Paul Vieira

God started speaking to me through a billboard over 4 years ago. I see this sign practically every day. It is an advertisement for a Panasonic TV called Viera. The electronics company that put up the ad is called Advance Electronics. The main image on the sign is a beautiful nature scene with a lake, trees, and flying doves. The captions read ‘ideas for life’ and ‘a whole new visual era.’ When I first saw the sign, I believed God was speaking to me this basic message, “Viera!(different spelling) Advance in your ideas for life!” Shortly after this, I left organized religion and started living in a whole new way. However, I never understood what “a whole new visual era” meant for me until today. I have had this sense that the billboard wouldn’t change until I get the whole message. It has been there for over 4 years. But today, I think I’ve got it.

(Some of you might think I am a little flaky for thinking God is speaking to me through a billboard, but it’s not everyday that your name shows up on a sign. I’m just going to run wit this.)

My previous life in the church was completely focused on the things you can’t see. I was obsessed over reaching some spiritual state of intimacy with God and living for the future. As I have said before, I didn’t know how to live fully in this present world. Now I understand what this “whole new visual era” means for me. I’m learning how to enjoy and engage in the world that I see. I’m leaning how to appreciate nature, stay physically fit and healthy, and enjoy activities that make me a participant of life. I’m finding God in skating with my kids on a cold winter day, listening to beautiful Canadian folk music, eating more vegetables, and recycling more than we throw away. It is a whole new visual era for me and I am happy to finally see it.

Maybe the ad on the billboard will change now.