Over 90,000 packed Peru’s National Stadium for historic, evangelistic outreach with Franklin Graham

LIMA, Peru, March 9, 2026 – The National Stadium of Peru was packed from wall to wall during an evangelistic festival with Franklin Graham on Saturday and Sunday. The venue was so full, thousands of people who couldn’t get into the stadium lined the streets surrounding the venue to hear Rev. Graham share the hope-filled message of the Gospel.

“I’ve come for a reason and that is to share truth. Jesus said, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life.’ And I want you to know tonight that you can have a new life through Jesus Christ, God’s Son,” Franklin Graham, president and CEO of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA), told the crowd.

Rev. Graham continued, “The entire world is infected with sin. Without Jesus you have no hope. You cannot save yourself. You cannot forgive yourself. The church cannot save you. Religion cannot save you. Only the blood of Jesus can save you. He is the only way. He came from heaven to this earth to take your sins. He died and shed His blood on the cross for you. Tonight you can put your faith and trust in Him and be saved from your sins and have a new life.”

Peru is a deeply religious country but many people don’t have a personal relationship with Christ. When Rev. Graham gave the Gospel invitation on Saturday and Sunday, thousands of people responded by coming forward to put their faith and trust in Him, including Oscar Nuñez and his pregnant wife, Karina Arcela.

They both said they knew something was missing in their lives. “Sometimes when I pray, I think that God doesn’t listen to me or maybe I don’t know how to pray,” explained Nuñez.

He and his wife said they found the answers that they had been searching for when they came forward at the stadium and surrendered their lives to Christ. Arcela said, “I feel like God has heard all of my prayers,” She added, “I used to think that He didn’t forgive me, but today the message has been clear. [Jesus] is my Savior.”

More than 2,300 churches throughout the capital partnered with Franklin Graham and BGEA for Esperanza Lima. Everyone was invited to attend the free events at the National Stadium, exactly 28 years after Rev. Graham preached to massive crowds at the stadium in March 1998.

Esperanza Lima was originally planned as a one-night event, but a second night was added following an overwhelmingly positive response from thousands of pastors when the festival was announced. The festival featured live music from award-winning international Christian artists Charity Gayle, The Afters, Christine D’Clario, and the Jahaziel Band. BGEA also offered 600 free buses each night to bring people who would have otherwise had difficulty coming to the stadium.

Download Photos and Video: Media.BillyGraham.org/esperanza-lima-pr/.

Media Contact: To request an interview or more information, contact Mark Barber at 828 386 5803 or mebarber@bgea.org.

About Franklin Graham

Founded by Billy Graham in 1950, the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association shares the Good News of Jesus Christ around the world. Franklin Graham held his first evangelistic event in 1989, and since then, he has preached at more than 345 outreaches in 55 countries.

Most recently, Rev. Graham has proclaimed the hope of Jesus Christ in Ushuaia, Argentina; Siem Reap, Cambodia; Buenos Aires, Argentina; Brussels, Belgium; London, England; and Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Rev. Graham is looking forward to sharing the Gospel in Madrid, Spain, and Manchester, England, in the coming months. Graham has a heart for Latin America where he has preached 35 times in over 15 countries over the past three decades.

In addition to serving as president and CEO of BGEA, Franklin Graham also leads Samaritan’s Purse, which works in more than 100 countries. Since 1997, the international Christian relief and evangelism organization has distributed more than 5.6 million gift-filled shoeboxes to children in Peru as part of its Operation Christmas Child project. Samaritan’s Purse has also supported disaster responses and development projects in Peru that have helped thousands of families since 2016.