The electronic sign in front of our building is a marvelous asset to our ministries. It takes advantage of our location on a heavily traveled street to make people more aware of our church. It promotes our programs and has prompted people to visit our worship. It can be conveniently uploaded from our office computer, so we no longer have to walk out and tediously slide plastic letters in racks. And it can present our messages with all sorts of neat eye-catching animation tricks.
There is one thing, however, it cannot do: our sign cannot curse.
I discovered this during one particularly oppressive stretch of stifling hot South Arkansas summer days. Casting about for an appropriate message, I settled upon this provocative point:
“There is no air conditioning in hell.”
My intent, of course, was to take advantage of the heat wave to make people aware of the wrong eternal destination. As I exited my office that afternoon, however, I noticed something odd about the message flashing on the sign. It read:
“There is no air conditioning in h***.”
It turns out the software for our sign contains an automatic override that prevents its electronic board from displaying any curse words. This feature protects the church from malicious messages posted by any unauthorized pranksters who gain access to the sign’s operating system.
Upon reflection, it occurred to me that such a feature would come in handy if it could be downloaded in some people I have known. We live in an increasingly coarse culture, and one manifestation of our social decline is the profusion of profanity that assaults us daily.
Upon further reflection, it occurred to me that Christians have been provided with such an override: the Holy Spirit! In Ephesians 3:16, Paul prayed that God would strengthen the Ephesian Christians “with power through his Spirit in your inner being.” In the next chapter he cautions them, “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths” (4:29) and in the very next verse he adds, “And do not grieve the Holy Spirit with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption” (4:30).
Unlike the church sign, however, our override is not automatic: we must intentionally allow ourselves to be “filled with the Spirit” (Ephesians 5:18). The good news is, when we do, we will enjoy a richer quality of life.Paul says that instead of spouting profanity, Spirit-filled people will “Speak to one another with psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your hearts to the Lord” (Ephesians 5:19).
So learn a lesson from our church sign: if you will allow the Holy Spirit to have control of your heart, He will override the bad messages from your mouth, and your life will overflow with the sweet fruit of “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and selfcontrol” (Galatians 5:22-23)!
–Dan Williams, PS Network
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