In the Spotlight: Anne Graham Lotz

In My Mind I’m Going to Carolina ...

Some of you know that e-Dad and I flew back east to visit our married daughter over Christmas. We landed in Philly, feasted on cheese steak sandwiches at Pat's & Gino’s, and then drove up to New York City for two days. Before skirting the construction site at Ground Zero, we took a brisk walk from Central Park down 5th Avenue to watch the skaters at Rockefeller Center.
My oh my, it was a lot colder than I’m used to here in the temperate Pacific Northwest!

After our delightful Christmas with the family in Washington D.C, our plan was to drive back up to the airport in Philadelphia on Boxing Day (Dec. 26th) to fly home. All good, except a brutal northeast blizzard had dumped twelve inches of fresh snow on the runway overnight. Thousands of flights were cancelled—including ours.

Aghast, we were determined not to be stranded like millions of other travelers in every airport from Boston to Washington. Our quick-thinking son went online, negotiated a full ticket refund, and booked alternate seats on a plane departing from Atlanta. We snagged a rental car for the one-way trip, turned on the headlights, and pulled out of the Phildelphia airport parking lot like three men on a mission. It took us all night to drive the 800 miles on a dark, snowy, deserted freeway in order to make it to Georgia in time for our flight.

Please Meet Anne Graham Lotz

While the others were sleeping, my turn at the wheel took us through
Billy Graham territory in Charlotte, North Carolina. As I chased away my exhaustion with a fast-food espresso, my thoughts drifted to the famous evangelist’s rustic family home in Montreat. For a moment, I mourned his late wife Ruth Bell Graham. I was also reminded of Billy’s daughter Anne, founder of AnGeL ministries, a non-profit corporation dedicated to biblical exposition through speaking engagements, books and tapes. In 2000, Anne Graham Lotz also launched free Just Give Me Jesus conferences to spark revival among women in the church.

Anne is just a few years older than me, and her credentials are very impressive. Even without a college or seminary education, she's been granted honorary doctorates from Kings College, Houghton College, and Eastern Baptist Theological Seminary—plus three other institutions. She currently serves on the board of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association and Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary. With characteristic grace and humility, Anne credits God for all her successes.

Anne's Ministry Began with BSF

Anne married dentist Dr. Dan Lotz at age 18, and the couple have three grown children. Anne began her teaching ministry as a nervous young Mom in a Bible Study Fellowship (BSF International) class in Raleigh, N.C. Now an accomplished speaker, over the past thirty years, Anne has passionately proclaimed God’s Word to people around the world. Her gripping narratives and heart-touching teaching have inspired listeners in arenas and prison cells, stadiums and Bible studies, sanctuaries and seminaries, and in the General Assembly of the United Nations.

Also a best-selling author, Anne’s eleven books include her signature book Just Give Me Jesus and her 2009 release The Magnificent Obsession. In the latter, she writes about feeling alienated at times from “religious people” and how she pursued her own calling as a female evangelist despite the initial disapproval of her famous parents. She also talks about how she strives to model her relationship with God after Abraham of the OT. Anne has won three Gold Medallion Awards for her writing.

“Just Give Me Jesus” Revivals

A fan of her Bible studies, I know that Anne’s faith is deep and infectious. Listen as she humbly describes a particularly difficult time in her life.

“In the late ‘90s a series of events in my life left me crying out desperately to God. In 1996, when Hurricane Fran hit North Carolina, we were without electricity and telephone service for six weeks. Our yard was demolished—we lost 102 trees. Then my husband’s dental office suffered an electrical fire and burned to the ground. Our three children got married within eight months—and with two girls, that meant major planning for two weddings! Then, in 1998, our son, Jonathan, was diagnosed with cancer a month before his wedding and he underwent surgery. My mother, Ruth, also had five major surgeries within ten months. I’d make the four-hour drive to visit her, spend the night in the hospital, come home, turn around, and go back again. On top of that, I had a full schedule of speaking and writing books.

I was tempted to pull back within myself and tell the world to get lost. But I chose to stay active in my ministry. My heart cried out, Just Give Me Jesus, because I felt that if I had a fresh encounter with him, my questions about what was going on either could wait—or he would be the answer. I opened my Bible and prayed, God, I need a supernatural touch from you.”—Quoted from "Woman of the Word" published by TCW

If there’s anything about Anne Graham Lotz that resonates, you can discover more about her life in this marvelous CT article, “A Reverent Maverick.” Please enjoy!

I can do all this through him who gives me strength.
(Phil 4:13 NIV)

Top Photo: Sojourn Church, Billy Graham Library in Charlotte N.C. by MichelleParker52 (Flickr)



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Have you heard Anne Graham Lotz speak? Your thoughts?