Liz
TWO A PENNY
I was saved as a ten-year-old child after watching the Billy Graham movie Two a Penny at a movie theater in Marion, Illinois. I can’t remember the exact date, but I can pinpoint it to the summer of 1968. While I had my problems and struggles over the years, and felt far from God for many years due to harboring an unforgiving spirit toward certain people, God hung in there with me. In 1989, I had the honor of singing in the choir during the Billy Graham crusade. More recently, I purchased the video of Two a Penny and watched it as an adult. The salvation message is simple and clear. I was reassured that I really did understand it as a child. About a year and a half ago, I began participating in a Christian recovery program at my church. It has helped me along my journey to spiritual healing and wholeness—God has held my hand every step of the way! Thank you, Billy Graham, for being obedient to God’s calling for your life. I’m looking forward to meeting you in heaven so I can shake your hand and thank you personally.
OUR FOUNDATION
In 1973, I was a very immature, confused Christian. I picked up a copy of Billy Graham’s book Peace with God, and it gave me the confidence to know in my heart that I was saved and going to heaven when I died. It clearly explained the basics about God and being a Christian. It gave me a firm foundation to build on.
In 1975, we were living in Idaho with our four young children. My husband and I volunteered to be counselors at the showing of a Billy Graham film. Our eight-year-old son was in the audience, and when the invitation was given, he walked right up to one of the other counselors and gave his heart to the Lord. We were thrilled.
Today, I can confidently say that all six of my grown children have accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, and we can have the peace and joy of knowing we will be together in eternity.
OIL TOWN USA
Dear Mr. Graham, I was born into a loving Christian family on May 24, 1946, in Binghamton, New York. My dad had just come back from overseas, having been drafted into the US Navy. When I was eight years old, our family attended a Billy Graham Association film entitled Oil Town USA. Red Harper was the main character, and though I don’t remember a lot of details about the film, I do know that when the invitation was given, I received Christ as my Savior.
Billy Graham has had a significant influence on my life since that film. I have seen numerous crusades on TV, attended one in St. Paul, Minnesota, and read many books and articles depicting Billy’s life and telling his stories. My brother was a professor at Wheaton College, and two of our sons are graduates of that school. So we have had several opportunities to tour the Billy Graham Center and learn more about his life.
I want to thank Billy and Ruth Graham and their families for the sacrifices you all made because of this call to ministry. Your steadfast faithfulness to our Lord, and your influence on my Christian journey, are deeply and divinely appreciated by all. Blessings to all of you.
Mel
MY TESTIMONY
In February 1953, my parents took all six of us kids to the Bowling Green High School auditorium to see either Oil Town USA or Mr. Texas. I was eight years old. I had never heard a Gospel presentation before, even though we went to church regularly. At the conclusion of the film, an invitation was given for those who wanted to receive Jesus Christ as their Savior to come forward. When my oldest brother jumped up and headed down the aisle, I followed close behind. I remember a man prayed with me and gave me a red paperback Gospel of John. I remember walking out of that building with my feet barely touching the ground. I did not know what happened, but I knew something good had begun in my life.
In junior high and high school, I participated in Youth for Christ clubs, often leading them. I knew God was calling me into some form of ministry. The four years of college confirmed that call. In FWBC, I met my future wife. We graduated in 1967 and began our thirty-eight years of pastoral ministry in the Missionary Church the day after our wedding, August 5, 1967.
My life and ministry have been greatly enriched by the magazine Christianity Today, which Billy Graham had a hand in beginning. We have encouraged our people to participate in crusades and watch the TV broadcasts. The popularity of these broadcasts has given me many open doors to share my faith and explain the Gospel to the people I’ve met over the years. I want to thank Mr. Graham and our Lord for the long and faithful witness he has given. His example has encouraged me many times.
John
Thank You, Billy Graham … for Setting Such a Good Example
A MAN OF INTEGRITY
I have the utmost respect for Billy, as he is a man who has had no “incidents” in his life. Thank you, Billy, for setting an example that shows us that it’s possible to live a life of integrity.
THANK YOU FOR BEING AN EXAMPLE TO NON-CHRISTIANS
Thank you, Billy, for being an example to all of us who have ever ministered in the US over the past sixty years. You have ministered to presidents but stayed out of politics. You and Ruth were honest about your marriage yet were never involved in a scandal. You pointed evangelicals toward outreach, toward assisting the poor, toward love and a hearable message. You brought together churches in your crusades that would refuse to speak to each other. You have been a powerful force for God and yet remained humble, gentle, and meek. For those of us who have never met you or even attended more than a couple of your crusades, you have still been the best and brightest of the evangelical church, the one we could point our non-Christian friends to. Thank you, Billy, for just being you, and for all the sacrifices you made so that you could be who you became.
Steve
THE CALL
Dear Dr. Graham, I have watched you throughout the years after becoming a Christian at twenty-six years of age. I would like to say thank you for being a man of integrity. You have been a man of example in doing what God called you to do and not going beyond that. Thank you for wearing the mantle of humility tightly and being the great example that we as humans should portray.
Rosalie
A CHRISTLIKE EXAMPLE
I have never been to one of your crusades, nor did I come to know my Savior through one of your crusades. I write this letter to tell you what you have meant to me because of how you have lived your life and because of your honesty.
With so many scandals within the ministry, locally and on television, you have always stood with integrity. You have managed to maintain a flawless image, which in turn has set a Christlike example for the nonbelieving world. This has been such an encouragement to me. I have stumbled so many times, yet I think about it and bet that you too have stumbled, but you have lived a life of service and with such perseverance. In this day and age, that is not a easy task to live, day in and day out.
When I look at your life and how you have lived, served, and continued on, I am in awe. I know you have had problems of your own, as I have read in your books, but this did not keep you from moving forward with the Lord’s work. So many times, people let setbacks, whether large or small, keep them from doing what God has called all of us to do. Yet, when I look at your life, you have set an example no one could keep up with without the help of our Lord. I admire you, respect you, and love you for all you strive to be and are. I know your life is getting closer to being with the Lord, and what an exciting day that will be for you. I know through the reading of the scripture that your rewards will be great. But for you, I know your foremost reward will be seeing our Savior. I really want to say thank you, Billy and Ruth. I thank you, Mrs. Graham, for being a godly wife to your husband and supporting him all these years. I know that has not been easy being a minister’s wife, but I applaud you for how you have done it. Thank you so very much for both of your obedience to the Lord’s calling for your lives.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR LIFE OF COMMITMENT
I came to know the Lord because of the faithful sharing of God’s love and His Word by my parents, who were missionaries in India. As a young person, I was able to attend the New York crusade when we were home on f
urlough. I was only nine years old at the time, and I remember it. But more important than that, your life has been a challenge to me to be faithful in ministry. I appreciate so much how you have been true to your word and have lived a life of integrity. You are one of the few in ministry on a large scale who have done better at withstanding the temptations that so many have fallen into, such as sex, money, or power. My ex-husband also appreciated this, as he had been almost disillusioned by so many who had fallen prey to the forces of Satan to bring down their ministries. So, mostly I want to say thank you for your life of commitment to the Lord and His leading, and the example that has been to many of us.
YOUR EXEMPLARY “CHRIST WALK”
When I was eighteen, I decided I wanted to give my life to Christ. By my nineteenth birthday, I had decided that being a Christian was too hard and I was too scared. I kinda drifted away from it, but it was still heavy on my heart.
When Billy Graham came to Baltimore in 2006, I didn’t even know who he was. I just knew he was bringing along Newsboys and Israel Houghton. Before I went to Camden Yards Stadium, I read up on Billy Graham, and I was more than impressed. I read how at such a young age he devoted and turned over his life for Christ. I said to myself, “This man has been following Christ forever,” and I decided that I wanted to do the same. His “Christ walk” made me want a Christ walk of my own. When I read how he went out of his way to protect the reputation of his ministry by making a rule that his male employees weren’t to interact with females alone, I thought it was extreme, but it showed how serious he was about his walk. Now, with so many church scandals, I always say, “They should have used Billy’s method.”
Billy Graham’s example made me want a real walk with Christ, and it opened my eyes to the fact that being a Christian isn’t so bad after all. Thank you, Billy Graham, for being an exemplary brother in Christ.
HUGE IMPACT
When I was nine years old, I accepted Christ while watching Billy Graham on TV. Mama said that, after that, I tugged on the pastor’s coattail until he agreed for me to be baptized. I requested and received the new believer’s packet and also received Decision magazines. All of this helped me in my Christian growth. I was privileged to sing with the choir at the crusade held in Whiteville, North Carolina, in the 1990s. Billy Graham, you and your team have been an example and light, pointing so many to a wonderful, loving Savior. Now, almost forty years after watching that crusade on TV, I’m loving God and striving to serve Him and be an example also. Thank you, Billy, family, and staff.
AN EXAMPLE
He taught us how to live a constant, consistent life. To stand for the Word of God no matter what. His message was always the same: salvation by faith through grace. He taught me that, if I stand for Christ, the road will not be easy, but in the end I will receive a blessing. He was a rebel for God. Thank you, Billy Graham!
A MAN AFTER GOD’S HEART
I just wanted to say what an inspiration Billy Graham has been. From a young age, I was skeptical that anyone who was on television preaching to so many could be after anything more than money and recognition. I was also bored when I was younger and did not yet have a personal relationship with Jesus, nor did I really know what salvation was. When I accepted Jesus as my personal Savior at the age of eighteen, I continued to follow Billy Graham’s career and his televised evangelism shows. The more I followed, the more I learned that this was a true man of God, a pure believer, and one who taught only from the Word of God and taught us of His love and our need for salvation.
I learned that Billy Graham’s salary did not at all come from these appearances and that he was really a fairly simple man with a mighty message. He has withstood the scrutiny, and he has led a life that has focused the Light of the World on God and not on himself. I can only imagine the crown of glory that God has for him and the special place in heaven that will be his reward. Thank you, Mr. Graham, for your years of service and devotion to our Lord and for the many lives you have touched in His name. God bless you and your family.
NO ONE EVER SAYS ANYTHING BAD ABOUT YOU
I just wanted to thank you for all of the work you have done around the world. I have gone to two of your crusades in Montreal, Canada, and was a counselor both times. I was in awe to see how many people came forward on those nights. What impresses me the most is that when your name is mentioned, no one ever says anything bad about you at all. Even if those who are talking about you are not believers, the statement usually goes, “I have nothing bad to say about him, whereas some of the others …” I know that you are a man of humility and a deep love for our Lord Jesus Christ. Know that you have been used by God in a mighty way. Thank you, Mr. Graham, for your obedience, character, and godly example. It helps us to know that we, too, can be the people that God wants us to be, even amid trials and tribulations.
YOU LIVED THE CHRISTIAN LIFE
Dear Billy, you have been a household name since I was a child. You are so loved by all. Thank you for sharing your life, love, your books, sense of humor, and most of all the Gospel, which has saved millions around the globe.
I have never heard a negative word about you. I only hear how grateful everyone is to know there is a true man of God who shared his time with us preaching God’s salvation. You never compromised or wavered, but you lived the Christian life. A real man of God and an example to all men of what they should be and how they should live. Our Lord will say one day, “Well done, my faithful servant.” We know you from your videos, tent meetings, TV shows, and gatherings. Unfortunately, we have never met in person; but when we all get to heaven—what a celebration that will be!
My late mother had all your books, so I now enjoy them—what wonderful keepsakes. You have a wonderful legacy in your family, all serving God—what a blessing. May God continue to bless you and keep you healthy. Remember, your name is known all over the world, and is so respected by all. Even those still lost recognize the name Billy Graham as a true man of God, and they know who you are. Your reputation has never changed. You are so loved and respected. Thank you, Billy.
YOU HAVE INSPIRED ME
I have never personally met Billy Graham, and I have never been to one of his great crusades. But I have seen him and his family through the years on TV, leading thousands to Jesus Christ. I personally thank you, Billy and Ruth Graham, that you have kept the faith and been people of impeccable integrity through all these years of ministry. You have not sheared God’s flock by asking for huge offerings to buy mansions and airplanes. You have always been accountable to other Christian men and women of integrity. You have never been found unfaithful to each other or to the evangelical call of God. Your message has been one of purity and the simplicity of the Gospel. You have inspired me and helped me to stay in the race to glory. I now preach an evangelical message at the county jail here in Georgia. I have had the privilege of leading many women to Jesus Christ. You are a part of what I do because of your example of faithfulness and perseverance through the years. God bless you. Love, in Jesus Christ our Lord!
ONGOING LEGACY
Dearest Reverend Graham, I really want to pass on my heartfelt thanks and gratitude for your lifelong work in God’s Kingdom. I am forty-four years old and my life has been touched by you through my father, who gave his life to Jesus at one of your crusades in Adelaide when he was about seventeen. Through this, I have become a disciple, and so have my children. Your impact will resonate throughout time eternal. Thank you for your dedication and perseverance. What a wonderfully prosperous and blessed life you are leading. You are a shining example and a light to the path of truth. Bless you, Rev. Billy Graham, and all your family, as you have surely blessed mine.
STAYING THE COURSE
In the mid-1970s, I attended the twenty-fifth anniversary celebration of Billy’s ministry. In addition to the crusade at the Hollywood Bowl, I attended a special dinner and heard Billy’s vision for the next century. It was moving, and inspired me to seek out what God had in store for me as a new Christia
n. Now, more than thirty years later, I credit Billy’s message as the inspiration to stay the course with my business studies and work in Christian publishing. What a blessing it’s been to have been working just where God planned. And I have Billy to thank for pointing me in the right direction. God bless you, Billy, and thanks for staying your course.
GRATEFUL FOR YOUR EXAMPLE
My husband was saved at one of your crusades in New York when he was young. That must have been around 1958. He met me and led me to the Lord a few years later when we were in our mid-teens. We have been married for almost forty years now. If it had not been for the foundation the Lord laid in our lives through your ministry, I seriously doubt we would have known how to serve Him as a married couple. We are forever grateful to you and Ruth for the example you have set for us as husband and wife, and as parents. And not only for us, but for millions around the world. God bless you! Thank you, Billy!
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