Signs Hanging From The Ceiling

I noticed it when the workmen were here building our new deck.
I saw it on the driveway.
Tire tracks.
As the workmen drove down our driveway, they left tracks in their wake.

It was not snowing.
It was only May.
The tracks I saw on my driveway could have been made by a dusting of snow.
However, this was from a different kind of dusting.

This was from a dusting of pollen that the trucks drove through.
It was more than a dusting.
The pollen was literally over everything.
I even noticed the pollen was all over the car that was in the garage.

No wonder I had been sneezing.
No wonder I was coughing through the night.
My youngest daughter was here for the weekend, since she had wisdom teeth surgery.
She was struggling with the pollen as well.

She and I were a sorry pair.
Early Sunday morning, I decided that I would not go to church because of my cough.
I knew the reason for my cough, but no one else would know.
I didn’t want to make anyone feel uncomfortable.

I drove to the drugstore to get some allergy medicine for the two of us.
I talked to the pharmacist, who was quite helpful.
My friend, who suffers terribly from allergies, gets a pollen alert.
I looked at our area and the pollen count was off the charts!

I went into the drugstore, but I was unfamiliar with its setup.
It is not one I usually go to.
I looked up towards the ceiling.
Signs were hanging from the ceiling with words on them to help you in your search.

Beauty.
Pain relief.
Cosmetics.
Allergy, Colds, Flu.

I headed in that direction.
The sign over the aisle helped me find what I was looking for.
Once on the aisle, I had decisions to make.
I knew I was where I should be because of the signs.

I remember thinking to myself, What if someone couldn’t read?
Those words, that are so clear to you and me, would be like hieroglyphics to a non-reader.
I couldn’t imagine seeing those words and not knowing what they said.
I likened it to hearing another language but not understanding a word.

I wondered how many people are unable to read?
How many people have gotten by with tricks they have learned along the way?
How many people have bluffed their way through because they can creatively compensate?
The thought made me sad.

I thought of a bit of history that I happened to remember.
I came home and looked it up to make sure I remembered correctly.
I remembered a law that was passed to ensure that all individuals were literate.
It was specific literacy that was of concern: Biblical literacy was paramount.

Massachusetts passed the Old Deluder Satan Act in 1647, laying the basis for public schools in America. The Puritans valued literacy highly; they believed all individuals should be able to read and interpret the Bible for themselves. In 1642 Massachusetts had required parents to ensure their children’s ability to read, and five years later, in this act, the state mandated community schooling. The religious basis of the act was explicit: the act stated its intention was to thwart “ye old deluder, Satan” in his goal “to keepe men from the knowledge of ye Scriptures.” To this end, the law required every town with 50 or more families to hire and maintain a teacher to instruct all children in reading and writing. Towns of 100 or more families were required to support a grammar school to prepare students to attend Harvard College. Similar acts were soon adopted in the other New England colonies, except Rhode Island. (https://www.mtsu.edu/first-amendment/article/1032/old-deluder-satan-act-of-1647)

Can you imagine a law like this being passed today?
Can you imagine school boards being burdened for each student to read and interpret the Bible?
Can you imagine Harvard being the college that continued this type of education?
We have come so far, but not in a good way.

Imagine if the church took care of the people who lived around it.
Imagine if the needs of those people were known and met.
Government programs would not be needed, if every person came under the care of the church.
Imagine if all the children surrounding that church were trained to be Biblically literate.

They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. (Acts 2:42-47)

What if the church acted more like the church?
What if taking care of strangers was radically practiced?
What if the care of widows and orphans was commonplace?
What if everyone surrounding any given church knew how to read and interpret the Bible?

Once, this type of literacy was important in our country.
Today, it is relatively forgotten.
The signs hanging from the ceiling of the drugstore reminded me.
Some people do not know about God and His Word.

What are we, who know Him, going to do about it?

2 responses to “Signs Hanging From The Ceiling”

1. Gina, Jay and I just finished a class called Perspectives
   In one of the classes we had a woman talk to us about a Hispanic church not too far from us, she was moved by the Lord to go there, not knowing why? After calling she found that her skills as a teacher of Spanish could introduce English as a second language to the people.
   She has several volunteers she asked the Lord for 10 and he provided. So these people are learning to speak as well as read. God opens doors so creatively.
   Also people who would like to learn Spanish can do a one on one they learn Spanish while teaching English.

   Reply

   • Carol,
     Isn’t God amazing? He makes sure His Word and the knowledge of His Son, Jesus, are available to all. We, who know Him and love Him, pray that many will have eyes to see and ears to hear. Blessings to you and Jay!
     Gina

     Reply