as it evangelized young people with the support of a broad range
of local churches; in others it limped along.
Leadership counted. Aspiring young leaders with fire in the
belly could fail—or succeed beyond expectations. Energetic entre-
preneurship drove the movement forward, but the nature of its
passion made the results far different from corporate expansion.
Its leaders believed they were dependent on the Holy Spirit, who
could do the only truly valuable work. That meant prayer, and
that meant a powerful bonding dynamic. Hundreds of leaders
would pray together long into the night, kneeling on auditorium
floors. They would confess sinful attitudes to each other and ask
for God’s cleansing and empowerment. Together they pored over
the Bible to understand and implement their theology. Whenever
a major challenge or event occurred, the key players met for seri-
ous prayer. Out of that brash, driven, try-anything culture came
a spirit of teamwork.
Before his own team evolved, Billy spent years in those evan-
gelical trenches, in both America and Europe, deepening his con-
victions, refining his strategies, and sensing who could be ministry
soul mates. From the time of his conversion in Charlotte, Billy
had been close to the Wilson brothers, Grady and T.W., and at var-
ious times held meetings with them. In Chicago he recruited
George Beverly Shea to be his soloist. These men, with Cliff Bar-
rows, became his core team.
Cliff Barrows was arguably the most crucial teammate Billy
ever recruited. He was a skilled and charismatic emcee and musi-
cian, leading the program in giant gatherings, a creative force in
leading new initiatives, a candid counselor, and a man who knew
how to both follow and lead.
In the summer of 1945, shortly before a meeting in Asheville,
North Carolina, was to begin, Graham learned that the scheduled
song leader had left for Chicago. Cliff and Billie Barrows were on
their honeymoon in the area, but they agreed to fill in. The tal-
ented couple more than filled the bill: Cliff song-leading and
singing a solo; Billie playing the piano and joining Cliff in a duet.
It was the beginning of a lifetime partnership.
Forming the Team