ESCONDIDO, Calif. (KGTV) - Large crowds filled up Escondido's Grape Day Park to see Franklin Graham and hear his message Sunday night.
Franklin, the son of the late spiritual icon Billy Graham, kicked off his "Decision America, California Tour" in Escondido. He will make 10 stops throughout the state.
"I preached here back in '91," Graham said. "And when I was growing up, my father had friends over at Pauma Valley, very close to here. They were ranchers so we would spend our summers (there). So we have a lot of friends in the area, and my childhood memories are in this part of the world. You got to start somewhere, might as well be here."
Franklin launched the "Decision America Tour" in 2016, where he visited all 50 state capitals. In 2017, he focused the tour in Tennessee and Texas. His California tour is the first time he's been back on the road since his father died in February.
"This is what God has called us to do," he said.
Despite the name of the tour being called "Decision America" and launching a month before the California primary, Graham says it's about spirituality and not politics. He says he doesn't endorse any candidate or party.
"I think our country is at a decision point spiritually, not politically," Graham said. "In my opinion, the only hope for America is God."
The tour will continue across California with events in Pasadena, Oxnard, Bakersfield, Fresno, Modesto, Santa Clara, Berkeley, Chico, and Redding.
