Thirty years ago this month, the small island of Puerto Rico was preparing to host the world. As Billy Graham preached during the Greater Puerto Rico Billy Graham Crusade, technicians and interpreters worked busily in an arena near the Crusade stadium to create programs that would be transmitted around the world as part of an effort titled “Global Mission.” Interpreters provided live translations of Billy Graham’s sermon into 48 languages. Technicians in edit suites combined these translations with Crusade footage and prerecorded segments to create program packages unique to specific languages and cultures. These packages were then transmitted via satellites to 185 countries and territories around the world.

Writing in his autobiography, Billy Graham recalled:

“Thousands of places around the world were set up to receive the telecasts through small, inexpensive satellite dishes or by means of videotape … Settings ranged from theaters and sports palaces in the former Soviet Union to the refugee camps of Rwanda and the rain forests of French Guiana.”

Those who worked alongside Billy Graham knew that this massive undertaking required an equally massive commitment to prayer. In December 1994, Robert Williams, who was the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association’s (BGEA) Director of International Ministries at that time, wrote to BGEA staff and Global Mission coordinators, urging them to join together in prayer for the upcoming event. They responded to this plea with outpourings of faith and encouragement. Close associates such as Cliff Barrows, T. W. Wilson, and Roy Gustafson joined with BGEA employees and Global Missions coordinators from countries as far apart as Ethiopia and the Netherlands, committing to pray for Billy Graham and his upcoming mission to the world.

Williams compiled these responses in a notebook shared with Billy and Ruth Graham to encourage them as they prepared for Global Mission. He wrote to Billy Graham in January 1995:

“Enclosed is a sample of the letter that I wrote and a sampling of the people who have responded. Some of the letters are addressed to you and some to me, but all are covenanting to pray daily for you and your ministry from San Juan to the world. I stand with them in my pledge to you to ‘lift up the prophet’s arms.’ Add to these letters the one and one-half million Christians who have been trained over the last six months and who are praying and the millions more in churches world-wide who are being called to prayer – I believe that when you step into the pulpit to preach in San Juan on March 14, you will be the most prayed for man on earth.”

By the end of the Crusade, over 175,000 Puerto Ricans had attended, with 4,652 of them making decisions for Christ. The global impact of the Crusade was immeasurable, but reports poured in from believers around the world, sharing stories of how the Gospel was transforming lives through Global Mission. The South African meetings reported a million attendees with 50,000 indicated decisions for Christ. At meetings in Kazakhstan, 2,000 out of 3,900 attendees responded to Billy Graham’s recorded message, an inquirer percentage higher than any recorded during a traditional Crusade.

Regardless of the size of the crowds or the number of inquirers, Billy Graham faithfully maintained that the salvation of even a single soul was precious in the sight of God. And so, in the middle of the excitement and busyness of this Global Mission, Billy and Ruth Graham paused to celebrate the baptism of their grandson, Will. Family friends Skip and Lenya Heitzig and Greg and Cathe Laurie joined in this special moment, witnessing as Franklin Graham baptized his son.

In a quiet moment of prayer and celebration, three generations of Grahams rejoiced in the message that Billy Graham had proclaimed to millions – that “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.” (1 Timothy 1:15, NKJV)