A Soldier Goes Home – Obama, Trump and others pay tribute to the late Billy Graham
Famous American Evangelist and Pastor, Billy Graham died at his home in North Carolina in the early hours of Wednesday, February 21. He was 99years old.
According to Associated Press, he had suffered from cancer, pneumonia and other ailments and died at his home in Montreat, North Carolina.
Graham was an American Christian Protestant evangelist and an ordained Southern Baptist minister who became well known internationally after 1949. He has been called one of the most influential preachers of the 20th century. He held large indoor and outdoor rallies with sermons which were broadcast on radio and television, some still being re-broadcast into the 21st century.
Born Nov. 7, 1918, on his family’s dairy farm near Charlotte, Graham came from a fundamentalist background that expected true Bible-believers to stay clear of Christians with even the most minor differences over Scripture. But he came to reject that view for a more ecumenical approach.
Graham’s path began taking shape at age 16, when the Presbyterian-reared farmboy committed himself to Christ at a tent revival.
He spent a lifetime sharing his love of God to the world, inspiring millions with a message of hope. Graham was a spiritual adviser to American presidents and provided spiritual counsel for every president from Harry Truman to Barack Obama.
Major Political and Christian Leaders paid tribute to the great icon with President Donald Trump tweeting “ The GREAT Billy Graham is dead. There was nobody like him! He will be missed by Christians and all religions. A very special man.”
Barack Obama – “Billy Graham was a humble servant who prayed for so many – and who, with wisdom and grace, gave hope and guidance to generations of Americans”
Bishop TD Jakes – “Today, we lost a General in the Kingdom of God! You have earned your rest, sir. Well done, good and faithful servant!”
Kenneth Copeland “Today we celebrate heavens great reception of a mighty man of God –Billy Graham. We are confident he received the words, “Well done, good and faithful servant”
Along with many other honors, Graham received the $1 million Templeton Prize for Progress in Religion in 1982 and the Congressional Gold Medal in 1996.
Graham will be buried by his wife Ruth McCue who died in June 2007, at the Billy Graham Museum and Library. He is survived by his five children – Rev. William Franklin III, Rev. Nelson “Ned” Graham, Virginia “Gigi” Tchividjian, Anne Graham Lotz and Ruth Graham Mclntyre and numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
References: Associated Press, Wikipedia
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