The Passing of Ruth Bell Graham

It is with great sadness that I read about the passing of Ruth Bell Graham very recently (June 14, 2007). For those of you who don't know who she is, she was the late wife of evangelist Billy Graham, for whom I have the utmost respect, and whose books and sermons were instrumental in the initial and ongoing growth of my Christian life (I have most of his books). Billy Graham is one of those people who is respected inside and outside of Christian evangelical circles. The reason for that is simple. He preaches the same, unfiltered, not-watered-down, straightforward gospel message, and has maintained a consistent lifestyle inside and outside of the spotlight. He has never been in any scandals, and lives a humble life, serving the Lord in all he does. Many of today's Christian leaders, who seem to focus more on style, rather than substance, can take a lesson on humble leadership from Billy Graham.

However, I strongly believe that Mr. Graham did not exemplify such a life alone, and while God certainly had much to do with putting the conviction and gifts into Mr. Graham, I also believe that God puts others in one's life in order to stir up or influence onself. As a guy who has been almost married for 10 years, I can tell you up-front that my wife has had a tremendous influence on me. I no doubt believe that Ruth Graham Bell had heavy influence on Billy Graham - in fact, if you read their biographies, it will become very evident. Remember, Billy Graham was on the road a lot for preaching engagements and speaking tours and holding evangelistic crusades. Ruth Graham was instrumental in raising their kids to be godly people and make a difference in the world, which they have done and continue to do through their own kids (look at how Will Graham, Franklin's son, is now carrying the torch for speaking to youth crowds and such). My wife was able to see Anne Graham live last year, when she came to Toronto, and was very encouraged by the message (I also heard Anne Graham on CFRB as a guest of agnostic host John Moore, as well as on several local Toronto secular programs. She continued the Graham family's tradition of simply stating the gospel message, no additives or preservatives added). If you ever hear Anne Graham Lotz speak, you'll hear the affection and utter respect she has for her mother, who simply and humbly raised her kids to love and serve God without distraction. If you hear Franklin speak, or read any of Franklin Graham's books, you'll also see that he owes a tremendous debt of gratitude to his mother for passing along Biblical wisdom and living a consistent godly life, to him.

Mrs. Graham was also extremely knowledgeable in her Bible, and that made her a well respected resource for others who had questions, and such - I read excerpts from some of her writings about 10-15 years ago and you can just tell that she knows her Bible very well. Still, despite her knowledge and devotion to God, it never got to her head, and she wasn't trumpeting to be an evangelical feminist or anything like that. Nor did it distract her from the real business of practising what you preach. I read one time a few years back that Billy Graham almost always ran all of his sermons by her to get her input and would implement suggestions by her. I really believe that without Ruth Graham, there would be no Billy Graham, in terms of the well-respected preacher that he is today (even though he is more or less retired from the preaching circuit).

I found it particularly interesting that the casket in which Mrs. Graham was laid to rest, was built by prisoners (in prison for life) at a state prison. These prisoners had become believers over time and built the casket as a token of their respect and adoration of Mrs. Graham.