Just as I am, without one plea,
But that Thy blood was shed for me,
And that Thou bid’s me come to Thee,
O Lamb of God, I come! I come!

The words of this song still to this day send shock waves in my soul. As a boy, my Mom would watch Billy Graham’s crusades on TV. Although I didn’t understand most of the teaching, there was something about his words which impacted my spirit. To this day I can still remember responding quietly to myself to the alter calls. Many years later I took some time to read Billy Graham’s autobiography and did a more in-depth study of his life. What an amazing man of God! There is something about studying someone’s life which helps to make things more personal, even though I’ve never met him face to face. Kind of like reading and studying the Bible — the more you spend time in it, the more personal God becomes in your life.

Jesus once said, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to look at the culture and see the opposite. Culture says you need to scratch, back bite and ram your way to the top, but Jesus is telling us to become a servant. Billy (he always wanted people to call him by his first name) lived a life of being a servant. The many sacrifices he made, and the incredible integrity he displayed, earned him, in my opinion, the status of a patriarch, which is why thousands and thousands of people are mourning his passing.

Some would say, you can never replace a man such as Billy Graham. This is true. Billy had a unique style and an anointing which cannot be replaced. Those of us who were impacted by his preaching and teaching are sad to see him go, but we know that this is how life is on this earth. Many of us are not called to impact the nations with the same calling as Billy, but nonetheless, we are called to impact the lives of those around us. Over the past 30 plus years of being a Christian, there were countless of people who have impacted my life. So the question stands — who are the lives we are impacting?

I don’t know about you, but I have to remind myself, that just because these great men and women go home to be with our Lord, the cause of Christ and the Kingdom of God does not stop advancing. Another way to put it is, we have to be careful not to put our hope in men and women with regards to the advancement of God’s kingdom. No, you cannot replace a man like Billy Graham, but my hearts cry is that God would raise up millions more like him to bring the salvation message to those who are lost. The same goes for Oral Roberts, may God raise up millions more to display the signs and wonders of healing of our God.

Although I mourn the loss of a great man, my hope remains, knowing that one day I will see him again, and I look forward with great excitement to more patriarchs like him, yes even those who have not been born yet. Thank you Billy Graham for bringing the message of salvation to millions, and for impacting my life.