Franklin Graham asked Americans to pray for the situation in North Korea Friday night during a CNN interview. “It’s gotten very dangerous,” he said.
Appearing on CNN Friday night, BGEA President and CEO Franklin Graham expressed his concern about the increasing tension between North Korea and the United States. “Pray for our president, that God would give him wisdom,” Graham said. “I believe this could be the greatest crisis he could face in his presidency.”
Just one day after the North Korean state news agency released photos of the country’s leader, Kim Jong-un, reviewing what the agency called plans to strike the U.S., Graham called the tension on the Korean peninsula “very dangerous.”
“This is the most dangerous real estate in the world,” he said. “Somebody could shoot a gun by accident across the DMZ and start a war.”
“If you don’t ratchet it down,” he added, “I’m afraid of what could happen.”
Franklin Graham has made several trips to North Korea, delivering resources to help with the food shortage crisis through his international relief organization, Samaritan’s Purse. His family has a long history with North Korea. Franklin’s father, Billy Graham, visited the nation in 1992 and 1994, and his mother, Ruth Bell Graham, returned in 1997 after attending high school in Pyongyang in the 1930s.
“Like everywhere else in the world, we saw a spiritual hunger and emptiness among many people in North Korea—a hunger that can only be filled by God Himself,” Graham said after one visit. “Their greatest need is Christ. We know God’s heart of compassion, ‘not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance’ (2 Peter 3:9).
“God loves the people of this nation as much as He loves you or me. Please pray with us that God would open doors to reach lost souls in lands that seem so inaccessible to the Gospel.”
More stories and videos about Franklin Graham’s relationship with North Korea:
Emergency Relief Headed to North Korea »
Samaritan’s Purse sent more than 90 tons of emergency relief supplies to help severely flooded areas of North Korea, building on long-standing relationships first formed by Billy Graham in the early 1990s
Frankin Graham has gone where few have traveled before – and he took the “eyes of the world” along with him. Franklin Graham’s July 31-Aug. 3, 2008 trip to the DPRK generated extensive media coverage.
Personal Reflections on the DPRK »
Franklin Graham shares personal reflections from his recent visit to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.
Sharing the Good News in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea »
As a fitting conclusion to his historic four-day trip to the DPRK, Rev. Franklin Graham boldly proclaimed the Gospel of Jesus Christ at Bongsu Protestant Church.
Follow Franklin Graham’s Footsteps through the DPRK »
Continuing his historic four-day visit, today Rev. Franklin Graham spoke with Kim Yong Dae, the vice president of Supreme People’s Assembly.
The Graham Family Legacy in the DPRK: A Look Back »
While Franklin Graham’s visit to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) was historic, he is not the first member of his family to visit the Asian nation.
Emergency Airlift to the DPRK »
The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, through its World Emergency Fund, is joining with Samaritan’s Purse in a historic airlift to deliver $8 million worth of emergency supplies to flood victims in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK).
