Five years ago an infant came into being, which we named "The Quiet Hour." Yes, we loved it, and moved our sleeping quarters upstairs, that we might give this goodly child a room all alone. Opening our home for its birth proved not only a blessing to us, but a wise and Heaven-guided move.
An emergency arose, and a tremendous problem suddenly forced itself upon us. A decision had to be made, and that quickly. Should my husband submit to a serious operation with the hope of soon coming back to his duties of pastoring a large church and carrying on the daily radio program of The Quiet Hour, or should he lay down his burdens and go to a quiet country place to rest and recuperate for a long period of time?
The Quiet Hour was still in its infancy, less than two years old, and had become a part of my husband's very life. The thought of giving it up was a bitter trial. Man's extremity is God's opportunity, however, and so our Father definitely led us to follow the first course, and it proved the right one.
My early experience in helping my husband prepare sermons was of inestimable value to us in this crisis. Someone who knew the inside workings of the whole program must now hold the ropes—plan for the daily half-hour broadcasts by writing out each radio sermon, the announcements, the prayer, etc. After counseling with our conference president, we decided that I should be the one to stand in the gap and prepare the material. A minister kindly consented to broadcast it over the air. With the office in our home, it was convenient for me to carry this responsibility during the absence of my husband, as well as to continue preparing many of the sermons to relieve him for the next six months.
By the time he was able to resume his responsibility, our mailing list had increased far beyond his every effort to keep up with the correspondence. Hence my new responsibility was to assist in the dictation of answers to the letters from radioland that needed personal attention. Some contained questions on Bible topics, and others were on home and personal problems that required much prayer and thought to answer.
So many requests came in for prayer that we soon organized The Quiet Hour Prayer League, which has been a blessing to all who, have become members. It was interesting to compile all the personal requests each month and send them out to every member of the league. It has been necessary on a few occasions to take my husband's place on the radio in order that he might meet other appointments.
As a means of coming in closer contact with our listeners in Radioland and bringing them in closer touch with our literature, we ventured a new undertaking and opened The Quiet Hour Reading Room in downtown Portland. Since my husband was too busy to take upon himself the responsibility of working out his plan, it fell to me to pioneer the project. We had never seen a reading room of this sort and scarcely knew what to do to begin, but we started out, believing that God would bless and bring results.
Having such a fine location in the heart of the business center was to our advantage, and these two years of experimenting have been blessed far beyond our expectations. Many come in to rest and read, to purchase books, Bibles, plaques, or cards, to ask questions on Bible subjects, or to have someone pray with them over some personal problem. If one would know joy that exceeds anything this world can offer, let him have the experience that a reading room offers. Whenever there is sufficient interest shown on the part of a visitor, after a number of contacts have been made, I suggest that if he would like to know more about these things, we have a Bible instructor with whom he may study in a systematic way. Or if he would like to talk with my husband personally, I make a definite appointment for him.
We find that the Signs of the Times is still a great soul-winning agency; therefore, we have a club of these on hand to pass out to the most interested visitors of our reading room each week. Radio logs are handed to each one as he leaves, with a cordial invitation to listen in, and to attend the Sunday evening evangelistic meetings at the tabernacle. Some have been baptized as the direct result of this work. Eternity alone will reveal the good that is being done through this medium.
