Mark Lowry stays true to ‘Humble’ beginnings in Texas

By Leann Callaway / Special to the Baptist Standard

HUMBLE—With a unique gift of communicating biblical truths through music and storytelling, Grammy Award-winning recording artist and comedian Mark Lowry desires to connect with audiences of all ages.

“I want people to leave the shows knowing that God is crazy about them,” he said. “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 served as the comedic sidekick on Bill Gaither’s live concert tours and best-selling “Homecoming” video and television series.

In spite of the success, Lowry focuses on shining the spotlight on Christ and stays true to his “Humble” roots in Texas.

“I started singing in church when I was 4,” Lowry said. “Back then, my family went to Berean Baptist Church in Humble, 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.”

As a student at Liberty University, Lowry initially focused on pursuing a business degree, but he felt God calling him into music ministry.

“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 ministry,” he said.

“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.”

Lowry joined the Gaither Vocal Band and signed a solo recording contact.

He also gained national recognition as the co-writer of the Christmas classic, “Mary, Did You Know?” The song has been recorded more than 400 times by artists as varied as Pentatonix, Reba McEntire, CeeLo Green, Michael English, Kenny Rogers, Sandi Patty and Rascal Flatts.

With his music and message, Lowry desires to connect audiences to God’s unfailing love and grace, which is the theme for his newest album, What’s Not To Love?

“If you listen to the album from the beginning to the end, it sets the tone about the goodness of the Lord and takes you on a journey about his love,” Lowry said. “If there’s ever a time in our country when God’s love is needed to be shown, it’s now.”

Throughout his musical journey, Lowry says he has learned valuable lessons, including realizing God’s plans are far greater than he ever could imagine and there is still a story to be told.

“A few years ago, I went through a burn-out period and went away for two years,” he recalled. “One thing I’ve learned is when the plane is out of gas, it’s coming down. You can either land it or crash it, but it’s coming down. A lot of people will crash and run away. But I’ve learned through the years, it’s better to face the music, land the plane, get off the road and get refreshed.

“I really didn’t think I would have new material, so I went away for a while. It was during that time that the Lord gave me some new songs and new things to talk about. I’ve learned that you have to pace yourself throughout this journey so you don’t crash.

“It’s funny because just when I was about to retire again, the Lord dropped all these songs in my lap. 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. The plan is just to keep telling people that God is crazy about them.”