Billy Graham’s granddaughter suffers 2 heart attacks caused by ‘broken heart syndrome’
Rachel-Ruth Lotz, the granddaughter of the late evangelist Billy Graham, was rushed to the hospital this week following a heart attack caused by a rare condition.
In a Facebook post on Tuesday, Lotz’s mother, evangelist Anne Graham Lotz, shared that her daughter was currently in the hospital.
“Multiple times I have prayed Psalm 73:26 for people who were struggling with heart issues: My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever,” Graham Lotz wrote before sharing the frightening news.
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The concerned mother prefaced the news by sharing that she is holding on to her strong Christian faith as a “promise for my daughter.”
“She was rushed to the hospital on Saturday night with a heart attack, followed by a catheterization. Sunday afternoon, she had a second heart attack, followed by another catheterization,” she explained.
“The mystery is that her heart has no blockages which can cause traditional style heart attacks. Hers is a very rare condition one doctor described as a ‘broken heart syndrome.’ There is no known cause,” Graham Lotz revealed. “As I write this she is still in the hospital and will be for several more days as they continue to run tests.”
According to Mayo Clinic, broken heart syndrome is a “temporary” condition usually brought on by “stressful situations and extreme emotions.”
“The condition can also be triggered by a serious physical illness or surgery,” the website explains.
The author and preacher urgently asked followers to join her family in praying for her daughter. She specifically requested prayer for “her heart to stabilize; for accurate diagnosis and treatment; for the doctor’s supernatural wisdom; for peace and comfort for all of us.”
Graham Lotz, the sister of Franklin Graham and the daughter of Billy and Ruth Graham, ended her post with an Old Testament passage.
“The lead verse in today’s Daily Light from Psalm 103 was very encouraging…Bless the Lord, O my soul…Who redeems your life from destruction, Who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies,” she concluded.
According to her online profile, Rachel-Ruth Lotz teaches a weekly women’s Bible study at the University of North Carolina and has spoken at numerous events around the country. She graduated from Baylor University and is married to high school football coach Steven Wright. They have three daughters. She also serves on the board of her mother’s ministry, AnGeL Ministries, and chairs a weekly prayer team that undergirds the ministry.
This is not the first time Graham Lotz has had to stand on Scripture for her children’s health in the last year.
Last July, her son Jonathan Lotz was hospitalized with COVID-19. However, he made a full recovery, and his mother credited prayer.
“PRAISE GOD!!! Praise our prayer-hearing, prayer-answering God!” Graham Lotz wrote on Facebook at the time. The grateful mother shared a poem she learned from her mother.
“Trust Him when dark doubts assail thee, Trust Him when they strength is small. Trust Him when to simply trust Him is the hardest thing of all. Trust Him He is ever faithful. Trust Him for His will is best,” she wrote. “Trust Him for the heart of Jesus is the only place to rest. Trust Him then through tears and sunshine, All thy cares upon Him cast. Till the storms of life are over and the trusting days are past.”
As she did for her son and her own health battle with cancer years ago, Graham Lotz will again trust in God for her daughter’s recovery.
Graham Lotz's husband, Danny Lotz, passed away in 2015 at the age of 78 after 49 years of marriage.
