[Faith-talk] Franklin Graham: Japan Quake, Tsunami Feels Like End Times Friday, March 18, 2011 07:33 PM

[Melody Wartenbee]

Franklin Graham: Japan Quake, Tsunami Feels Like End Times Friday, March 18,
2011 07:33 PM

By: Chris Gonsalves and Kathleen Walter

The cataclysmic earthquake and tsunami in Japan have all the trappings of
Armageddon, but there's no way to know whether the end times are upon us,
evangelist Franklin Graham tells Newsmax. His advice in the wake of the

tragedy: Help your fellow man as much as you can, and always be prepared to
meet your maker.

 

"What are the signs of [Christ's] second coming? War and famine and
earthquakes . escalating like labor pains," says Graham, founder of The
Samaritan's Purse charity. "Maybe this is it, I don't know. We should pray
and be vigilant. The Bible teaches us Jesus is going to return someday. Many
of us we believe that day is sooner rather than later."

 

"Whether the end is in five years, 10 years, 100 years or 1,000 years, we
need to be ready to stand before God," Graham says in an exclusive
Newsmax.TV interview.

 

Story continues below.

 

 

Graham, son of beloved evangelist the Rev. Billy Graham, is spearheading the
shipment of 90 tons of relief supplies to the hardest-hit area in northern
Japan though The Samaritan's Purse. The group is sending blankets, hygiene
kits, and other necessities to be distributed through hundreds of Christian
churches in Japan.

 

The relief supplies are desperately needed, as conditions on the ground
remain critical a week after the deadly quake, tsunami, and ensuing nuclear
plant crisis, Graham says.

 

"In Tokyo, life goes on. But you don't have to go very far north to find a
different Japan," he says. "The country in the north is without power,
without fuel, bridges have collapsed, railroads not operating. You go for
hour after hour at night and don't see one light in the distance. They are
suffering."

 

Graham acknowledged that he and his staff are preparing to work in harsh,
dangerous conditions, exacerbated by the looming threat of radioactive
contamination from Japan's damaged nuclear plants.

 

"I've told my staff, if any of you are nervous you don't have go," he says.

"I haven't had one person back out. There are dangers wherever we go in the
world, but as Christians we put faith in God. He's called us to do this
work. He'll look after us and protect us. It's not going to stop us from
responding and helping."

 

Graham urges people to stay focused on helping the Japanese people and
cautions against reading too much into the spiritual implications of such
tragedies. "We do know that God made the world, but we don't blame God every
time there's a disaster," he says. "People like to say, 'Why did God allow
this?' Every time there's a storm in life, it's not always God behind it."

 

Editor's Note: For More Information on The Samaritan's Purse and How to
Donate to Relief Efforts - Click Here Now

 

Editor's Note: Will Jesus Ever Return? Check Newsmax's Special Report, "The
Jesus Question: Will He Ever Return?" - Click Here Now. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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