The seventh stop of the Decision America Tar Heel State Tour was held October 12 at the PNC Music Pavilion, just a half hour up the road from Billy Graham's birthplace of Charlotte, North Carolina.
Billy Graham accepted Christ while attending a revival in Charlotte in 1934. He then spent the next seven-plus decades sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ with millions worldwide. His son Franklin Graham, also an evangelist, continues that legacy. His most recent outreach focused on his home state of North Carolina with the Tar Heel State Tour.
"Do you have hope?" Franklin Graham asked the crowd of more than 4,300 in Charlotte. He then shared the Bible story from Mark 10:46-52 of how Jesus healed Bartimaeus, the blind beggar. "Jesus stops in His tracks [to heal Bartimaeus], and that’s what He’ll do for you tonight."
Many took advantage of the PNC Music Pavilion's covered seating, a bit of shaded relief from the beautiful, yet unseasonably warm October day.
Guitar virtuoso Dennis Agajanian, the first to take the stage, led the crowd in several songs.
"There's no other road to God but through Jesus Christ," Franklin Graham said, referencing John 14:6. "There's lots of religions, but there's only one Gospel. Lots of religions, but only one Jesus Christ."
At the beginning of his message, Franklin Graham asked the crowd to join him in praying for the United States of America and its elected leaders. The entire venue was filled with chatter as people rose to their feet and talked with God together.
Franklin Graham met with the media prior to Saturday's stop in Charlotte. Reporters asked if the evangelical rallies would be political, and Graham assured them his only agenda was to share the Good News of Jesus Christ.
Many professional sports teams call Charlotte home, including the Panthers (NFL), Hornets (NBA) and many NASCAR teams. On this particular Saturday, NHRA engines—competing at nearby zMax Dragway—sometimes roared during a quiet moment. Franklin Graham cautioned people to keep these entertainment sports from becoming idols in their own lives. "They can become gods in our life that we look up to and follow and emulate and imitate," Graham said.
"Every word of the Bible is true," Franklin Graham said to a chorus of "Amens" on Saturday. "I don’t understand it all, but I believe it all. It’s God’s Word cover to cover."
"We're all guilty because we are all born into sin," Franklin Graham said, referencing Romans 3:23. "God loves you. But God hates sin."
The Billy Graham Rapid Response Team has attended every stop on the Tar Heel State Tour and will be at the final one this Sunday in Asheville, North Carolina. Crisis-trained chaplains are honored to talk and pray with people at each venue.
"Before I gave my life to Jesus, I was like a dead man walking," Jeremy Camp shared with the crowd that filled in many of the seats at the amphitheater. "But He breathed life into me and gave me new life. Thank you, Jesus."
Many in attendance sang and even danced along as Jeremy Camp led worship.
"No matter what you’re going through tonight, He is big enough. Amen?" Jeremy Camp said before encouraging the crowd to join hands and sing his hit song "Overcome."
Hundreds stood to declare their faith in Jesus Christ and prayed aloud with Franklin Graham following his message. Do you know the peace that only a relationship with Jesus Christ can bring?
Prayer counselors, many employees from the nearby Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, spent time talking and praying with people who made decisions for Jesus Christ on Saturday.
Join us in praising God as many have made decisions for Christ during the first seven stops of the Tar Heel State Tour. Please continue to pray these new and rededicated believers would find solid Bible teaching and a faith family through a local church.
The Decision America Tar Heel State Tour wraps up in Asheville, North Carolina, near Franklin Graham's home.
