Billy Graham is planning to preach publicly one last time–and he wants to do it in homes across the country.
This fall, the Billy Graham Evangelistic Assocation (BGEA) will launch “My Hope America with Billy Graham,” a video evangelism course that “combines the impact of video programs with the power of personal relationships.” The series will allow churchgoers to host small groups and view videos culled from messages that Graham has recorded throughout his career.
But Graham says he is currently taping a message specifically for the My Hope series, and the BGEA is framing the video as Graham’s last public event. In a standing column on the BGEA website entitled “Billy Graham’s My Answer,” a reader recently asked, “I heard the other day that you were planning to preach one more time before God takes you to heaven. Is that true?”
Graham responded: “Yes, it is true.”
But although “My Hope” could signal the end of his public ministry, Graham plans to finish well, stating that the “My Hope” campaign “may be the biggest crusade we’ve ever held.”
And that’s saying something, considering the numbers from Graham’s New York City crusade in 2005: It took “$6.8 million, 20 languages, 1,424 churches, 81 denominations, 6,000 volunteer counselors, 93 acres, … 70,000 chairs, 43 preparation seminars, [and] 30 paid staff” to pull off.
Graham, who founded CT, is known as the “evangelist of our time” and has been in ministry for more than 60 years.
