Imagine seeing a picture of your church's sign on the front page of an Australian newspaper. That's what happened to Mike Murphy, pastor of First Baptist Church in Crawford, Texas.

On a November morning in 2000, Murphy arrived early at the church and changed the message on the marquee to reflect the outcome of the previous day's election. He took the black movable letters and spelled out "Crawford Texas, Home of President George W. Bush," and then left to drive his morning bus route.

When he returned to the church, his wife called. "You might want to change the sign," she said. Murphy turned on CNN and saw the election still had not been decided. He grabbed more magnetic letters and went out to correct the sign. Moving his previous message up a row, he added a new row at the bottom and with five letters he spelled out a single word: "Maybe."

The sign was photographed by a Ft. Worth photographer, and then picked up by Reuters. The next day the picture appeared in major newspapers around the world. "A family from Waco was in Australia and they saw the picture on the front page of the newspaper and brought it back to me," says Murphy, who has quite a collection of clippings.

Your church sign may not be seen in Australia; but its message has the potential to reach more people than almost anything else your church does.

Historical Signs
The first church signs were located near the main door of the church and contained basic information such as the church name, service times and the name of the pastor. "Early signs were parallel to the street and intended to be read by those walking by or riding a horse," says Dr. L. James Harvey, author of 701 Sentence Sermons and 701 More Sentence Sermons, both by Kregel Publications. "Later signs were lighted, contained sermon titles, and were turned so they could be read by those driving by in cars."

As signs became easier for motorists to read, "The whole purpose changed," says Verlyn Verbrugge, pastor of Woodland Drive-in Church in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and author of Your Church Sign (Zondervan). "Now you have signs used as a marketing device to draw attention to the doctrinal stance of the church." Many churches have gotten creative in how they use movable letters to create customized messages.

Signs and Sermons
"The adding of 'sentence sermons' is, as far as I can determine, a relatively new (last 10-15 years) trend, and it's rapidly growing," says Harvey, who defines a "sentence sermon" as a brief statement that contains an important truth. "I coined the term because if done well each sentence sermon 'preaches' a self-contained truth."

"I think the most effective signs are those that give passersby something to chew on," says Tina Rabb, who coauthored the book The Proverbial Marquee: Words to Drive By, with Deborah Davies (CSS Publishing). "Sure, you want the message to be a quick read—it has to be, considering its fleeting exposure—but after the initial 'I get it' moment, you want a mulling moment to follow."

A good sign triggers people's thoughts, and causes them to wonder. Verbrugge says, "It should draw attention to the church, motivate them to read their Bible, and make them think about something more spiritual than the traffic. It should bless people, challenge them and be an evangelistic tool for church marketing."

Signs Bring in Visitors
"Most churches with good signs will tell you the sign brings people to the church and can increase membership," says Harvey. "We've learned through experiences in recent years that the 'sentence sermons' can change people's lives, and bring new people into the church."

Davies, Rabb's co-author, recalls meeting a pastor who proudly discussed his wife's sign ministry. She always kept the marquee updated with fresh, uplifting material. However, when a storm swept through their small Texas town the church's sign was destroyed. A few days later, a man and woman the pastor had never met came to the church. They introduced themselves and said that they weren't churchgoers but they drove by the church at least once a week to see the message on the sign, because it ministered to them. Before they left the church they wrote out a check for $2,000 to replace the sign. With that money, the pastor said he was able to get a much more attractive (and storm resistant) sign. From then on the pastor considered the sign a second ministry to a drive-by congregation, many of whom he might never meet.

In 701 Sentence Sermons, Harvey describes a Baptist church that has averaged more than one new visiting family a month because of the church sign. He also describes a young man who wrote a letter to a church congregation and thanked them for saving his life. He was intent on committing suicide until he drove by the church, read the sign, and then changed his mind.

Sign Messages
Whether inviting, inspiring, or informing, ultimately it's the message on the sign that attracts people's attention. If you want your sign to attract attention, change it frequently.

Humorous signs or signs that make people think seem to work best. If people remember your sign, they will tell others. Verbrugge thinks it's important to try and tap into what people are thinking about. His church sign read, "Nothing is accidental with God," on the one-year anniversary of September 11.

If you need ideas for signs, each of the books mentioned has hundreds of choices. You can also find ideas on the Internet. Try these websites: www.sblomberg.com/cbs, www.churchsigns.com/Free%20Messages.htm and www.crchog.org, If you want to write your own, Verbrugge recommends taking a familiar slogan and changing it slightly, such as "Our Church is Prayer Conditioned," or "The Family Altar Will Alter the Family."

Warning Signs
All messages are not created equal and the experts think some things are better left unsaid. "Avoid controversial issues or offensive things like signs connected with abortion," says Verbrugge. Last January, a New Jersey church was vandalized twice due to its pro-life sign.

"I think the single most important piece of advice in the 'don't' category is this: Don't use a message that isn't an accurate reflection of your church's theology," says Rabb. "We offer this caution because we believe a church's marquee tells the community … 'This is what we believe.'" Rabb encourages churches to apply this test to any message they're considering: "Does it speak the truth in love?"

Sign Design
If you're buying or upgrading your sign, make sure you have lots of room for the message and that it is easy to change. However, don't use a smaller letter size just to squeeze in a few extra words. Make sure the letters are large enough for someone to read quickly, usually in five seconds or less. A sign with a two-sided marquee will ensure motorists get the message coming and going.

Secondly, look for a sign that is illuminated for 24-hour viewing. Professionals can install your sign so the light automatically comes on at dusk and turns off at dawn.

Check with local officials for maximum sign size, height, and area for changeable copy. Look for restrictions on the brightness of the sign, the colors, the distance it can be placed from the street, and whether or not plants and shrubs are required.

Talk to the professionals at sign companies. Whether you need help paying for a new sign (many offer lease arrangements) or deciding on the right size and style, they can offer professional advice to make sure you get the most for your money.

Maybe your sign hasn't been front-page news in Australia, but people drive by it every day. Your sign is there to be seen; whether motorists actually see it, is up to you.

Jennifer Schuchmann is a management consultant and freelance writer in the Atlanta area (jschuchmann@bellsouth.net).