Billy Graham’s son brings message of transformation to Monroe

MONROE — A son of the late Rev. Billy Graham made a stop in Monroe on Monday night, the last destination on his seven-city Decision America Pacific Northwest tour. During the two-week swing through Oregon and Washington, Franklin Graham wanted people across the Pacific Northwest to join him in prayer to ask God for a spiritual transformation in America, he said in a news release. “We need a spiritual revival; we need an awakening across this country,” said Graham, president of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association and the international Christian relief organization Samaritan’s Purse. “America is in trouble and needs prayer more than ever.” Billy Graham was one of the nation’s most prominent American evangelists. He spent decades on television, and he hosted annual crusades from 1947 until his retirement in 2005. Billy Graham, who died in February at the age of 99, provided spiritual counsel for every president from Harry S. Truman to Barack Obama. In a 16-second video clip posted Monday, Franklin Graham encouraged people to attend the Monroe event. “I’m going to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ,” he said. “And if you don’t know that your sins have been forgiven, if you don’t know, you might come … to make sure.” The events were free and open to anyone. Event organizers often work ahead of time with local churches, which encourage their members to go and to invite friends. A weekend stop in Tacoma drew 7,100 people. Before it began, Franklin Graham said the tour was about calling the lost to repentance and faith and praying together with believers for their families, churches, and communities. His Decision America Tour made headlines in 2016 when he visited all 50 U.S. state capitals.