May 27 – A Simple Gospel
In 1949, the stage was set for the beginning of what would be a lifetime of evangelistic campaigns. Over 6000 people were in attendance at an immense tent set up at Washington Boulevard and Hill Street in Los Angeles and hundreds were turned away. William Randolph Hearst’s newspapers carried the story of this crusade where celebrities were being converted and a three-week crusade stretched to eight.
Billy Graham was preaching in Los Angeles while holding a position as the president of a small Bible college in Minneapolis and the meetings he held became nationally known. He had been ordained at the age of 22, after having been converted in North Carolina. In 1943, he graduated from Wheaton College and married Ruth Bell. He was a pastor in Chicago, but then got involved with the new Youth for Christ ministry and worked with them through the mid 1940s.
Billy Graham did not want to limit his crusades to a single church. When he entered a community, all of the local church leaders were invited to be part of the process of planning the campaign. This was the basis for his success and broad appeal.
After the Los Angeles crusade, Graham traveled to Boston and other locations and in 1954 took a preaching trip to London, gaining international celebrity status. He became a friend of President Eisenhower, which would be the beginning of his friendships with many other United States and world leaders.
He learned how to work with the media, writing books, broadcasting on the radio, and with his father-in-law, cofounded “Christianity Today” magazine for Christian leaders and then later, “Decision” magazine for everyone. He developed a feature film production company and sponsored worldwide mission meetings for education and encouragement.
Billy Graham has traveled and preached in Communist countries, focusing on evangelism rather than attacking their social issues, which has given him access to many more locations than would be expected.
Over 100 million people have heard Billy Graham speak in person and his staff offers estimates of over 2 million people coming forward to signify their conversion.
But, the greatest thing that Billy Graham has done is offer a simple Gospel … the truth of Jesus Christ.
In 1949, the stage was set for the beginning of what would be a lifetime of evangelistic campaigns. Over 6000 people were in attendance at an immense tent set up at Washington Boulevard and Hill Street in Los Angeles and hundreds were turned away. William Randolph Hearst’s newspapers carried the story of this crusade where celebrities were being converted and a three-week crusade stretched to eight.
Billy Graham was preaching in Los Angeles while holding a position as the president of a small Bible college in Minneapolis and the meetings he held became nationally known. He had been ordained at the age of 22, after having been converted in North Carolina. In 1943, he graduated from Wheaton College and married Ruth Bell. He was a pastor in Chicago, but then got involved with the new Youth for Christ ministry and worked with them through the mid 1940s.
Billy Graham did not want to limit his crusades to a single church. When he entered a community, all of the local church leaders were invited to be part of the process of planning the campaign. This was the basis for his success and broad appeal.
After the Los Angeles crusade, Graham traveled to Boston and other locations and in 1954 took a preaching trip to London, gaining international celebrity status. He became a friend of President Eisenhower, which would be the beginning of his friendships with many other United States and world leaders.
He learned how to work with the media, writing books, broadcasting on the radio, and with his father-in-law, cofounded “Christianity Today” magazine for Christian leaders and then later, “Decision” magazine for everyone. He developed a feature film production company and sponsored worldwide mission meetings for education and encouragement.
Billy Graham has traveled and preached in Communist countries, focusing on evangelism rather than attacking their social issues, which has given him access to many more locations than would be expected.
Over 100 million people have heard Billy Graham speak in person and his staff offers estimates of over 2 million people coming forward to signify their conversion.
But, the greatest thing that Billy Graham has done is offer a simple Gospel … the truth of Jesus Christ.
0 comments:
Post a Comment