DECATUR - Every band would love to have fans half as dedicated as Lynne and Tyler Clark.

In recent weeks, they have been running around town, hanging posters at stores and handing out stickers promoting "P.O.D. Greatest Hits," the latest CD by their favorite rockers.

Lynne Clark, 35, a devout Christian and rock music devotee, said for many years she could not find a band that played music she enjoyed and also contained uplifting lyrics.

"P.O.D. is kind of in their own unique bubble," Lynne Clark said. "You wouldn't think of their music as contemporary Christian music. They have their own sound."

Also known as Payable On Death, the band has been compared to Audioslave and the Deftones.

The Clarks, South Shores residents, signed on to plug P.O.D. as part of a "street team" promotion.

Andrea Maldonado, a manager of P.O.D. street teams, said there are thousands of fans nationwide who are promoting the band's album. Maldonado said she promotes many bands, but P.O.D fans are the most passionate.

Lynne Clark said she especially admires P.O.D. for playing to a wide audience, rather than focusing on fellow Christians.

"Jesus did not just hang out with Christians," she said. "You have to reach the nonbelievers, too. That's the way to do it. They are definitely Christians, but they don't want to be labeled by rock music fans. They are very forgiving, very loving people. They themselves used drugs. They are credible. They have lived in homes where there are drugs, in broken homes."

According to their biography on the P.O.D. Web site, the group turned down $100,000 to sign with a Christian label, at a time when they were dead broke. They held out instead for a contract with a major label, Atlantic Records, which released four of their CDs.

Lynne, a stay-at-home mother of three children, said she appreciates that she can share enthusiasm for P.O.D. with her husband.

"We were married a couple of years before we heard P.O.D.," Lynne Clark said. "When I first saw them on TV, the next day I went out and bought their CD. You can tell that they mean what they say. Every song just touches you."

She credits the band with helping to renew Tyler's faith and bringing the couple closer together.

"Music is a huge part of our lives," Lynne Clark said. "What we have in common in our lives is our taste in music. Tyler said he never met a girl who had the same taste in music."

"P.O.D. Greatest Hits" contains 17 songs, including several top ten hits. In promoting the album, the Clarks believe they are promoting the gospel of Jesus Christ.

"I wouldn't be doing it if I didn't feel strongly about the message that they have," she said.

Huey Freeman can be reached at hfreeman@herald-review.com or 421-6985.