May 2016 Signs of the Times Email Newsletter

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May 2016 Signs of the Times Newsletter

May 2016 Signs of the Times Email Newsletter The Signs of the Times newsletter is a collection of stories and quotes from past issues of Signs and These Times. ***************************      It is told of a sage that one day, after the fashion of his school, he was questioned, “Master, what is the test of good manners?”      “And he answered wisely: “It is the being able to put up pleasantly with bad ones.”—By Ernest Lloyd, Signs of the Times, August 13, 1929. Quote: “Religion is not a perpetual moping over good books. Religion is not even prayer, praise, holy ordinances—these are necessary to religion—no man can be religious without them. But religion is mainly and chiefly the glorifying God amid the duties and trials of the world; the guiding of our course amid adverse winds and currents of temptation by the sunlight of duty and the compass of divine truth, the bearing up manfully, wisely, courageously, for the honor of Christ, our great Leader, in the conflict of life.”—By John Caird, Signs of the Times, June 15, 1954. *************************** Don't miss the June 2016 issue of Signs of the Times: To order Signs, call: 1-800-765-6955 or ONLINE! ***************************      Just at a time when everything about mankind seems to have a downright discouraging vibration to it, something suddenly happens to brighten up the darkness.      Some years ago a friend of mine heard me complaining that there didn’t seem to be any “love your neighbor” attitude left in the world. He shook his head. “Not true,” he said. “Just look at the Kovarik case.” And then he told me this story.      Mr. and Mrs. Rudy Kovarik were vacationing in Florida when the husband had to be hospitalized because of severe internal bleeding. Doctors told the wife that because of his very rare blood type they didn’t expect to be able to get him through the night.      Desperate and feeling utterly alone and hopeless, Mrs. Kovarik picked up a phone and called the Miami Herald. Tim Sullivan was at the city desk, and when he answered she tearfully told him of their plight. The Biscayne hospital did not have her husband’s AB, Rh-negative blood type. Neither did any other hospital nearby.      Sullivan, touched by the grief in Mrs. Kovarik’s voice, told her to pray. Then he called WGBS radio station, where he knew that it was almost time for Walter Winchell’s national broadcast to begin.      “Get me Winchell!” he demanded.      He was told that it couldn’t be done because the famous radio personality was just seconds away from going on the air. Sullivan insisted, but he was greeted with silence until one of Winchell’s staff assistants got on the phone. Sullivan explained the situation and then dictated the following message, asking that it be handed at once to Winchell.      Rudy Kovarik, thirty-five, visitor from Dearborn, Michigan. . . . arrived last night. . . has internal hemorrhage. . .  trying to locate AB, Rh-negative blood. . . none in blood bank. . . can’t locate any. . .       The assistant hung up the phone, went to Winchell, and handed him the message. Within seconds the newscaster spoke the word over the radio.      Although it was only hoped that some AB, Rh-negative people in the Florida area might be reached and come forward, a deluge of offers came pouring in to the newspaper, radio station, police, and every other possible point—from all over the country. AB, Rh-negative donors began rushing to the hospital from as far away as San Francisco. They were getting priority seating on commercial planes and were coming in with police escort, by taxis, private and rented cars, chartered planes, hitchhiking—using every mode of transportation conceivable.      The hospital was flooded with people who wanted to give their blood to Rudy Kovarik, a stranger in danger of death. And their blood saved his life!       A grieving wife, following the direction she received from inside herself, had called for help. . . . A tired newspaperman listened to that cry and did what his heart told him to do. . . . A famous broadcaster was touched by a simple plea and used his voice to touch others. . . . Hundreds of total strangers sublimated their own comfort and well-being by stepping forward and offering their very blood!      My own momentary discouragement at the seeming disregard of man for man was dissolved by this beautiful exhibition of man’s actual concern for man. Perhaps Walter Winchell’s explanation tells it best, when late that night he made another radiobroadcast to tell the public the good news that Rudy Kovarik had been saved and that blood banks all over the country now had fresh supplies of AB, Rh-negative blood that had been donated by concerned citizens. He said:      “I have never witnessed such a remarkable demonstration of brotherly love or just plain down-to-earth willingness to help a man who had fallen by the wayside. Nobody stopped to ask if he was white, black, brown, or yellow; a Jew, Protestant, Catholic, or atheist. Nobody said anything—just ‘I have the type of blood needed, and I want to help!’ “      When my friend had finished telling me this true story of compassion there was only one thing I could say: “I guess there still are a lot of Good Samaritans left in this world after all.”      “Always will be,” he said. “Always!”—By Tom Dowling, These  Times, February 1979. Quote: “If a man is converted, his pocketbook will be dedicated to God.”—By Charles G. Bellah, Signs of the Times, March 4, 1930. *************************** NEW from Pacific Press—40 Days: Prayers and Devotions on the Lord’s Supper by Dennis Smith. Celebrating the Lord’s Supper is perhaps our greatest opportunity to behold the love of God and to be changed into the loving, loveable Christians God has called us to become. Participating corporately in the Lord’s Supper gives us the opportunity to remember Christ’s sacrifice with fellow believers; it is a time of special blessing for the participants. Spending forty days contemplating the Lord’s Supper and its symbolism, praying for a deeper understanding of Christ’s sacrifice and for others to come into a saving relationship with Him, will change your life.   Order ONLINE or from your local Adventist Book Center—1-800-765-6955. ***************************      There are ferns in the garden of the soul, as well as flowers. The flowers grow best in the sunshine; the ferns grow best in the shade.      There is the fern of patience, and the fern of long-suffering, and the fern of meekness. And the great Gardener of the soul delights in the ferns, and purposes to save them from destruction by the garish day.      And so He takes us into the shade—the shade of disappointment, or the shade of sorrow, or the shade of sickness and pain. But it is a very blessed shadow, for it is the “shadow of the Almighty.” And here the ferns flourish, and the cloudy day makes the garden beautiful.—By J. H. Jowett, Signs of the Times, 10, 1939. Quote: “Good will, like a good name, is got by many actions, and lost by one.”—By Jeffrey, Signs of the Times, January 6, 1931. *************************** Looking for good eBooks, visit www.AdventisteBooks.com new books being added regularly! CLICK here! ***************************      The story is told of a father who told his boy to watch while he was stealing corn, and to give the word if someone was looking.      After the father had been at his work of stealing for some time, the boy said, “Papa, someone is looking.”      The father looked, but saw no one. Then the boy said, “God is looking!”—By Robert L. Boothby, Signs of the Times, June 11, 1929. Quote: “God’s Word is the spiritual food by which the Christian must grow strong in spirit and in intellect, that he may do battle for truth and righteousness.”—Unknown, Signs of the Times, May 4, 1915. *************************** Looking for an EASY fundraising program for your church or school? The Pacific Press Ambassador program is intended to create awareness of the spiritually uplifting material that is available to members in the pew. For more information about the Ambassador program, that has financial benefits for your church, go to www.pacificpress.com/ambassadors   Or CLICK here! ***************************      All trolleys leave the terminal in Uniontown, Pennsylvania, over the same track, but soon those for Connellsville turn to the left and those for Brownsville to the right.      A traveling salesman boarded the Brownsville car, paid his fare to “the end of the line,” and immediately busied himself with orders and reports, continuing thus absorbed in his business until the conductor announced: “Brownsville. All change!”      With a look of surprise the passenger queried: “Did you say Brownsville?”      “Yes, sir. Brownsville, the end of the line.”      Bemoaning the fact that he had wasted two hours of time and missed an appointment, he paid his return fare, and settled himself for an extra two-hour ride to Connellsville, via Uniontown.      The vital question in life is not the condition of the road, but the destination. Does the road over which we are traveling lead to the proper terminal?      “There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.” Proverbs 14:12—Homiletic Review, Signs of the Times, January 22, 1929. Quote: “Young man, my advice to you is that you cultivate an acquaintance with and a firm belief in the Holy Scriptures. This is your certain interest.”—By Benjamin Franklin, Signs of the Times, February 1, 1938. *************************** Place this in your church bulletin or newsletter: Want to connect with your neighbor? Maybe a loved one far away? Why not send Signs of the Times®? Each monthly issue offers a colorful and interesting presentation of the full gospel message. The result is changed lives! Send a subscription today. Order from your Adventist Book Center. To order call: 1-800-765-6955 or online at: http://www.adventistbookcenter.com/signs-of-the-times-magazine-yearly-us-subscription.html ***************************      A preacher, touched with the “higher criticism,” once elaborated a new theory of the exodus—to wit, that the Red Sea was frozen over, and so afforded the Israelites a safe passage, but that when Pharaoh with his heavy iron chariots attempted to cross, he broke through and was drowned.      A brother arose and asked for an explanation. "I'm a student of geography," he said, "and geography teaches that the Red Sea is in the tropics. And the tropics are too hot to freeze. So I would like you to explain your idea about Pharaoh's chariots breaking through the ice and drowning the Egyptians.      The preacher straightened himself up, and said, "I'm glad you asked that question, because it gives me a chance to explain. You see, that all happened a great while ago--before they was any such thing as geography and before there were any tropics."—Selected, Signs of the Times, November 7, 1892. Quote: “As a linguist, I say that most praying is not talking with God, or if this is language, then it is a pretty one-sided affair! But as a Christian, I know that there is feedback. If we are willing to wait for it, we will have it. It depends on whether we want to hog the show or whether we want to let Him have His turn.”—These Times, October 1973. *************************** Is This Not Prayer? By Helen Rogers Smith These Times, October 1961 Is this not prayer—      To bow in worship at His feet, adoring           Our Father-God, Creator, Lord of all;      Here to confess our sins and find forgiveness,           And help for every need, both great and small? Is this not prayer—      To come before His presence with thanksgiving,           Offering to Him the sacrifice of praise      For all His goodness and His loving-kindness,           The tender mercies that have blest our days? Is this not prayer—      To lift our souls to Him in intercession           For others: not alone our loved and dear,      But the oppressed of earth, her countless millions,           The hungry, homeless, hopeless, far and near? If this be prayer,      It is a weapon glorious and mighty           To meet the fears and follies of our day,      Endued with power divine to change and quicken           The hearts of men. So kneel, mankind, and pray! *************************** Compiled by Dale Galusha. Please pass this newsletter on to others.

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