Signs of the Times Newsletter March 2017

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March 2017 Signs of the Times Email Newsletter The Signs of the Times newsletter is a collection of stories and quotes from past issues ofSigns and These Times. ***************************      An old anecdote tells of a man so deeply depressed he can think of no reason to go on living. The doctor he goes to for help suggests he take in the performance of the world-famous clown who has just come to town with the circus.   “Everyone who watches him leaves feeling better.”      The unfortunate man replies, “Doctor, I am that clown.”—By David C. Jarnes, Signs of the Times, May 1992. Quote: “Get thy tools ready; God will find thee work.”—Browning, Signs of the Times, August 15, 1911. *************************** Don't miss the ­­­­­­­­April 2017 issue of Signs of the Times.To order Signs, call: 1-800-765-6955 or ONLINE. ***************************      Jesus looked penetratingly at the lawyer. He knew why this legal mind anxiously awaited his answer to the question, “Which is the great commandment in the law?”      The Pharisee was testing Him, hoping to entangle Him in seditious talk against the Mosaic law. The Master sighed deeply—if only this man were a seeker of truth and not an artist of deception. Then Jesus spoke.      “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. . . . This is the great. . . and first commandment. And a second is like it, You shall love your neighbor as. . . yourself.” Matthew 22:37-39, The Amplified Bible.      For fifteen years these verses have provided me with a philosophy in which I believe, and with the help of God, try to live. As a daily reminder for myself and with the hope of encouraging others also to adopt this same philosophy, I have capsuled Jesus’ words in a sign that today hangs in my office and simply states, I’M THIRD.      While attending college shortly after World War II, I heard a story which first introduced me to this unique sign, I’M THIRD. Fact or fiction, this is the way it was told: A few weeks after a certain freshman had arrived on campus, a small framed motto appeared above his desk with these words, I’M THIRD. Everyone visiting his room asked what it meant. The reply was always the same: “Fellows, I’ll tell you the week I graduate from college.”      Finally that time came, and this was his answer: “When I left home to attend college, my parents explained that they were anxious for me to do well in school; they hoped I’d make the athletic teams, that I would be popular; but they wanted, more than anything else, for me to remember to keep God first in my life, the other fellow second, and this motto means I’M THIRD. This I have tried to do.”      There was silence among his friends, and then they understood why he had been chosen president of his class, president of the athletic organization, and voted the most popular man in school. No freshman ever came to him with a problem, no matter how insignificant, but that he was willing to be a big brother, pal, and friend because he had in his life one motto: “God first, the other fellow second, and myself third.”—By John A. Kirker, These Times, February 1967. Quote: “If you stop to count the people who are fundamentally and consistently happy, I suspect you will recognize that they have two characteristics in common, they work hard at tasks that have meaning for them and they are essentially kind in their dealings with other people.”—By Dr. John Howard, These Times, December 1966. *************************** NEW from Pacific Press—Teach Us to Pray by Tamyra Horst. Ellen White says: “Prayer is the key in the hand of faith to unlock heaven’s storehouse (SC 95).” In Teach Us to Pray,  Tamyra Horst shares her personal journey in prayer. She shares how to pray that very first prayer, prayers of intercession, battle prayers, prayers of confession and repentance.Teach Us to Pray is a wonderful book on the power available to each of us through prayer, written specifically for sharing with friends, neighbors and co-workers. Read the first chapter of this book ONLINE for FREE! Order ONLINE or call your local Adventist Book Center—1-800-765-6955. ***************************      I’m reminded of an old comic strip in which Andy Gump made a point to his son Chester. Every time Chester disobeyed his father, he had to drive a nail into a post in the Gumps’ backyard. The post was almost full of nails before Chester reformed. Then for each act of obedience, Chester pulled out a nail. When the last nail was removed, Chester looked at the post in dismay.      “What’s the matter?” his father asked.      “The holes are still there—and they’re so ugly!” the boy replied.      That’s the unpleasant fact about the wrongs we do. Each one leaves a scar.      I, personally, do not think the answer to temptation lies simply in following a moral code or a set of principles. For me help comes through a commitment to the Person of Jesus Christ, who, when I am “eyeball to eyeball” with the tempter, tells me I can withstand all things through Him. And if I come to Him with scars for forgiveness, triumphantly He promises me that through Him I can become a new person.—By Brooks Robinson, These Times, July 1969. Quote: “I who am blind, can give one hint to those who see: Use your eyes as if tomorrow you would be stricken blind.”—Helen Keller, These Times, July 1966. *************************** Please include this in your church newsletter or bulletin: Signs of the Times® helps your friends and neighbors find hope and meaning in these difficult times. Each month it takes on a broken world and directs hearts to Jesus for relevant answers. 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: www.AdventistBookCenter.com/signs-of-the-times-magazine-yearly-us-subscription.html ***************************      A street-car horse on the Ninth Avenue line balked at Forty-sixth Street last night. A crowd collected, and the passengers got out of the car. The driver brought his whip down across the horse’s back without effect. A stout man who had just stepped off the car said, “Don’t do that; I’ll get him started.” He rubbed the horse’s nose, patted him on the neck, and talked persuasively, all without result. By this time four cars were stalled. Somebody suggested oats, another kerosene, a third a patrol wagon. Another held a burning newspaper under the horse. Still it didn’t move.      At last a girl of about thirteen pushed her way thru the crowd and said, “Say, mister, if you’ll ring the bell twice the horse will think somebody just got off, and he’ll go ahead.”      The conductor pulled the bell and the passengers had to run to catch the car.—FromOur Dumb Animals, Signs of the Times, February 20, 1907. Quote: “By doing good with his money, a man, as it were, stamps the image of God upon it, and makes it pass current for the merchandise of heaven.”—By Rutledge, Signs of the Times, January 24, 1911. *************************** Looking for great eBooks? CLICK here to see the largest selection of Adventist eBooks available. ***************************      “Mama,” asked little three-year-old Freddie, “are we going to heaven some day?”      “Yes, dear; I hope so,” was the reply.      “I wish papa could go, too,” continued the little fellow.      “Well, and don’t you think he will?” asked his mother.      “Oh, no,” replied Freddie, “he could not leave his business.”—Unknown, Signs of the Times, November 24, 1909. Quote: “Little self-denials, little honesties, little passing words of sympathy, little nameless acts of kindness, little victories over favorite temptations—these are the small threads of gold which when woven together, gleam out so brightly in the pattern of life that God approves.”—By Canon Farrar, Signs of the Times, January 22, 1924. ***************************      You are writing each day a letter to men;           Take care that the writing is true;      ‘Tis the only gospel that some men will read—           That gospel according to you!—By Robert Hare, Signs of the Times, June 1967. *************************** Visit www.ChapelMusic.com to find a large selection of sacred music! ***************************      A little boy eight years old opened his bank one day in the presence of his father, and counted his money as he arranged it in piles. There were fifteen cents in coppers, twenty-five cents in five cent pieces, and one dollar in silver dimes.      “There,” exclaimed the boy, pushing aside fifteen pennies, “I’m going to give those to the missionary society.”      “Ah,” said the father, “and what are you going to do with the silver?”      “Buy candy and peanuts for myself.”      The father looked steadily at the boy until the latter’s face flushed.      “What’s the matter, papa?” he asked.      “There’s nothing the matter with me,” was the quiet answer.      “But there is with me—that’s what you mean. I know. I’m a mean person—that’s what I am, but I won’t be any longer—so there!”      He put the pennies and nickels back in the bank, and doing up the silver dimes, he said,--      “I’ll give this pile to the missionaries, so I will,” and he did.      The lesson was one which many an older person would not have been as quick to learn or to heed.—Unknown, Signs of the Times, February 5, 1902. Quote: “It is not by what you try to get out of the world that your life will be enriched; it is by what you give to the world.”—By Washington Gladden, Signs of the Times, February 5, 1902. *************************** Dr. Herbert Blomstedt is nearly 90 years old—and still conducts more than 80 symphonies around the world each year. Read the amazing story of this Seventh-day Adventist conductor. CLICK here to read the first chapter of his biography—A Great Song. (Also available as an eBook!) ***************************      Today is the very best day of your life. Tomorrow is not here. Yesterday is gone. Today is the day. What will we do for the Master today? Do more than exist—live.  Do more than touch—feel.  Do more than look—observe.  Do more than read—absorb.  Do more than hear—listen.  Do more than listen—understand.  Do more than think—ponder.  Do more than plan—act.  Do more than talk—say something!       The prophets of old would change places with us if given a chance. Today is the day of opportunity, of fulfillment, of hopes and promises. Jesus will soon appear. Do we see the signs? Are we living and acting selfishly with our time, or selfless in service to and for others?—By Victor J. Rice, These Times, January 1966. *************************** Compiled by Dale Galusha. Please pass this newsletter on to others.