Franklin Graham Interview: Icons of Faith Series

we had a family reunion this summon all of our grandchildren came home no it was one of the most wonderful wildest times I have a song when I'd get tired I'd say oh I've got to go back to study a few minutes not go back and lie down to do minutes and then come back some more but you know I love those children it was great I've had this home for many years and I've had a wonderful family that you all has given me and my wife and nothing back over the years I'm in a state of gratefulness welcome Franklin back to harvest welcome when you look at that old archival footage that was a pretty cool little motorbike you had there by the way what what were you writing I had saved up Gregg all for two years my parents went buy it for me and it's called a little by a company called rub out of Mansfield Ohio and I remember the day that it arrived after I had worked two years for it that was a big big day in my life when you look back at those old videos that what comes to mind is it sort of like going back in time to you were those days that does that make you sad happy a mixture of both of those emotions no I think you're great just thankful it was just thankful for the home that I was raised in for the parents godly parents that love God that shared not only Christ in the home but they lived it the the Ruth and Billy Graham that the world saw on television they weren't different people at home it was the same people and so I'm just thankful don't look at those little pictures you know many people your father Billy is like a larger-than-life figure would he ever come into your room in the middle of the night and say something like do you of hope or something like that with that every happened you know he gave us a lot of space I can't ever remember my father coming into my bedroom you know he just figured that was my room that was my space and my mother that's different yeah but daddy I can't ever remember a time where he came in there he was on the road a lot listening and he was gone quite at one time Gregg he was gone to Australia for six months and you know people would say well how how could somebody do that well you have to remember after the Second World War when we had soldiers that had been gone for three and four years fighting and defending to our freedom and my father was just starting his ministry he thought well how could we go halfway around the world and just go for two weeks he felt that they were being a bad steward of the Lord's resources so then now you know if he had to do it over again he wouldn't do that - back then under those circumstances he thought the right things I've Exeter didn't say I think in an interview with Greta Van Susteren if he could change anything he would probably spend you know more time with this family he would spend more time studying and less time speaking not preaching he would get invitations all the time you know to come dedicate this or go speak at that and he wishes now he had not done all of that let's go back to that photo that they just had up there you see that photo there you see your expression you still have that expression today in this expression of Franklin this is when he's about to do something naughty he's gonna say something or do something you really haven't changed that much well thanks we've known each other a long time okay so Christmas in the graham Holmes Oh what was it like would you get up in the morning would you open the presents in the morning would you open him Christmas Eve how did it work there no we would Christmas Eve we were of course so my father would read the Christmas story Allie did every year he would wait every year then Christmas morning we would have time of Prayer and before we'd open up in again we had normally open up we'd have not my mother loved Christmas then she got a big kick out of this so the house was always decorated to the hilt we had the stockings and I remember one year I got ashes and switches in mind you got what ashes and switches ashes and switches so then then why didn't you receive such a gift because I deserved them kind of coming back to that expression it's you were kind of a a little you're a troublemaking little boy weren't you well I don't know if I was troublemaking I had three older sisters that just brought it running from the cops in your car so the gate would shut behind you that's troublemaking well that was a long time so looks like your dad's giving you a little talking - no that's your brother Ned he's talking to and and then there you are holding the football listening in you know it's funny your boys look so much like you look of course and that Gramm resemblance goes right through the family okay so he would read the Christmas story to you what kind of a meal would you guys have like what did Christmas dinner in the Graham home for at that time well my mother was born in China her parents were were missionaries to China he was a missionary surgeon and somewhere along the way they developed a I don't know why they did this boy stur stew for Christmas morning I mean I don't like oyster stew period and and and having it for breakfast so my mother would have this oyster stew nobody ate it my father ate it because he had to we just rolled up our noses and their butt for lunch you know it was the turkey and ham yeah and all that kind of stuff but that oyster stew business so if for interview families out there that want to try something different have oysters do this crystal so just see how well it goes over good tip so what was your favorite Christmas gift you received as a child well you know we lived in a rural area so our gifts were probably a little unconventional we usually got a gun for Christmas and you know we'd go out in the backyard and shoot at squirrels and those kinds of things so that was kind of Christmas at the gram yeah so as you grew older you did every time of rebellion we've mentioned and you did make a commitment to Christ to follow him and you took over an organization called Samaritan's Purse that was started by Bob Pierce and the ministry began to grow but did you have sort of an apprehension about being a preacher because your father's such a noted preacher did you want to maybe run this organization and not be a guy who preached the gospel or were you comfortable getting up there and preaching right away no I never felt in those early days that God was calling me to preach Greg because why would I want to put myself in a situation where I'd be compared to my father I could never be Billy Graham and so why even be in that position so I was comfortable running samaritans person and doing the work and listen our desire has always been to lead people to Christ but to stand up on a stage or platform and preach the gospel and give an invitation I didn't feel that calling really until about oh I guess is about 20-some years ago yeah and then I just felt this was something God was calling me to do and if that disappointed somebody or Foe if I didn't measure up in their eyes as tough you know if I was going to preach the gospel because I believe the gospel is the power of God unto salvation to everyone who believes and so I wasn't trying to be my father wasn't trying to to imitate him it's just simply preaching the gospel because it's God's Word and it's his gospel what would you say in a nutshell is the gospel define the gospel well that God loves us and that he sent his son from heaven to this earth to take our sins that he died and shed his blood for our sins on Calvary's cross he was buried for our sins and God raised him to life the third day and he will come into your heart if you're willing to accept I'm entrusting by faith that's the gospel you know one of the things I appreciate you about you Franklin is not only do you preach the gospel but as we collect these boxes this is an evangelistic ministry you know there are relief agencies out there humanitarian organizations then there are even Christian humanitarian organizations that maybe they do it in the name of Christ but they don't necessarily present Christ I in their work that they do but what I like about Samaritan's Purse is you are a great humanitarian organization you provide relief for people all around the world but always with a view to bring the gospel and I think that's because you're called as an evangelist and that's so important isn't it Greg we can give gifts to children all day long and put a smile on their face and what have you done for them but when you can give a gift and we ask people when you pack a box to pray for the box and you just pray for the boxes that are coming tonight but we also ask people put your picture in there yeah and put your address on the back we want not only to pray for the children we want the children who get that box to see who gave the box and if they can to write back and Greg we had a first time that I know of that happened just about three weeks ago in our office a young couple came and to give some boxes and these boxes had been collected on their their wedding day this little boy Tyler seven years of age from Idaho had packed a shoebox 20 years ago and thought that the gift would bring a lot of joy to somebody's life and a little girl in the Philippines got this box and in in the box was this picture of Tyler he had a cowboy shirt on he had his little lariat and seven-year-old boy from Idaho from a from a little small ranch and on the back was the address so she rode him but he never got the letter about ten years later she thought I'm gonna try a Facebook and a lot of Tyler's came up but only one from Idaho and but now that picture that look like in course he's much older well she has to be his friend and the next day he got this Facebook page of some girl in the Philippines that wanted to be his friend and clicked on and it was him and they began to have a relationship on Facebook and they had a lot of things in common they love music and the other things and so he saved up his money and he went to go visitor and they fell in love and they are now married so I think that's the first time we've had children adopted Greg we've had there are hundreds and hundreds of thousands of kids every year come to faith in Christ but I think this is the first couple that a boxplot the governance first matchmaking a new ministry it's a god deal I'm not yeah I'm not that smart it's amazing so the exchange photos as little children ended up meeting each other as adults another Mary well he said that the joy that he hoped that that box would give to a child he never dreamed that that joy it would be coming back to you in that great yeah it's not something so you know when we tell the people put a photo of yourself inside of the box I mean this Willie can make a difference and you've had many children come to Christ haven't you with this girl who got the box yeah from Tyler because of that gift she came to faith in Christ yeah her father came to faith in Christ and then later became a pastor Wow so wow that's an animal she wanted this boy to know what what God had done for her and her family she wanted her to know the changes that had that had made in their life but Greg this year we have every every box that we give out we have a discipleship program that we offer to the churches that help us around the world we in a hundred ten two different countries and we have these leadership teams in every country and we offer a discipleship program is called the greatest journey the first year we had about this was three years we've been doing it the first year we had about eight hundred thousand this past year we had like 1.3 million this year we'll have 2.3 million kids in discipleship program around the world it's a 12-week discipleship program we trained the teachers we have a workbook and then the kids have to memorize Scripture they have to say the scripture before their pastor they have a little graduation ceremony and then everyone that graduates we give a Bible too but I want to raise up another generation an army of evangelists who are kids young kids who are willing to share their faith with with other children and that's that's what we're trying to do that's amazing you know in the Christmas season with so many people busy you know the opportunities will come to share the gospel you know a family gathering if you're at the Christian in the family sometimes people will say well why don't you do the prayer whatever you know you've had all these opportunities to share the gospel everything from news programs to meeting with you know prime ministers and and dictators sometimes you've been in a lot of amazing situations do you Franklin Graham ever get intimidated by cows it's kinda hard to bring the gospel up or do you always just have this kind of boldness and you're ready to go with it no I think there are times you do get intimidated and of course the devil wants you to get into so what do you do when you're intimidated well first I thought normally you get intimidated when you haven't prayed enough yeah where if someone kind of catches you off-guard yeah and then all of a sudden they're there in your face yeah and they're being combative well I don't believe in your God and and you know how could you believe in a God that kills people and then all of a sudden you find yourself a little bit on the defensive but Greg it's it's it's before you ever go on a program anytime yeah I always just pray lord help me because I can't do this on my own so I just it's a prayer just help me and if I can lift up your son tonight or today then father help me to lift up your son and that's just been a prayer of mine all my life and and God always gives opportunity he does and you always do a great job if you've ever seen Franklin out there this guy is fearless he's as bold as a lion and he shares the gospel and we're appreciative of that your ministry and of your life and of course of your family and and now so your father of course is getting on in years but he's still walking with the Lord he's looking forward to going to heaven you've been preaching the gospel for years and your son will who we had out know long ago is also out there preaching the gospel and doing a fantastic job so well great we're again we're grateful to the friendship of harvest and the quarter of a million boxes that have come through harvest every bump every box is needed because every box gives us an opportunity to touch a child and to touch a child somewhere in the world in the name of Jesus Christ so again thank you for these gifts thank you for your support lessor we're happy to do it well we have a special friend now now it's our we're thrilled to do it

Channel: Pastor Greg Laurie

Views: 27,837

Rating: 4.855319 out of 5

Keywords: harvest, greg, laurie, Billy Graham (Organization Founder), franklin graham sermons, franklin graham, billy graham’s son rev. franklin, rev. franklin graham, billy graham dies 2018, billy graham, jesus christ

Id: _-ChwdC_BIw

Length: 16min 3sec (963 seconds)

Published: Mon Nov 24 2014