John Henry Ballard

For the Louisiana judge, see John Richard Ballard.

John Henry Ballard (born June 21, 1931)^[1] is a Southern Baptist retired clergyman with sixty years in the ministry, thirty-eight with the First Baptist Church of Lubbock, Texas, at which he taught the Downtown Bible class. During his ministry in Lubbock, Ballard was an associate pastor under the long-term former pastor, David Lawrence "D. L." Lowrie (born May 18, 1935) .^[2] Ballard conducted literally thousands of funerals during his career and made many visits to hospitals and nursing homes. He has since retired to Houston with his wife, the former Mary Elizabeth Herring (born June 19, 1929).^[3]

Ballard was one of ten children reared in a poor neighborhood of East St. Louis, Illinois, an urban extension across the Mississippi River from St. Louis, Missouri. His father was also a minister who said that God could not trust him with money; so He gave children instead.^[4]

Prior to his time in Lubbock, Ballard was at the North Fort Worth Baptist Church in Fort Worth, Texas, for twenty-two years, when D. L. Lowrie arrived in Lubbock and tapped Ballard as his associate pastor. When he came to Lubbock, Ballard said that he "prayed every day not to betray that trust [placed in him]. I keep that trust solid and firm, in the confidence that God put me here.”^[4]

Ballard is intense in his proclaimed vow to follow the will of God:

God is sovereign — God doesn’t make mistakes. He doesn't follow our calendar - He has his own. And to know that when something happens, we must claim his promise. We don’t see it now, but all things that happen to us — all things — happen for the glory of God and for the good of those who love him. God says He works it ‘together.’ It’s ‘Wait a minute, I’m not through with this circumstance yet, let’s get on the other side, let’s walk through it together.

And when you get on the other side and look back, you say, you know, God did work all things together. ‘Together’ is the important word in that verse (Romans 8:28) …

It’s a one-day-at-a-time situation. You get up each morning and say, ‘God, what do you want me to do today.’ And He directs your path. It’s where do you want me to be — put me in the place where I need to be, not necessarily where I want to be or desire to be, but where I need to be — where people need me. ...

The sovereignty of God; it's amazing.^[4]

See also[edit]

Other Lubbock clergy:

• Stan Blevins
• J. R. Church
• Aaron Denson
• Kevin O'Brien
• Ross Spencer

References[edit]