BILLY GRAHAM THE MAKING OF AN EVANGELIST
BILLY GRAHAM: THE MAKING OF AN EVANGELIST You may have heard of Billy Graham Evangelistic Association and it’s founder Billy Graham. ... But, how did Billy Graham end up becoming an evangelist? ... Many events and people influenced Billy Graham as he grew. Billy Graham’s life on his dad’s farm helped to shape the kind of person he would become, as did the colleges he attended. ... Life on the farm helped Billy Graham develop the kind of character that would help him in his future calling. Billy Graham was born on November 7, 1918 in Charlotte, North Carolina.# Billy’s parents owned a farm and all the children were expected to help out with the chores at a young age. Billy’s chores included feeding the chickens and goats, milking the cows in the morning and again in the afternoon. ... Sometimes young Billy had to also help in his mother’s garden. Even as Billy went through school he continued to help with his chores. ... ”# When Billy Graham was younger one of his favorite pastimes was reading. One of Billy Graham’s favorite books was the Tarzan series. ... ” (Billy Graham’s sister. ... When Billy was ten, she made him read and memorize the Westminster (Presbyterian) Shorter Catechism. ... ”# As Billy got older his pastime switched to baseball, it was also his favorite game. A good thing that came from milking cows was a strong grip that helped Billy with baseball. Although Billy was not a great hitter, he liked when he hit the ball and heard the whack. ... When Babe Ruth came to Charlotte Billy’s father took him to go see Babe Ruth play. ... “And the day came that Billy saw Babe Ruth swing a monstrous bat and blur a baseball into the heavens over Charlotte. ... ‘ Hi ya kid,’ rumbled the Babe as he roughed up Billy’s hair.”# People in Billy’s life also had a big influence on him. Every Saturday Billy’s father usually drove him and his Sister Catherine to his Grandma Coffey’s farm, eight miles away. ... When Billy’s grandmother died her death seemed to connect him to God. ... “Billy knew Jesus and heaven were real. ... ”# In Charlotte, of 1934, an evangelist by the name of Dr. ... Billy was upset by that and went to the revival himself. As Billy walked into the tabernacle, where the meeting was being held, he was amazed. ... Mordecai preached he seemed to be speaking directly at Billy as he bellowed out, “You are a sinner!” Although Billy did not respond the first night he did keep going back to the meetings again and again. Billy even joined the choir for the revival.