Is it just me, or does everyone who grew up during the Billy Graham crusades want to cry when "Just as I am" begins to play and people start to get up out of their seats and move to the front of the stadium?This is a re-post, but it was on my mind after watching Billy Graham the other night on TV... so many years, and so many memories later, and now he is close to the very heaven he has preached about his whole life... his life and ministry are woven into my own life, and probably yours...
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I've mentioned a lot of big names on these blogs, and I'm not typically a 'name dropper'. However, I realize that for me... the circle of my parents friends during my growing up years, was full of those names.
They were our 'normal'... the people I grew up with, they influenced my life and my thinking... I think it's as an adult that I have come to appreciate and respect the names and faces of my childhood. As I have learned more about what it means to walk with God, I so deeply appreciate the lives that were my example, then... and now...
From my very youngest childhood days, Billy Graham was part of our family's life. (This is dad with Billy) We used to travel to Winona Lake, Indiana during the summer, where years earlier, my dad was part of the ministry when he and Billy Graham were young men, and they all teamed together during those Youth for Christ summer conferences.
It was during one of these conferences, when Billy asked these men to pray for him specifically as God seemed to be leading him into a ministry of evangelism. He wanted to be certain it was God's will. My dad was one of those he asked to pray with him, and later, called on him to fly to Los Angeles during his first crusade... God was beginning to do some great and exciting things through Billy's ministry.My dad's ministry was prayer and revival, always his top 2... my mom used to say golf was #3 and she was #4 :)...
All through the years, Billy and dad were in close touch. Dad was part of many of his crusades, leading the prayer teams that preceded a crusade. Even though dad had his own ministry, there was always a heart connection between he and his friend... Billy. Dad loved Billy Graham.
Our families were very similar as we grew up. The 'dads' were evangelists, and traveled all over the world, while the 'moms' stayed home and raised all of us. It's no wonder I love the writings of Ruth Graham...
This was one of the letters Billy sent to my dad through the years. It's especially meaningful to me, as he said... "the thing that I love about you Armin, is that you have remained absolutely true to the gospel"... and that is exactly the way I feel about my dad. His passion for God never dimmed, and his focus and obedience stayed strong and steady through his whole life. He ran his race well...It challenges us, as his children... it's what my prayer for my own life has shaped into. But it has taken me a whole lot longer! Sometimes when I learn something new about the Lord, or obey when it's difficult, or trust Him when it's not what I feel like doing... I can picture a smile on Jesus' face, and right over his shoulder... my mom and dad are smiling too!
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I know that when Billy Graham goes to heaven, after he has met Jesus face to face... my dad will be among those in the front of the crowd to welcome him.
