With a population of approximately 40,000, Hickory is the smallest city on the Decision America Tar Heel State Tour. While its size doesn’t compare to other North Carolina cities like Raleigh and Charlotte, residents were no less passionate for Franklin Graham’s stop in their region.
People lined up hours before the Thursday event started to get a good seat.
An estimated 9,200 people filled L.P. Frans Memorial Stadium, breaking the baseball stadium’s previous attendance record of 5,200.
A woman from Boone and her three children eagerly waited for the event to begin. Nearby, another young mom said, “We’ve never seen traffic this bad.” Instead of being annoyed by the extra cars on the road, she was excited to see such a good turnout for a Christ-centered event.
While Franklin Graham has been on the road since October 1, he shared the Gospel message with energy and urgency in Hickory—the sixth stop of the Tar Heel State Tour.
For the hardworking residents of this city, the midweek event was a refreshing opportunity to take a break from the busyness of life and focus on Christ.
Joining Franklin Graham during the outreach in his home state is Dennis Agajanian, his longtime friend and a talented guitarist.
“When God’s people come together and lift up the name of Jesus, there’s power in that,” said Jeremy Camp. The singer-songwriter has been another staple on the eight-city tour.
The voices of thousands united in singing praises to God.
Franklin Graham connected with those in the audience as a fellow North Carolina native, and he urged them to live out their faith beyond church walls.
After sharing the steps to peace with God, the evangelist gave those listening the opportunity to respond. “Jesus took a stand for you when He went to that cross,” he said. “That’s why I’m asking you to take a stand for Him.”
Think back to the time when you surrendered your life to Christ. That’s the joy many experienced Thursday night.
Franklin Graham followed up this Tar Heel State Tour stop by preaching in Charlotte on Saturday. He will conclude the tour on Sunday in Asheville. Please pray God continues to convict hearts across North Carolina.
