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Examines the exemplary life of Billy Graham

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"My one purpose in life is to help people find a personal relationship with God, which, I believe, comes through knowing Christ." - Billy Graham

Evangelist Billy Graham took Christ at His word when He said in Mark 16:15,—"Go ye into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature." Mr. Graham has preached the good news of God's love to more people in live audiences than anyone else in history—over 210 million people in more than 185 countries and territories—through various meetings, including Mission World and Global Mission. Hundreds of millions more have been reached through television, video, film, and webcasts.

Since the 1949 Los Angeles mission vaulted Mr. Graham into the public eye, he has led hundreds of thousands of individuals to make personal decisions to live for Christ, which is the main thrust of his ministry.

Born November 7, 1918, four days before the Armistice ended World War I, Mr. Graham was reared on a dairy farm in Charlotte, North Carolina. Growing up during the Depression, he learned the value of hard work on the family farm, but he also found time to spend many hours in the hayloft reading books on a wide variety of subjects, including Tarzan.

In the fall of 1934, at age 16, Mr. Graham made a personal commitment to Christ through the ministry of Mordecai Ham, a traveling evangelist, who visited Charlotte for a series of revival meetings.

Ordained in 1939 by a small church in the Southern Baptist Convention, Mr. Graham received a solid foundation in the Scriptures at Florida Bible Institute (now Trinity College in Florida). In 1943 he graduated from Wheaton College in Illinois and married fellow student Ruth McCue Bell, daughter of a missionary surgeon, who spent the first 17 years of her life in China.

After graduating from college, Mr. Graham joined Youth for Christ, an organization founded for ministry to youth and servicemen during World War II. He preached throughout the United States and in Europe in the immediate post-war era, emerging as a rising young evangelist.

The Los Angeles mission in 1949 launched Mr. Graham into international prominence. Scheduled for three weeks, the meetings were extended to more than eight weeks, with overflow crowds filling a tent erected downtown each night.

Many of his subsequent early missions were similarly extended, including one in London which lasted 12 weeks, and a New York City mission in Madison Square Garden in 1957 which ran nightly for 16 weeks.

Today Billy Graham and his ministry are known around the globe. He has preached in remote African villages and in the heart of New York City, and those to whom he has ministered have ranged from heads of state to the simple-living bushmen of Australia and the wandering tribes of Africa and the Middle East. Since 1977, Mr. Graham has been accorded the opportunity to conduct preaching missions in virtually every country of the former Communist bloc, including the former Soviet Union.

Mr. Graham founded the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association in 1950, which headquarters in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Mr. Graham has written 23 books, many of which have become top sellers. His latest, "Just As I Am," published in 1997, achieved a "triple crown," appearing simultaneously on the three top best-seller lists in one week.

Mr. Graham's counsel has been sought by presidents, and his appeal in both the secular and religious arenas is evidenced by the wide range of groups that have honored him, including numerous honorary doctorates from many institutions in the U. S. and abroad.

He and his wife, Ruth, have three daughters, two sons, 19 grandchildren and numerous great-grandchildren. The Grahams make their home in the mountains of North Carolina.

A Message from Billy Graham

I am often asked, "Do you have any hope for the future of the human race?" Yes, I have hope! I don't think people can live without hope. What oxygen is to the lungs, hope is to our survival in this world. And the Bible is filled with hope.

I can preach with authority because I believe I am preaching the very Word of God. I know there is a God. Although I cannot prove it scientifically, the evidence is overwhelming. I look out at the stars, the moon, and the sun (and we now know there are billions of these out in space). I watch the sun come up in the morning, and I know our world is moving in perfect precision. The miracle of birth should be proof enough. Something, Someone, beyond ourselves must be behind all this.

But I have another reason why I believe in God, and that is because God has revealed Himself to us! He did this, I believe, in the person of Jesus Christ, whom the Bible calls "God with us" (Matthew 1:23). Do you want to know what God is like? Look at Jesus Christ, as He is revealed in the pages of the Gospels of the New Testament. By His life, death, and resurrection, Jesus demonstrated for all time that God loves us

and that there can be hope - hope for new life now, and hope for life after death, as we open ourselves to Him. But you may say, "What about the millions starving, or all the evil in our world?" To be honest, I don't know the full answer to this puzzle—nor does anyone else.

However, the Bible teaches that there is another power at work, and it's the power of the devil. Satan is real and is opposed to everything God is doing. Also, we must never overlook the capacity for evil within the human heart.

When a society loses its moral and spiritual moorings, a vacuum is created and it inevitably falls victim to violence, despair, alien ideologies and tyranny. No matter how far we advance scientifically, our hearts are exactly the same. Human nature needs transforming so our hearts won't be controlled by hate and lust and greed. We need new hearts—hearts filled with love and peace and joy. But can this happen?

Well, I have discovered a secret and I'm happy to share it with you. How many times have you wished you could start over again with a clean slate—with a new life? Perhaps you have tried everything else and have not found satisfaction. Resolve right now to allow God to wipe your slate clean, by confessing your sins and asking Christ to give you a brand-new start.

If I didn't know for sure that faith in Christ can transform us, that it gives direction to life and makes life worth living, I'd go back to my little North Carolina farm and spend the rest of my days tilling the soil. But I have seen too many lives untangled and rehabilitated, too many homes reconstructed, too many people who have found peace and joy through simple, humble confession of faith in Christ—ever to doubt that Christ is the answer. May this be your experience as well, as you turn to Christ in humility and faith, and open your life to His love and transforming power.

To His disciples Jesus said, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me" (John 14:6). Surrender your life to the Lord Jesus Christ. Let Him come into your heart and change you. The Bible says, "Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life" (John 3:36). I pray that you will make this important decision today.

You can invite Jesus Christ into your life right now by praying to God something like the following:

Dear Lord, I know that I am a sinner and that I need Your forgiveness. I believe that Christ died in my place to pay the penalty for my sin and that He rose from the dead. I now invite Jesus Christ to come into my life as my Savior. Thank You for making me Your child. Help me learn to please You in every part of my life. Amen.

Bible references: NIV - Photos courtesy of BGEA/Russ Busby

Back Photo by David C. Edmonson - Printed in USA - ©2002
ISBN# 1-55837-505-8 41205