25 P.S.A.L.M.

PSALM is the acronym for a mythical ministry at my Church of the Acronym. It stands for Potty Signage And Light Ministry. (We don't have committees anymore; we have ministries.) I am the only one in this ministry, so far. And it's very lonely being a one person ministry. Some people, particularly church staff, might suspect I'm just a nag.

But recently I was reading an interview with Virginia Postrel (I link to her on my other blog, Collecting My Thoughts) about her new book, The Substance of Style. She says:

Public places, public commercial places, restaurants, stores like Starbucks, and public noncommercial places like libraries, churches, airports, etc., are paying much more attention to that, to the aesthetic, to the lighting, to the floor coverings, the textures of the furniture-to creating an aesthetic environment in which people want to spend time.

In a sense the organization brings the pleasure, that value of aesthetics, and the customers bring the meaning, the other value. They spend time in a successful place. Again, Starbucks is the touchstone, but not the only example. Customers have experiences there, and it becomes meaningful to them as a social pace.

How aesthetically inviting are cracked and soiled toilet seats, or dark, dim stalls, or paper towel rolls attached so high no small child could reach them. How do bright fuscia construction paper signs stuck haphazardly on the walls, or directional signs taped to expensive front doors or entrances so dark you fear for the safety of the elderly evangelize?

Think about it. What message is the light fixture or the toilet stall sending to the visitor to your church?