Offended by a sign…

Recently we had this sign; well actually we still have this sign in front of our church.  The youth are in charge of our “Wayside Pulpit” and I ask them to put this up two weeks ago.  It has drawn some attention, but I found that someone saw it with negative attentiveness.

In the middle of prayer meeting last week one of the sweet, older lady’s spoke up and said,

“I need to talk to you after service tonight.  I am upset…no really I am offended at…that sign.”

Another lady asked, “What sign?”

She continued, “The one out front…on the road.”

Again another asked, “What does it say?”

Again the first lady said, “I don’t remember, but it offended me!”

Now, she did not wait until prayer meeting was over, but continued to explain to me, in the presence of many witnesses, that the sign was offensive.  She felt condemned, since she had missed church services the week before and that she was not weak because she had missed church, due to illness.  She ended the rant with, “That sign was directed at me.”

Needless to say, I had no thought of this sweet lady when I sent that message to the student in charge of sign.  But it did do what I wanted it to do: It got someone’s attention!

I wonder what she would have said if I had put:

“One week without prayer, makes one weak.”

Or if I had posted what I saw on Dr. Steve Gaines Facebook wall this week:

“A day without prayer is a wasted day.”

I like church signs.  As I drive along the road, I watch for those wayside pulpits with some nugget or mini message on them.  From time to time I stop and take a picture with my mobile phone, to save it for just a time as this.

Here are few I have seen over the last few months.