On November 7 Billy Graham celebrated his sixtieth birthday. The milestone provides an opportunity for staff and readers of CHRISTIANITY TODAY to congratulate him and to remind him once again how much he means to all of us. For thirty years he has stood alone as the living voice of evangelicalism. No one else, including even President Carter, comes close. Conservative evangelicals have seen Graham as a flag to which they can point and thereby identify themselves. He has represented the evangelical cause well. Year after year the American people have openly acclaimed him as one of their most honored and trusted citizens; his personal integrity is universally acknowledged. He preaches the Gospel to vast audiences with simplicity, clarity, humility, and great faithfulness. Across the years he has matured in spiritual insight and in his perception of the complexities of the needy world about him. For a generation, he has proved himself to be God’s man for our time.
Thank you, Billy, for what you are and for all you mean to each of us. God bless you real good.
