Eva
Here is my poem:
“Just As I Am”
Just as I am, Just as I am
The song the choir softly sings.
Come to Jesus, Come to Jesus
All of your burdens bring.
I got up from my seat
Walked down the aisle
And at the altar I lay.
Repeat these words after me
I heard the preacher say.
I believe Jesus is the son of God
That he died on the cross for me.
If I confess with my mouth
And believe in my heart
He’ll forgive me and set me free
The worldly pleasures I once craved
No longer pull me down
Since I gave my heart to Jesus Christ
I now know that I am heaven bound
If you too will repent of your sins
And ask Jesus to come into your heart
He’ll forgive you of all of your sins
Then your life will have a brand new start
Then you must try to start each day
By reading God’s Word, the Bible
Most of all you should take time to pray
Find a church where you can worship
Then you must be faithful to attend
Be sure to share your born-again experience
With others, perhaps a neighbor or a friend
Then ask them to pray the sinner’s prayer
Just think that when they pray with you
You will be fullfilling the Great Commission
Just as the Lord Jesus commanded us to do
There will be another sinner saved by grace
Then one day Jesus will say to you well done
Thou good and faithful servant
When we see Him face to face.
I SHARE A BIRTHDAY WITH BILLY GRAHAM
Both of my parents and I share the same birthday, November 7. In fact, my dad was born in 1918, so he always mentioned the fact that he had the same birth date as Billy Graham. He even told it to telemarketers in his later years. This little connection makes Brother Billy even more special to me. His preaching captivated me as I watched him on TV in my early teenage years, and on June 24, 1965, I had another “birthday” and “made sure” of my relationship with Christ while sitting in front of the TV set. Even though I grew up attending church, there was something about the way Billy Graham presented the Gospel that caught my attention and got me to examine my life and relationship with God more closely. I will always be grateful for his wonderful influence on my life. And yes, because he is such a faithful and esteemed servant of the Lord’s, I feel very privileged to be able to say that my birthday is the same day as Billy Graham’s.
THANK YOU, LORD JESUS
In the spring of 1957, I was a mixed-up, self-destructive college dropout with a severe stuttering problem (and a far graver sin problem) when Dr. Billy Graham and his team came to New York City, my hometown. A BGEA-trained counselor reached me with God’s Word just in time; my life was saved and my soul instantly reborn when Matthew 7:7—“Ask, and it shall be given you” [KJV]—hit me right between the eyes, and I responded, “Lord Jesus, please come into my heart.” (He did!)
Dr. Graham’s messages at Madison Square Garden led me to go forward and surrender fully to Jesus’ lordship. His preaching on “abiding in Christ, the Vine” (from John 15) culminated in a life-transforming filling by the Holy Spirit. During the crusade, I experienced untold blessings and took my first steps in Christian service and witness.
Subsequently, and very surprisingly, Christ called me to preach the Gospel and has since trained and used me in evangelistic ministry, graciously healing my speech impediment in the process. Many special people (especially my wife and parents) have helped to mold my life … some in profound ways. But no one has had an effect so deep, so revolutionary these past fifty years as Dr. Graham, starting with my second birth to the present.
The Billy Graham Classics currently shown on TBN continue the discipling work begun five decades ago. The new birth is a miraculous, indescribable gift. For such mercy and grace, and for everyone whom God uses as a conduit of His astonishing favor, I can never praise and thank the Lord enough, in this life or the next. Truly, salvation “was the LORD’S doing; [and] it is marvelous in [my born-again] eyes” (Psalm 118:23). Thank you, Dr. Graham, for fulfilling God’s call so faithfully.
ETERNAL LIFE AND BEYOND
During my sophomore year of college, I started trying to figure out what it really means to be a Christian. My parents had always told me we were Christians, but we never attended church. Even though I was attending a church, my grandparents urged me to go to the Billy Graham crusade. It was the first time in my life that I ever heard the concept that Jesus had actually died for me. When Billy gave the call, I could not believe how many people went up. I thought, I now believe this, but I’ll just tell someone at the church. Graciously, the Holy Spirit made me get up and go forward. What I don’t think most people who have been saved by the crusade realize is how much the crusade works with local churches. Within the next week, I was going to a new church and am now a member of the Navigators. I thank Billy not only for showing me what eternal life means but also for giving me the tools to live as a born-again Christian from that day on.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR FAITHFULNESS
Dear Billy, I was eleven years old the night my aunt and uncle took me to see you at Madison Square Garden. I was visiting them in Kings Park on Long Island. I’m from Florida. We were up so high that I couldn’t tell for sure it was you until you spoke. I always loved your accent. No one knew at that time what God was going to do in your life, and all the millions of lives you would touch.
I didn’t get saved until 1969. I often listened to you on radio and watched your crusades on TV. Your message of salvation always touched my heart. Even before I got saved. I never had to worry about false doctrine, showmanship, or being led the wrong way, because you lifted up Jesus and you never got off track.
Your faithfulness to your own team meant so much, too. All your guest singers were good, but no one could compare to George Beverly Shea singing “How Great Thou Art.” Cliff Barrows was like a rock—so strong, and his presence was one of meekness and love.
No one will ever hear or sing “Just As I Am” without thinking of you and praising God that He does take us just as we are. Thank you for obeying God. I love and respect you more than words can say. All your children are a blessing also.
INSPIRATION
Thank you for always being an inspiration of what it means to live your life for the Lord. It always inspired me to see your photograph hanging in the halls of Northwestern College, and I’ve always appreciated the ministry you have. I pray for my sons to one day grow up to serve God as you have.
HEARTSTRINGS
In 1972, I went from Idaho to Dallas for Explo ’72, and Billy spoke there. He asked for college students to volunteer and join him in Cleveland in July. Every time he said the word Cleveland, I felt like my heart was a harp and God’s fingers were strumming the strings. I was a brand-new Christian and finally decided that God was calling me to go to Cleveland. I went and served in many ways and ended up staying in Ohio for two more years. While there, I met some students from a small Bible college in Indiana. Once again, I felt God leading me—this time to go to Indiana. I went to school there and met my wife from Minnesota, where I now live. God used Billy to give my life direction, and I will never forget the adventures I experienced because of the calling to go to Cleveland in 1972.
DRUNKEN SAILOR CHANGED
In 1954, I went aboard my ship and went wild—drinking, chasing women, and all other things a young sailor away from home for the first time would do. A shipmate took me to a Youth for Christ meeting where they showed a film by Billy Graham. I accepted Christ as my Savior on December 5, 1955. I would love to say that ended all my problems, but after the honeymoon was over I found
I was in a battle zone. I was wounded by some people in the church and went back into the world. I must say that God is faithful to His children, and even when I was in the world, He was wooing me back to Himself. I read most of Billy’s books, and they helped bring me back to Christ. Thank you, Billy, for sharing your love for Christ; it changed my life.
A COUNSELOR BROUGHT TO TEARS
I have been a follower of Billy Graham’s for more than thirty years, and I had the opportunity to serve at one of the crusades in St. Paul, Minnesota. I remember the night, as a young Christian myself, when I served as a counselor for the first time. When Billy gave the altar call, I was brought to tears even as I went forward to receive other people who were coming forward. A couple of other counselors saw me coming up front with tears flowing down my cheeks and said, “Could we pray for you to receive Jesus Christ?” I said, “I have already received Him, and I am also a counselor, but I am so touched by the Holy Spirit of God here that I cannot stop weeping.” Finally, I was able to pull myself together and help some who had come forward.
In 1981, I got a job at the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, on the computer side of the ministry. This was a great honor for me, and I was able to meet Mr. Billy Graham a couple of times. I even have a picture of myself and my five children all around Mr. Graham. Thank you, Billy, for your service to God and the world we live in.
COMING HOME
Growing up in a US Air Force family, I was always moving and therefore had no church home. The air base held a Sunday service but not distinct in denomination. I was always hungry for God but didn’t understand anything about Him. My mother told me stories about how she was stationed in Germany while expecting me and the incredible loneliness she felt. She turned on the radio and heard the voice of Billy Graham. It was a poignant moment for her as she sat in a foreign country awaiting my father’s return from flying. It comforted her in such a way that she never forgot it. That was in 1956.
Fast-forward now to 1967. We were stationed in Goldsboro, North Carolina, and because my father was a fighter pilot, he was out of the country. When my mother and siblings were out of the house one evening, I turned on the TV and noticed that Billy Graham was on … so I listened. I was fascinated that he could speak to my heart. I had never felt God’s presence so strongly and was surprised that there could be such a peace in my heart. I wanted more, and when Billy prayed at the end of the telecast, I prayed with him. I asked Jesus to forgive my sins and to come into my heart.
From that day on, my life changed and has never been the same. Though I came from a family that was constantly uprooted and can never really call anyplace home, Billy Graham gave me roots. And I can always think back to one moment in time, one place, when I was a teenager and felt at home.
For a family who served their country, and for the many times when my father was away on missions, Billy Graham filled a need in my life. He was away from his family, too. His mission was of a different kind—an eternal mission that changed my destiny. Now I am fifty years old, and my four children and my husband know the Lord. Who knows how far-reaching our lives will go, but I know it will be great. I want to say thank you to Billy Graham and his family for their faithfulness. I am so grateful, words are not enough to convey what is in my heart. Thank you for helping me come home.
Melinda
GOD LOVES YOU!
For more than fifty years, I have heard this man of God preach the Word; such power behind those words, “God loves you, and he can change your life.” I can hear those words in my mind over and over, just as he spoke them. What comfort they bring.
MY LIFE CHANGED DIRECTION
On Friday, 9 November 2007, the ABC on their program Can We Help? replied to a viewer’s question about the record crowd at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. After showing various scenes of football matches, cricket matches, and the Olympic Games, they came up with the absolute record crowd of 140,000 people (more than we had previously been told) at the Billy Graham crusade in March 1959. That number will never be reached again, because on that occasion people were allowed to sit on the hallowed turf.
As a twenty-five-year-old, I was in that congregation, and as a result my life changed direction. I was a Christian at the time but was trying to live in two worlds. I didn’t go forward at that Sunday afternoon service. However, after hearing Billy Graham’s sermon repeated on radio, I realised I needed to surrender my ambitions to be an actress, and even any desire to get married, and I rededicated my life to God. Less than a month later, I was on a train to Alice Springs to work at a children’s hostel. Two weeks later, I was engaged to an Englishman I met on the Ghan [railroad] on the way. Five months later, we were married at the John Flynn Church in Alice Springs.
When my husband’s parents migrated to Australia, we all settled in Adelaide and later welcomed two children into the family. I will always be grateful for God’s faithfulness, and Billy Graham as His messenger, for getting me sorted out at that particular time. We worship a great God.
A GODLY SERVANT
Billy Graham has been an inspiration to me for my entire Christian life, more than fifty-five years. Whenever a crusade was anywhere near to us in Texas, we would be there. When I was old enough to sing in the choir, I did three times—once in Lubbock, and twice in Houston. Billy Graham’s message was so plain and easy for anyone to understand, and you knew he was a true servant of God. He did not do anything to bring the glory to himself, but he met with everyone just as a humble representative or ambassador of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Thank you, Billy Graham, for what you said, how you said it, and how you lived it. You and your ministry changed my life.
THE FRUIT OF FAITHFULNESS
I asked Jesus into my heart while watching Billy with my mom. Well, the truth is, I really didn’t want to watch Billy Graham; I wanted to watch Green Acres. So, I pretended not to listen, but the Holy Spirit spoke to my heart, my mom answered my questions, and that night I knelt by my bed and prayed a simple salvation prayer. I was nine years old.
Many years later, when I was in high school, our youth group went to the Minnesota State Fair, where Billy was holding a crusade in the Grandstand. I was thrilled to see Billy in person!
Fast-forward to the mid-1990s, when he came to the Metrodome in Minneapolis. I was married with three children. All three had a personal relationship with Jesus but had not seen a Billy Graham crusade. My sister managed dcTalk (they were part of the music for the crusade), so my family had a box that overlooked the whole field. I wanted my children to have a visual image of people going forward to meet Jesus. And what an image it was! The sea of people pouring onto the main floor is still etched in my mind! Billy Graham has been used by God to reach generations of people. He has been faithful to obey God. Thank you for your faithfulness, Billy. Your obedience changed my life.
A FREE AND UNEXPECTED GIFT
When I was at a very low point in my life, I walked into a church I had not been to before. In the rack on the pew, along with the hymnal, was a little card that offered a correspondence Bible study course. I took that card, mailed it to the address listed, and in the return mail I received a little booklet. It contained the Gospel of John, with several questions at the end of the book. I read the book, answered the questions, and mailed it back. A few days later, in the mail, came another booklet containing another book of the Bible and more questions. This process continued until I had completed the entire course.
At the end of the process, I received my grades for the course and a copy of a Bible concordance as a free, and very unexpected, gift. There was never a request for money, not even to cover the cost of the materials. All of these materials, and the person who read and graded my answers, were provided by the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association.
This was a turning point in my life. God had been watching me and drawing me, but He used Billy Graham and his ministry to actually teach me how much I was loved! I wish to thank Dr. Graham personally for his dedication, perseverance, and most
especially, for his godly walk. I will forever be grateful to God for allowing me the privilege of living during the lifetime of one of God’s most faithful servants. I pray that God will bless you with unspeakable peace and joy. To God be the glory!
A TRIBUTE
I have many memories from my childhood of sitting in front of the TV and listening to many of your crusades. Being very young (seven or eight), sometimes it was difficult to be attentive, but I can remember crawling up in my mother’s arms and watching her face as she listened to you. There was such a smile on her face and a calmness about her as you spoke.
I was eleven years old when I knew I wanted to give my life to Christ. My mother talked to me about what a commitment it was to truly give your life to Jesus, and that to help me understand that decision, she wanted to get the booklet you had published on what it means to become a Christian.
I remember sitting at our kitchen table and finally completing it and talking with her about it. I was so excited. I knew there was something different about me. My story is no mountaintop experience that many have, but I was saved because of your commitment to spread the word of Jesus Christ.
When I was fourteen, I lost my mother to cancer. She suffered terribly but never once blamed God. Instead, when able, she would go to church and praise Him. I am told the last word she said was “God,” and I believe she was truly in His presence. So, thank you, Billy, for helping me receive Jesus Christ so I can one day again see her wonderful smile and spend eternity with God.
Thank You, Billy Graham Page 24