Prayer Journal

Ever since I became a Christian in 1990 I have been a huge admirer of Billy Graham. I would record his crusades on TV and eventually developed quite a collection of broadcasts. (a number of them are actually on Beta tapes rather than VHS, so that tells you something!)

In 1997, the year I got married, I read Billy Graham’s amazing autobiography, Just As I Am. I still consider it one of the most enjoyable books I have ever read.

As age has caught up with him, Billy has made very few public appearances in recent years. A couple of months ago however, he granted an interview on Fox News. At age 92 you can see why he has made very few public events, however he is still very much of sound mind and thought. (you can watch part of the actual interview here)

One of the questions that he was asked was “If you could do it all over again, would you do anything differently?”

Billy’s response was remarkable:

I would study more, pray more, travel less, take less speaking engagements. If I had it to do over again, I’d spend more time in meditation and prayer and telling the Lord how much I love him and adore him and looking forward to the time we are going to spend together for eternity.  -Billy Graham

There simply has never been another person who has proclaimed the gospel of Jesus Christ to more people around the world than Billy Graham. A strong case could be made that more people have come to faith in Christ through Billy Graham’s ministry than any other human being in history. And yet, in the final years of his life, as he reflects back, he wishes that he had spent more time in prayer and worship.

The significance of this statement simply cannot be overstated. Our time in this life is a non-renewable resource. Once it is gone, we can never get it back. Money is renewable; friendships and relationships are renewable. Time is not. King David had a revelation of this vital fact:

Show me, O Lord, my life’s end and the number of my days; let me know how fleeting is my life.  -Ps. 39:4

Many people in the Body of Christ place their primary emphasis on doing things for God, to minister and advance the Kingdom of God. I think we need to give serious consideration and reflection to what Billy Graham is saying: the longing of his heart, as he moves through his final years of this life, is to spend time in ‘meditation and prayer and telling the Lord how much I love him and adore him…”. His desire is that he had a life that was spent that was filled with extended times of prayer and worship!

Take a few moments and give that some thought and let it sink in.

In my next post I am going to spend more time talking about this topic and the implications for us today, so stay tuned!

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