Billy Graham Quotes - Page 16

Prayer is powerful, but if our prayers are aimless, meaningless, and mingled with doubt, they will be of little hope to us.

When you are unsure whether or not something is wrong, ask yourself these questions: Does this glorify God? Can I offer a prayer of thanksgiving for it? Does it draw me closer to Christ, or does it make me preoccupied with this world? Will it harm my health or hurt me in some other way? Will it cause someone else to stumble spiritually or morally? I have never forgotten what a wise Christian said to me many years ago: “When in doubt—don’t!

Researchers have found that peer pressure exerted within a clique has caused every one of its members to experiment with drugs, to engage in murderous gang fights, to steal autos, and to violate the seventh commandment.

Only Christ can meet the deepest needs of our world and our hearts. Christ alone can bring lasting peace—peace with God, peace among men and nations, and peace within our hearts. He transcends the political and social boundaries of our world.

Throughout the world today there are people who are enduring cruelties and persecution because of their Christian faith. We must pray for them, and for ourselves, so that in our own dying hour God will give us grace to endure until the end, anticipating the certainty of His glory to come.

Obedience is the master key to effectual prayer.

The Christian life isn’t a playground but a battlefield.

The best way to pray is to open the Bible and pray Scripture back to the Lord, claiming His promises and asking that He strengthen and guide [us] in obeying His Word.

[As a young man] I sought thrills! I found them in Christ. I looked for something that would bring perfect joy! I found it in Christ. I looked for something that would bring pleasure and that would satisfy the deepest longing of my heart! I found it in Christ. And my life has never been the same.

Every area of our lives is to be under the Lordship of Jesus Christ. And that means the searchlight of God’s Word must penetrate every corner of our lives.

The world thinks peace would come if everyone made a lot of money, but people haven’t found peace in possessions. They have thought the world would have peace if all arms were destroyed. Yet Cain killed Abel without a handgun. It is man’s heart that is the problem.

The evangelist cannot bring conviction of sin, righteousness, or judgment; that is the Spirit’s work. They cannot convert anyone; that is the Spirit’s work.

The wheels of [God’s] mercy and justice move quietly and silently, but they do move.

The ground is level at the foot of the cross.

Only God can thwart the plans of Satan and his legions.

Psalms teaches us how to relate to God, and Proverbs teaches us how to relate to others.

By faith I accepted Him for what He claimed to be, the Son of the Living God. That simple decision changed my life—and I have seen it change the lives of countless others across the world.

Only God knows when the alarm will sound, ending the work and ministry of evangelism as we have known it.

People from all walks of life are searching for answers to life’s problems. I believe the Bible has the answer to man’s deepest needs.

Sometimes I feel so helpless and inadequate, and wonder if I have done enough to make the Gospel clear. But I also know that only the Holy Spirit can open others’ eyes to the truth.

Man himself is helpless to detach himself from the gnawing guilt of a heart weighed down with the guilt of sin. But where man has failed, God has succeeded.

Some of the most miserable people I have ever met have been people who are very popular with the public, but down inside are empty and miserable.

[God] created us free to choose how we would live . . . but leaves us free to pursue our own ends with tragic, natural consequences.

God measures people by the small dimensions of humility and not by the bigness of their achievements or the size of their capabilities.

Astrology can never give you the answers to life’s deepest questions—especially where you will spend eternity. Commit your life to Christ. It will give you joyous confidence that your future is securely in His hands—tomorrow and forever.

God longs for men to be saved. God is at work to get men to stop their downward plunge in sin.

The church isn’t just a particular building or congregation but the spiritual fellowship of all who belong to Jesus Christ. If we belong to Christ, we also belong to each other.

A marriage based only on physical attraction or romantic emotions is almost certainly doomed to failure right from the start.

I don’t think people can live without hope. What oxygen is to the lungs, hope is to our survival in this world. And the Bible is filled with hope.

Nations and civilizations rise, flourish for a time, and then decay. Eventually each comes to an end. This, because of sin, is the decree of history and the way of life on this planet.

When our minds are on Christ, Satan has little room to maneuver.

[Christians] are commanded to love our neighbors, and the first step in doing this is to show a watching world that Christ reigns within us.

The Word does not change. The Dead Sea scrolls, archeology, modern science—they do not change the Bible; they confirm it.

Satan is the sower of compromise—leaving a bit of God’s truth into the dirty rags of sin. Satan is the commander in deceit, Satan is the ringleader in rebellion against the faithful.Satan is the sly serpent of temptation.Satan is the false hope of security.Satan is the great pretender.Satan is the great spoiler of everything good.And Satan wants to destroy you.

What a comfort it was for me to know that no matter where I was in the world, my mother was praying for me.

There are those who have made their fortunes on other people’s misfortune. The Bible never promised that life would be fair.

We cannot ask forgiveness over and over again for our sins, and then return to our sins, expecting God to forgive us. We must turn from our practice of sin as best we know how, and turn to Christ by faith as our Lord and Savior.

Humanity wants comfort in its sorrow, light in its darkness, peace in its turmoil, rest in its weariness, and healing in its sickness and diseases: The Gospel gives all of this to us.

We have exchanged love of family and home for cyberfriends and living in constant motion that robs the soul from memories—and perhaps from that still, small voice that longs to be heard.

Tell me why the gardener trims and prunes his rosebushes, sometimes cutting away productive branches, and I will tell you why God’s people are afflicted. God’s hand never slips.

The cause of all trouble, the root of all sorrow, the dread of every man lies in this one small word—sin. It has crippled the nature of man . . .It has caused man to be caught in the devil’s trap.

The empire of angels is as vast as God’s creation. If you believe the Bible, you will believe in their ministry.

Part of our problem with debt is that we have confused needs with wants. Yesterday’s luxuries are today’s necessities.

The highest form or worship is the worship of unselfish Christian service. The greatest form of praise is the sound of consecrated feet seeking out the lost and helpless.

Religion,” [some] argue, “may be all right for certain emotional people, but you can’t beat a man who believes in himself.” But this self-confident generation has produced more alcoholics, more dope addicts, more criminals, more wars, more broken homes, more assaults, more embezzlements, more murders, and more suicides than any other generation that ever lived. It is time for all of us to take stock of our failures, blunders, and costly mistakes. It is about time that we put less confidence in ourselves and more trust and faith in God.

Before the seventeenth century, a child passed directly into the adult world between the ages of five and seven . . . then came the industrial revolution . . .so the child-centered home was born.

I have met men who are habitual liars. They have lied so long that they no longer can distinguish between the truth and a lie. Their sensitivity to sin has been almost completely deadened.

Without dark clouds in our lives we would never know the joy of sunshine. We can become callous and unteachable if we do not learn from pain.

God does not need our money. He owns everything, including “our” money. What He wants [us] to discover is where our central focus of worship lies. Is that focus on God or our money?

Walk into any bookstore and you’ll find hundreds of books telling you how to live. Don’t be misled, and don’t be deceived. Instead, build your life on the truth God has given us in His Word.

The very practice of reading [the Bible] will have a purifying effect upon your mind and heart. Let nothing take the place of this daily exercise.

Hundreds of passages point to a time of judgment for every person who has ever lived—none will escape. If you took all the references to judgment out of the Bible, you would have little Bible left.

The Bible is a guidebook, leading men [and women] to God in a personal faith. Like a map or guidebook, it will show you the way, but you must take it one step at a time.

We spend enormous amounts of time and money on fad diets, expensive exercise machines, and health clubs. For many people, these things only demonstrate their preoccupation with the physical side of life . . . but even more important is taking care of our souls.

God will never lead contrary to His word—so get acquainted with the Word of God, the Bible. Pray. He leads through the illumination of the Holy Spirit in our hearts. Use whatever you have and be faithful. We are called to serve Christ in our sphere of influence.

What is the authority in your life? Is it your selfishness? Your lust? Your greed? Or have you turned it all over to God and said, “Lord, You are going to be my authority”? When you are under authority, you are then able to assume authority.

Repent means to renounce sin . . .and by God’s grace to fill my mind with things that honor Him.

We are going through a sexual tempest, a bombardment provided by unprecedented exploitation of cheap sex by moviemakers, theater owners, publishers, and producers of pornography. [There is more] openness of talk about sex, acceptance of public nudity . . . homosexuality. Sex revolution, no! But sex pollution? Yes!!

Trials and difficulties may assail the life of a believer, but they also have the ability to remold his character and banish from his life those impurities which might impair growth and service.

I believe a Christian can sin, but he does not have to. God never would have told us to reject evil acts if in point of fact we could not help but do them.