still have a Pollyanna view of life.
CindyK?s last blog post..The Priest for those who don’t go to Church
Glad you made the return trip. Seeing through eyes made wise by Our Father is worth sharing. Thanks.
thanks for making me feel back jerk! :) kidding! love you!
krysta?s last blog post..why kissing never leads to sex :: intro
thank you.
I passed one a few weeks ago that said something to the effect of “It’s going to be alright, we’re praying for you” and you know what? That sign gave me the much needed boost I needed.
Wow. That’s convicting.
Thanks for the good perspective.
Adam Mabry?s last blog post..A Hymn that?s Rocking my World
Sweet Friend, I miss you.
kristiapplesauce?s last blog post..Woman of dignity
Everything dynamic and very positively! :)
Deep breath in and out.. that one stopped me in my tracks. Thank you!
Theatrically was Sunshine Cleaning. ,
stunning. thank you anne:) that hit me.
That was a great reminder that we all are drawn to different styles of church, worship, teaching and even church signage. And rather than taking a critical approach we should say thank you to those who are reaching others in a way that is different from our way. It reminds me of the “many parts of the body” passage. :)
I’m a pk, too, and an admitted eye-roller. Thanks for offering up this fresh perspective.
As a former sign-changer myself, this brings back memories. It wasn’t for my dad, but I was the part-time church secretary for a bi-vocational pastor and we had one of those signs. I even had a couple of books to help with the quotes. One of my favorites was one we used during Labor Day week: “Yes, God feeds the birds but He doesn’t throw the food in their nests.”
Those were the days…
Glad they’re over for me. Love my current job at a church with just a regular sign – no removable letters.
.-= Cindy Graves?s last blog ..The Sweet By and By, Sara Evans with Rachel Hauck =-.
That made me cry a little… hah!
There is a church that used to be on my way to work. One time their sign read “God doesn’t use Photoshop”. I’m in the creative department at a missions org., so I twittered the picture with my comment “Glad I don’t work in the creative dept. at this church!” But I immediately felt sad for that church. I didn’t even have a right to feel sad for them, though, cause I don’t know if they have a tiny lifeless congregation or not… they may be full of good things and people and creativity and love for their community. I have no idea, really. And I hate churches making fun of other churches. Why did I even do that?
sign messages are old school… and not everyone has the time to be creative with an old school sign.. I decided that I have to either embrace or ignore the tiny funny things about my church and everyone else’s… signs like that really don’t matter. If the sign said something super hip and cool, or if the sign was a Hi-Def screen, but inside the building there is nothing the back it up… that is worse.
Hook.Line.Hope I was planning on letting out a BIG laugh after clicking your Twitter link to read this post. Negative Ghost Rider; instead my heart broke for all little pastor’s. I pray for you, if you are reading this, and that is you… Bless you.
Prayer’s for you too, Anne; because doing what you do/have done/and are going to do equals sacrifice.
.-= Reese?s last blog .."New Year’s Revolution" =-.
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. My heart has been breaking this week over exactly the kind of attitudes you allude to. In fact, I clicked over from Twitter cringing; I didn’t think I could read one more negative thing from one Christian to another. I’m just sick about it all. But THIS was a gift. If only we could remember to treat everyone as we would like to be treated. Bravo, Anne.
I finally stopped changing our sign when I tired of trying to come up with “clever” things to say every week and when nobody seemed to get my off the wall humor when I put up, “Honk if you love cheeses.”
ok, I laughed at that! Funny…
.-= Cindy Graves?s last blog ..The Sweet By and By, Sara Evans with Rachel Hauck =-.
My grandfather has been in charge of putting sayings on the sign at the church I grew up in for years. He takes his job quite seriously and even keeps a list of potential sayings. Even though the sayings on most of those signs are corny, I smile when I see one because I can picture my 82 year old grandpa out there putting the letters up.
It’s easy to be critical of things we don’t like. Confession like this is so good for the soul.
Never fails to treat others the way we want to be treated!
Thanks for going first.
I’m a pastor… you made me tear up… blessings!
That was wonderful.
.-= Pat Callahan?s last blog ..Amazing! =-.
You are very kind. You have responded to a well meaning “sign poster” gently. However, as a former minister I can’t help but cringe at these signs. Why? Because to the uninitiated they are unintelligible. Someone says “if it touches just one person, isn’t it worth it?” Perhaps. But what about all of those who might have been touched by a different approach but now have their suspicions about Christians reconfirmed and they have closed the door? Is it worth it if it closes the doors of so many more?
Signs are the technique of modern business approach: reduce everything to a catchy slogan. I love the way Eugene Peterson translates Matthew 7:6 “Don’t be flip with the sacred. Banter and silliness give no honor to God. Don’t reduce holy mysteries to slogans. In trying to be relevant, you’re only being cute and inviting sacrilege.”
Your kindness is commendable–and I appreciate your comments. The intentions of the sign posters are good. But let’s not mistake nostalgia for good judgment. Don’t encourage the approach that may do more harm than good. Too much is at stake.
Oh, and let me hasten to add: I hope my comments are not viewed as an attack on anyone who feels differently than I (and there are obviously quite a few here who do feel differently!). Again, your gentleness and kindness is wonderful. I think that is how we should be with everyone–even those who disagree with us.