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whose captain comments even more arrogantly, “Man of God, this is what the king says,‘Come down at once’” (2 Kings 1:11, emphasis added). Once again, fire from heaven killed the captain and his 50 men. Soon thereafter, a determined king sends yet another fifty men, along with their captain, who fell on his knees before Elijah and begged, “Man of God, please have respect for my life and the lives of these fifty men, your servants! (2 Kings 1;13, emphasis added). Unlike his boss the king, the third captain experienced a change of heart that set the stage for a different outcome. Rather than fire com ing down from heaven, the angel of the Lord sent Elijah and the repentant captain for an in person visit. Unfortunately, the king’s part of the story does not have a happy ending. Upon arriving, Elijah asked that key question again, “Is it because there is no God in Israel for you to consult that you have sent messengers to consult Baal-Zebub, the God of Ekron?” Only, this time he added, “‘Because you have done this, you will never leave the bed you are lying on.You will certainly die!’ So he died, according to the word of the Lord that Elijah had spoken” (1 Kings 2: 16,17). Billy Graham’s elder son, Franklin, is currently CEO of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association and Samaritan’s Purse.Yet, there was a time when this level of responsibility was in serious doubt. In 1974, at 22 and loosely tied to his father’s ministry, Franklin accompanied BGEA assistant Roy Gustafson on several Holy Land tours. “Acting as a kind of surrogate father who knew when to press the case for reform and when to hold back, the wise and witty Gustafson assured Billy and Ruth that Franklin would come around eventually . . . ” “Ruth shuddered when she heard stories of her son’s driving a Land Rover across Middle Eastern desert terrain with steering wheel in one hand and a bottle of whiskey in the other, explaining that he drove better when he was relaxed.”

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