After more than 50 years as a member of First Baptist Church of Dallas, 90-year-old Billy Graham haschangedhismembership to the First Baptist Church of Spartanburg, S.C. Homebound in Montreat, N.C., Graham has watched broadcasts of the Spartanburg church’s services on TV and is good friends with pastor Don Wilton (Graham wrote the forward to Wilton’s 2005 book Totally Secure: Finding Peace and Protection in the Arms of God).
Billy Graham refers to Wilton as his “TV pastor,” according to Graham’s spokesman, Larry Ross.
“Our church is deeply humbled and deeply grateful to accept him as one of our own,” said Wilton. “And it certainly gives us great joy to do that.” Wilton and his son spoke with Graham on Christmas Eve when he asked to transfer his membership. The news was met with immediate applause on Sunday at all three services at the First Baptist Church of Spartanburg.
Billy Graham joined the First Baptist Church of Dallas in 1953 during one of his crusades in the city. At the time, the church was considered the preeminent church in the Southern Baptist Convention. Since he never lived in Dallas, Graham attended the church only sporadically.
Since Billy Graham’s church membership has seemed to mean little in the past 50 years, it’s strange that he’s just now changing it. But as more than 291 news articles can attest, where Billy Graham holds his church membership must be newsworthy.
“This was not an easy or quick decision by Mr. Graham,” said Ross. “But he increasingly felt it was important to unite with First Baptist Spartanburg, as that has had his attention and focus, especially through television, in recent years.
“We’ll always treasure the relationship,” said First Baptist Church of Dallas pastor Robert Jeffress.
Last week I linked to the original Billy Graham Christmas Special from 1952. A young, charismatic Billy Graham stood in front of a fireplace and a Christmas tree, waving his finger and reading from the Bible. But he made one interesting analogy about ants that stuck out.
“You know one day I was walking along and I stepped on an anthill. And I thought to myself as I saw those dying ants, I wish I could go down and be just an ant for just a moment to talk to those ants and tell them that I didn’t mean to. That’s the way it was with God. God looked down over the battlements of heaven and God said, ‘How can I tell men that I’m a God of love, I’m a God of mercy, that I’m a God of long suffering, the only way I can do it is to become a man.’ And that’s exactly what happened, ladies and gentlemen: Jesus Christ became man.”
Billy Graham—the 90-year-old evangelist who suffers from Parkinson’s disease, has a shunt in his brain, has had prostate cancer and most recently spent a night in the hospital for observation after tripping over one of his three dogs—is writing a book about growing old.
“He’s always been ready to die,” said his son Franklin Graham, “But nobody’s prepared him for getting old.”
The book will cover Billy Graham’s personal experience with growing old and will focus on how people can prepare both emotionally and spiritually for what can be the most fulfilling years of life.
“I never expected to live this long, and it is hard to believe I have reached the age of 90,” said Billy Graham. “Every day is a gift from God, no matter how old we are. I have discovered that just because we grow weaker physically as we age, it doesn’t mean that we must grow weaker spiritually. In fact, we ought to be growing stronger spiritually because our eyes ought to be on eternity and heaven—on the things that really matter.”
Family and friends have expressed concern over Billy Graham’s health and note that he still struggles with the loss of his wife, the late Ruth Bell Graham, who died in 2007.
“He could catch a cold and his life could come to end,” Franklin said. “At his age, any little thing could be a serious event. We realize that.”
Billy Graham is being frequently mentioned in the current flap over president elect Barack Obama tapping evangelical pastor Rick Warren to offer a prayer at his inauguration. Nearly every article mentions Billy Graham’s role as a pastor to presidents over the years.
Billy Graham has had personal encounters with every president going back to Harry Truman. Billy Graham has participated in nine presidential inaugurations, tying Chief Justice John Marshall’s record from the early 1800s. While he didn’t participate, Billy Graham did attend a tenth inauguration, that of Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1953.
The speculationcontinuesthat Warren will take the mantle from Billy and assume the role as “America’s pastor.” Billy’s son Franklin Graham comments in an interview with Christianity Today that “time will tell” if Warren takes on that role, noting that it’s a role God gives you, not one you seek. He also notes Billy Graham’s history with U.S. presidents and that “There’s no other American that has had more influence on the White House.” The 2008 book Preacher and the Presidents details Billy Graham’s interactions with U.S. presidents.
In a clip from the 1996 Christmas Special, Billy Graham reflects on the joys of Christmas and wishes your family a happy Christmas:
“Ruth and I have treasured these moments spent with family and friends each year at Christmas as we gather together and celebrate how the Christmas message can bring peace to a fragile world. Certainly we’re all praying that you will have a blessed and happy Christmas.”
It sounds like a detective thriller, but it’s really just the story of the innkeeper who was too busy to notice a woman about to give birth and missed the very first Christmas. Billy Graham tells this story in the 1979 Christmas Special.
He finishes by asking if we’ll be like the innkeeper:
“We in America have so much, but we are preoccupied with our own comforts and our own desires. And I have to ask you, are you going to make this same mistake and just give Jesus the stable compartment of your life? I’m asking you to let him be born this Christmas in the central places of your heart and life.”
“Surely somebody on Graham’s team saw the unintentional hilarity and/or ridiculousness and/or cheapening of the gospel that comes from putting this phrase on the television screen:
For a relationship with Jesus Christ: 1-800-631-7141″
He pokes fun at the wording and then finishes with the admission that Billy Graham and evangelical Christians have done good things, “but TV graphics like this one help explain why people think we’re weird.”
I think Boyett is taking it a bit far, but he does have a point.
You can watch the original Billy Graham Christmas Special from 1952 online. The TV special is less than 15 minutes long and includes some awkward decorating, a song from George Beverly Shea, a [questionable] history of the Christmas tree from Cliff Barrows and a sermon from Billy Graham:
“Jesus Christ did not come for the purpose of being born in order that we might have a great holiday. Jesus Christ came for the purpose of dying! That was his mission. He looked over the battlements of heaven centuries ago and saw this world lost and doomed and separated from God. And he said, ‘I’m going to save that world.’”
That’s probably a subdued sermon for 1952, but it still has some fiery, finger-wagging moments (skip ahead to 5:34 to hear Billy’s sermon).
Yesterday’s My Answer newspaper column from Billy Graham answers a question from someone struggling financially:
“I want to assure you that God does care—and the reason is because He loves you, and He wants what is best for you. Don’t give up, and don’t lose your trust in Him. … Many in our nation are facing hard times right now, and my heart goes out to people like you who are struggling financially and can’t see the end of the tunnel. …
“But even when we can’t see the answer, God has not abandoned us. Hard times—of any kind—should bring us closer to God, not away from Him. Make Christ the center of your life, and ask God to bring your family together and not let worry and stress overcome you. Thank God every day for the blessings He does give you.”
Bono, the global crusader and front man for the rock band U2, expresses his thanks to Billy Graham in a video on the now defunct Thank You Billy Graham web site:
“At a time when religion seems so often to get in the way of God’s work, with its shopping mall sales pitch and its bumper sticker reductionism—I give thanks just for the sanity of Billy Graham, for that clear, empathetic voice of his and that southern accent, and part poet, part preacher, the singer of the human spirit I’d say. Yeah, I give thanks to Billy Graham. Thank you, Billy Graham.”
"I'm counting totally and completely on the Lord Jesus Christ, and not on Billy Graham. I'm not going to heaven because I've read the Bible, nor because I've preached to a lot of people. I'm going to heaven because of what Christ did." Learn more about Jesus > >
Last week I linked to the 
You can watch the original 
Bono, the global crusader and front man for the rock band U2, expresses his thanks to Billy Graham in a 
