Wednesday, May 14, 2008

I Could Not Resist Being Cynical


Okay, I did not plan to blog tonight and I really wanted the last post of Superkid's birth story to flow right into the next of his birthday thoughts....

But I could not resist a moment to be cynical....
I just got home from the grocery. On the way home I passed a church billboard sign that read:
"Don't' Give up, Moses use to be a basket case"
I'm slow people...real slow so it took me a moment..
oh, "basket case" I get it....euh...blak! (I don't know how to properly spell spewings with phoenitics out my mouth..sorry)

Now..if it took me a moment, and I grew up in a christian home, hearing one bible story after another, and have walked with the Lord reading them over and over.... how do they possibly expect the every day guy on the street to even know the significance of the basket punchline?!


I spewd for a few moments in my mind about how annoying these christian billboards are to me and then I come across another just a few blocks up:
"Christian love creates global warming."
COME ON... YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME!
THIS IS OUR ONE THING WE SAY TO THE ONE PERSON WE MAY HAVE ONE CHANCE TO SAY SOMETHING TO FOR THE CAUSE OF CHRIST?!!!! "Christian love creates global warming" (I'm not sure whether I'm hearing it in a dunce voice in my head or a prissy girl voice... I bounce back and forth).


People, people, people....

The world must really think we are quacks.... let alone TERRIBLE comedians.

I remember actually before I had kids and had a job working with a guy who took the bus a lot. He drove by this one church that has a billboard visible from the freeway. He would just go on and on about the stupidity of the stuff they came up with. It use to bother me because I knew that Christians were not nitwits. His impression was that we were, from these silly signs.

Now mind you, I realize that a non-believer will always be critical of the gospel in a way because they their nature is to run from it.... but people, let's not give them more material to back their case shall we?!


What should be on these billboards? THE VERY WORDS OF GOD! The scripture right out and untampered with.

For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Heb. 4:12


Are we trying to win them with our sharpened whit (if so, we better get help) or the sharp and alive word of God. The Word of God can meet that person right where they need to be met. We don't have to worry about timing, whether they get it or not, whether it's appealing....It's God's word and HE will use it!

I wonder if the church tries too much to "candy" people into the gospel. Like someone handing out lollypops in the road verbally. To make it sound fun, sweet, funny, popular. These should not be our concerns. You are trying to reach one person in one moment for one time in their life and this is all ya got?

If I didn't believe God was sovereign can use ANYTHING..... I'd say that these billboards are just us shooting ourselves in the foot.

4 comments:

Gombojav Tribe said...

Maybe you already know it, but have you ever visited this blog:

http://crummychurchsigns.blogspot.com/

Kristen Borland said...

i often had the same feelings about church signs. they are so fluffy, nothing real to them, as if God's word can't penetrate souls on its own. also, they are usually terrible jokes--and a bad representation of Christianity. but every once in awhile, there's a good one out there that's actually pretty powerful and funny.

Alicia said...

Daja,
no, but i'll check it out.

Kristen,
It's true... Rick was telling me last night as we fumed together about this that he had seen one he liked that read:
Exercise daily; walk with God!
Okay... that one I like!

Anonymous said...

This is a WONDERFUL post.

You know, I've always been kind of timid about sharing my disdain for these signs because maybe they're more effective than I know.

But really, they're cheesy. And probably more damaging if anything. I'd rather have people read Biblical Truth on their way to work as I know factually that the Bible will never be damaging than risk more people being turned away from the church due to these dorky signs on the off chance that ONE person thinks it's funny.

(sorry for that run-on sentence there!)

Loved this post.