Billy Graham

A Biography of America's Greatest Evangelist

W. Terry Whalin

• Editorial: Morgan James Faith
• Año: 2014
• ISBN:
  9781630472320
• Categoría: Theology & Religion
• Categoría: Christian Ministry

"Our polarized, divided world dearly misses the spirit of grace that Billy Graham brought to the world... A biography that introduces him anew" (Philip Yancey, bestselling author of What's So Amazing About Grace? ). Billy Graham has preached the gospel message in person to more people than anyone in history, and millions more have heard him through television, radio, and film. His faithful witness is testimony to his great love of God and passion to serve Him. This easy-to-read biography tells Billy Graham's story, including his humble beginnings as a southern farm boy, his calling to the ministry, the start of the crusades, his service to America's leaders, and his later years preaching around the globe. As you read these details of a life dedicated to the cause of Christ, you will be encouraged. Also, these stories will inspire anyone who desires to give their life in service to God. Here's a fresh look at a contemporary man of God and giant of the faith. "Well written and succinct, Billy Graham is an honest look at the man and his calling, his struggles to stay humble in the limelight, the difficulty of separation from his family, and his constant calling on God for the next step." —Deborah Bedford, New York Times –bestselling author of His Other Wife "If you want to cultivate a passion for souls, get to know Mr. Graham in the pages of this book. I promise you'll be blessed!" —Joni Eareckson Tada, Joni and Friends International Disability Center

Chapter 1

Evangelist to the World

Clutching his black Bible in one hand and a microphone in the other, Billy Graham stood outside in the howling wind in San Juan, Puerto Rico, near the Hiram Birthorn Stadium. The year was 1995. A satellite dish in the background was only one piece of a dazzling array of technology that had been assembled for one purpose—to proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ.

The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association had worked for more than a year to coordinate the largest single evangelistic effort in the history of Christianity. That year, from March 16 through 18, Dr. Graham’s preaching was transmitted from seventeen satellite pathways to thirty satellites across twenty-nine time zones for a total of 300 hours of transmission. His words were interpreted in forty-seven languages. Musical clips and testimonies appropriate to various areas of the world were spliced into regional programs. For example, the Mandarin language version featured a testimony by tennis star Michael Chang and a Chinese Christian musical group. Thousands of venues around the globe were set up to receive the messages and project them on video screen. The settings ranged from a refugee camp in Rwanda to the rainforests of French Guiana. The largest hall in Burundi was packed out, with many looking in through the windows and doorways. In Cameroon, more than two thousand responded to the invitation to accept Christ. In Bangladesh, nearly 25 percent of the four thousand who attended gave their lives
to Christ.

The numbers tabulated after the event were staggering:

• 185 countries reached
• messages heard in 117 languages
• 3,000 mission locations involved
• over 10 million seats occupied per night
• 1 to 1.5 million Christian workers trained in preparation
• over 500,000 prepared counselors
• 1 billion people viewed the broadcast in 117 countries
• another 3 billion attended video missions at
  various sites

At a satellite meeting in Kazakhstan, a student told her counselor, “I’ve tried everything, and now I turn to God as the last hope…. Something happened for which I’ve waited all my life.”

Billy Graham has preached the Gospel message to more people in live audiences than anyone else in history—over 210 million people in more than 185 countries and territories. Hundreds of millions more have been reached through television, video, and film.

Spanning more than ninety years, Billy Graham’s story cannot be contained in a single book. The stories of changed lives through his preaching could not be contained in a roomful of books. This short biography attempts to capture the key turning points in his life.

Several years ago, on his CNN program Larry King Live, Larry asked Billy Graham how he wanted to be remembered. Without a pause, Dr. Graham responded, “I want to be known as someone who was faithful. When I reach heaven, the Lord will respond, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. Enter into my rest.’”

Let’s look at how Billy Graham has made this journey
of faithfulness.

Chapter 2

Near the Clean,
Fresh Smell

Four days before the end of World War I, on
November 7, 1918, Morrow Coffey Graham gave birth to a baby boy in a farmhouse near Charlotte, North Carolina. She named him William Franklin Graham, Jr. and called him Billy Frank.

The roots of the Graham family were deep in southern soil. Billy’s two grandfathers, Ben Coffey and Crook Graham, fought in the Confederacy during the Civil War. As a result of wounds suffered during Pickett’s Charge at Gettysburg, Coffee had only one leg and one eye, while Graham carried a Minié ball fired from a Yankee muzzle-loading rifle for the rest of his life.

Billy grew up on the family’s three-hundred-acre dairy farm. Every day at three in the morning and again after school, he helped the hired hands milk seventy-five cows. The family chores left little time for idle play, but Billy had a reputation for being a bundle of energy, rushing from one activity to another.

One day his mother had had enough of his hyperactivity and hustled Billy Frank off to the doctor. In his office, she explained, “He never runs down, and it isn’t normal. He’s got way too much energy.”

“Don’t worry,” the doctor said reassuringly. “It’s the way he’s built.” The physician’s words were almost prophetic.

As soon as Billy learned to read, his mother encouraged him to develop a habit of reading as much as he could. He was spellbound with the tales of Robin Hood in Sherwood Forest and the whole Tom Swift series. Among his favorite adventure stories were those of Tarzan. A new book was released every two months, and the young Graham could hardly wait for the next episode.

Billy often hung from the trees in his backyard and practiced his version of the Tarzan yell. It often frightened those driving horses down the road. Years later, his father would say, “I think all that yelling helped develop his voice.”

One of his school bus drivers recalls another side of the youngster. Sometimes when Billy got off the bus with the other boys, he would reach underneath and turn the shutoff valve to the gas tank. The driver said, “I would go about a hundred yards and the engine would sputter out. I’d get out and shake my fist at him, but he’d only give me a laugh. It made him a hero to the other kids.”

During his growing-up years, Billy learned the value of money, and his father taught him firsthand the importance of free enterprise. Every now and then when a calf was born on the farm, the elder Graham turned it over to Billy Frank and his friend Albert McMakin to be raised. When the calf reached the veal stage, the boys would market it and split
the proceeds.

In general, the town newspaper was full of local stories, and radio was in its infancy. One day, William Graham, Sr. put together his first crystal radio set and located pioneer radio station KDKA in Pittsburgh. The family gathered around the squawking receiver and held their collective breath. For what seemed like a very long time, Mr. Graham turned three tuning dials to locate the station, and finally something intelligible broke through the static. Billy Frank and his siblings shouted, “That’s it! We have it!”

A few years later, the Graham family was one of the first in the area to have a radio in their car. When his parents went into a store to shop, Billy Frank stretched across the backseat and listened to the mysterious distorted broadcast sounds. These wireless relays from Europe sounded like they were coming from a magical seashell. In particular, Graham was fascinated with the speaking style of a German named Adolf Hitler. While Billy Frank didn’t understand his language, the intonation somewhat frightened him.

The barns on the family farm were roofed in tin...