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Rev. Billy Graham didn't want his own name spoken at his funeral

Rev. Billy Graham's funeral will be a celebration of life that's been planned for over a decade. But if Rev. Graham had it his way, you wouldn't even hear his name during the service.

ASHEVILLE, N.C. -- It’s hard to believe that Rev. Billy Graham, a man who introduced Christianity to millions of people, would have his own pastor, but later in life, Graham became a member of First Baptist Church in Spartanburg.

Graham regularly watched the televised morning worship services at the Spartanburg church from his North Carolina home.

Dr. Don Wilton is the senior pastor at First Baptist, a role that he’s served since 1993. But every week he would spend Wednesday in Montreat at Rev. Graham’s home.

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It was during those weekly visits that Wilton and Graham discussed the gospel, family, life, and among other things, Graham’s own funeral.

Rev. Graham's funeral will be a celebration of life that’s been planned for the past 10 years. Wilton will be one of the pastors presiding over the funeral.

You can expect to hear the word humility in the message that’s shared with the public.

Rev. Graham’s humility seems to be a binding factor to his legacy. People who were close to the man who was considered a rock star say he was surprisingly simple and humble.

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It’s a sentiment Dr. Wilton backed up when he shared a surprising revelation about the funeral planning process with Rev. Graham.

“Mr. Graham wants one thing that is that the Lord Jesus Christ be high and lifted up. I mean, to the point that it took some persuasion to even get him to agree that his name could even be mentioned at his own funeral,” Dr. Wilton shared.

Really?

“Yes, and I’m saying genuinely,” said Dr. Wilton. “He would be shocked and amazed to see the outpouring right now.”

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