The Rev Franklin Graham is calling on Americans to join him in a “time of prayer and repentance” this week, warning that “our nation is in trouble” amid a volatile political climate.
In a social media post on Monday, Graham, the CEO of Samaritan’s Purse and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, announced what he called "a time of prayer and repentance" scheduled for Wednesday at noon ET.
“If you think our nation is in trouble now, just wait," Graham, the 73-year-old son of legendary evangelist Billy Graham, asked. “As our streets boil over with hate, anger, crime, drugs, and just sheer hopelessness, is there something we can do?”
“You bet there is,” he responded. “As a nation, our sins are so great. We have increasingly turned our backs on God and His commands, embracing godless secularism. We need to ask His forgiveness and seek His face.”
Amid protests in the aftermath of the shooting of Renee Good by a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent last week, Graham urged Americans to “pray for our leaders, and pray that God would bring calm to our streets."
“There are many who would like to stir things up — there are even those who would like to destroy this great country," Graham added. “Pray that these efforts would be thwarted and their plans would be brought into confusion. Ask God to use His church to be instruments of peace in this time of great uncertainty.”
Graham concluded his post by reiterating his call to “stop and pray” on Wednesday at noon.
“Millions of people remembering our sins and asking for forgiveness, repenting and seeking His face will make a difference," he wrote.
Graham’s call for a nationwide “time of prayer and repentance” comes just days after the Evangelical leader asserted in a Facebook post that protests happening across the country against immigration law enforcement operations are "underpinned by the radical socialist left, whose goal is to make the United States like Venezuela, ultimately destroying the America we know.”
He decried protesters chanting "unbelievable" things like "Save a life, kill ICE!" or calling for the hanging of Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem.
“Lying, stealing, cheating — nothing is out of bounds in order to grab power,” he warned. “Unfortunately, many people joining these protests have no clue that they are just being used as pawns.”
Good was shot and killed by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent in Minneapolis, Minnesota, last Wednesday. While the Trump administration maintains that the shooting was justified self-defense, pointing to video footage that appears to show Good driving forward toward an ICE agent, critics contend that the shooting was an unnecessary use of force and allege that Good posed no threat to the agent.
Graham weighed in on the Good shooting in a statement published Thursday.
“It is tragic that Renee Good was killed in Minneapolis yesterday. Pray for her family and loved ones,” he wrote. “This incident serves as a strong reminder that everyone needs to obey law enforcement. If they tell you to raise your hands, raise your hands; if they tell you to get out of the car, get out of the car. Argue with them in court and let a judge decide who is right or wrong, but you should not take a chance of getting hurt.”
