At the Tri-Cities Celebration in Tennessee on April 27-29, thousands heard the Gospel and many came forward each night to publicly call Christ their Lord.Aaron Shust grew up with Billy Graham books on his family’s bookshelves and sang in the choir at the 1993 Crusade in Pittsburgh. Now, 25 years later, he often travels with Will Graham to lead worship, just as he did Saturday in Johnson City, Tennessee.Will Graham preached from the book of James in the Bible about the brevity of life.Hundreds flooded the floor of the arena to hear Crowder before and after Will Graham spoke.Each life surrendered to Christ is a reason to celebrate, even after the Celebration event is over.“God didn’t come to make bad people good; He came to make dead people alive,” Ellie Holcomb told over 3,000 people in the venue.Christ is for everyone, Will Graham told the crowd, and no one is too far from Him to receive His forgiveness.As someone who grew up a short distance from the Tri-Cities, Will Graham could relate to the crowd. He’s familiar with the church scene and knows many identify as Christians simply because they go to church or because they come from a Christian family, he said. But that doesn’t make a person a Christ follower.God wants more from us than going through the motions of churchgoing and Bible reading; He wants to play an active role in our everyday lives.Local artist Jenniffer Trent opened the last day of the Celebration. At one point, she was joined onstage by her brothers who lent their voices for one song.The event emphasized the importance of prayer and talking to God.Aaron Shust can’t help but smile as he sings. “Your praise will ever be on my lips,” he sang later in the evening.Each night of the event, people made their way to Freedom Hall to hear what Billy Graham’s grandson had to say. At the core of each message was finding freedom in Jesus.It’s a joy to point the younger generation to Christ.The Adoration Band set the tone for a night of worship to a holy God who cares about us and loves us.
