Throughout his musical journey, Grammy Award-winning recording artist and comedian Mark Lowry has learned valuable lessons, including realizing that God’s plans are far greater than he ever could imagine and that there is still a story to be told.
“If there’s ever a time in our country when God’s love is needed to be shown, it’s now,” Lowry told The Alabama Baptist. “I want people to leave the shows knowing that God is crazy about them and that He would rather die than live without them. It’s mainly Christians who are attending these shows, and hopefully they are bringing friends who don’t know the Lord. I want people to hear about the Lord in a way that is attractive and leads them to want a personal relationship with Him.”
For more than 20 years Lowry sang baritone with the Gaither Vocal Band, and was the comedic sidekick on Bill Gaither’s live concert tours and bestselling “Homecoming” video and television series.
‘Spotlight on Christ’
Along the way, Lowry gained national recognition as co-writer of the Christmas classic, “Mary, Did You Know?” recognized as one of the best-loved modern Christmas songs of the century and recorded more than 400 times by a variety of artists.
In spite of his success, Lowry focuses on shining the spotlight on Christ and staying true to his humble beginnings and gospel roots.
“I started singing in church when I was four,” Lowry noted. “Back then my family went to Berean Baptist Church in Humble, Texas, and we started going there after the pastor led my grandfather to the Lord. When I was 11, I recorded gospel music for a couple of years. Then my voice changed and ended all that for a while.
“When I went to college at Liberty University I thought that I was going to be focused on getting a business degree and getting a job, but the Lord called me to go into the music ministry,” Lowry recalled. “I actually tried everything I could do to avoid going into this ministry, but it became so clear that the Lord was opening doors and calling me to pursue music.
Just keep going
“The humor came along by accident, really. I had to do something between the songs when people were staring at me. Back then, you needed a few seconds in between songs for the sound guy to change the soundtrack. Since those few seconds of silence can be nerve-racking, I would tell stories about my life. When I heard people start laughing I knew they were listening. I did that for eight years during the early 1980s, and I would sing in 200 churches a year.
“Then Bill Gaither came along, and that changed everything when I joined the Vocal Band. I also signed a solo recording contract, so the solo career and Vocal Band sort of took off about the same time and started gaining national coverage.”
With a unique gift of communicating biblical truths through music and storytelling, Lowry desires to connect with audiences of all ages as he tours around the country this spring on the “Mark Lowry & Friends Tour.”
“God has been reminding me not to worry about what comes next because He is taking care of the details, and that He created me for this purpose,” Lowry said. “The plan is just to keep telling people that God is crazy about them.”
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