Evangelist Franklin Graham finished the last leg of his Decision America Tour at the capitol grounds of his home state, North Carolina on Thursday.
The prayer rally in Raleigh was participated in by 14,200 people. All in all, more than 236,000 people have joined the Decision America Tour prayer rallies.
Graham recalled how, when God told him to travel the 50 states and hold prayer gatherings, he did not know what to expect.
"When God laid it on my heart to go to all 50 state capitals to pray for the nation, I had no idea what was in store. But we have had over 236,000 people come out for the rallies, and more than 250,000 watched online or on social media," Graham posted on Facebook.
The purpose of the tour was to wake up the churches and make them realize the importance of the coming election, to gather God's people in prayer for the nation and to urge them to go out and vote.
In an issue of Decision magazine, Graham said the nation is at a "moral tipping point," and the US presidential election will prove to be "pivotal" in its history. He said the American people need to go back to God and repent of their sins.
"'If a ruler listens to falsehood, all his officials will be wicked' (Proverbs 29:12). When the president of the United States and those around him actively adopt and promote iniquity, then that evil becomes systemic, spreading through the courts, schools, businesses, and state and local governments, infecting virtually every level of public life," Graham wrote.
"This is why November's elections-local, state and national-are so critical. If we want to see the moral and spiritual trajectory of our nation change, we must do what we can to make our voices heard through the electoral process. We must examine the issues and the candidates and vote for those we feel best fit our Christian worldview," he added.
He urged Christians to study the candidates' stand on important issues that affect marriage, family, the sanctitiy of life and religious liberty, among others, and to evaluate these based on Biblical teachings.
Graham is not endorsing any candidate, saying his only hope is in God, but he has repeatedly emphasized the need to exercise one's right to vote.
"I'm grateful for those who have been steadfast in their convictions, but they are too few. Ultimately, while doing all we can this fall to fulfill our civic responsibilities, our hope must remain in Almighty God alone," he said in the article.
Graham said the Decision America Tour is not the end but the beginning. He encouraged Christians to persist in prayer and to be more involved in the affairs of their communities.
He also shared a wonderful report that through the tour, around 8,000 people who attended the prayer rallies have responded to the gospel and have given their lives to Christ. One man told him that his 97-year-old grandmother surrendered her life to Jesus while watching a livestream of the prayer rally.
"That's the power of the Gospel," he said.
He ended his Facebook post with a quote from Scripture, 2 Chronicles 7:14: "If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land."
Watch the video of the prayer rally below.
