Graham’s longtime media and public-relations director
A. Larry Ross remembers this generated a lot of controversy.
Many people were asking, “Why is Mr. Graham endorsing the
governor? Why are you allowing him
on the crusade platform?” Over and
over Larry had to explain, “We’re not
endorsing the governor; rather, the gov-
ernor is endorsing Mr. Graham and
these meetings. He’s welcoming us to the community and saying,
‘This event is a good thing for this city and our state; we welcome
Billy Graham to Colorado.’”
Billy’s clarity of focus allowed him to keep relationships in
perspective.
Maximize Mission Clarity
The leader with a crystallized calling can lead with resolve,
urgency, and persistence.
In his book On What Leaders Really Do, John Kotter claims that
infecting others with a sense of urgency is the difference between
effective and ineffective leadership. Urgency is more important
than even the leader’s own work ethic. “Sooner or later, no mat-
ter how hard they push,” writes Kotter, “if others don’t feel the
same sense of urgency, the momentum... will die far short of the
finish line.”
Billy’s predecessor, Dwight Moody, was an example of per-
sonal commitment to urgency. An associate of Moody’s, R. A. Tor-
rey, reports how a friend once told Moody, “It remains to be seen
what God will do with a man who gives himself up wholly to
Him.” Moody’s response: “Well, I will be
that man.”
Torrey’s conclusion: “I, for my part,
do not think ‘it remains to be seen’
what God will do with a man who gives
himself up wholly to Him. I think it has
been seen already in D. L. Moody.” Billy’s pattern, like Moody’s,
was to devote himself to the urgency of his cause with a lifetime
The Leadership Secrets of Billy GrahamThe dog has four feet, but he
does not walk down four
roads at the same time.
HAITIAN PROVERBOur greatest fear should not
be of failure, but of
succeeding at something that
doesn’t really matter.
ANONYMOUS