On Saturday, we bumped into Peter Furler, lead singer for the Newsboys, right before the band went onstage at the Franklin Graham Lowcountry Festival. Want to know who his heroes are? Read on!
Q: You just left a birthday wish for Billy Graham. Can you tell our readers a little about what he means to you and what kind of influence he may have had on your life?
Furler: You can probably tell that I have a Southern accent, but it’s the Deep South! It’s not the Carolinas; it’s Australia. Billy Graham was down there I believe it was in the ’60s and had a massive impact.
I believe personally, I am some of the fruit of that. Many of my friends, their fathers came to know the Lord and, in turn, led us to the Lord. Years later, you see now here we are missionaries back to the United States of America spreading the same Gospel.
Q: You mentioned being a missionary. Do you view an event like this as an outreach? Why are you here at the Franklin Graham Festival?
Furler: Obviously, being musicians, we are here to support. We’ll play our songs, songs we have written, that encourage and bless people – and bless God. A night like tonight is so important because we believe in the Billy Graham Association.
We believe in Franklin. I love what he is doing, and any way that we could support it, we would and see people come to the knowledge of the saving power of Jesus Christ. There is no greater opportunity for us than that.
Q: You mentioned heroes earlier. Who are some of your heroes?
Furler: I have traveled around the world. I’ve played in Marakkesh, Morrocco and in Israel. I’ve played in front of kings. I’ve met the rock stars, met the sports stars.
To me a hero is somebody who stays strong, who runs that race with perseverance, that great goal of the life of faith in Jesus. So, really, my father is a hero to me; he is somebody who still is a missionary today. My mother. My wife is a hero to me.
And Billy Graham is a hero without a doubt. He’s somebody, when I think about what I am doing, and I think about how the Bible says we are not to grow tired or weary in doing good. Well, sometimes we do grow tired and weary – he is someone, like a milestone, that I look to and go, “It can be done.” So that’s what a hero is, isn’t it?
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