Haggard was born in the state of Indiana. The charismatic ministry formed by J. M. Haggard, a veterinarian from Yorktown, Indiana, was the subject of a PBS Middletown documentary series. Haggard became a born-again Christian in 1972 at the age of 16 after seeing evangelist Bill Bright lecture in Dallas, Texas, and being familiar with C. S. Lewis’s Christian apologetics.
In 1974, Haggard authored open-minded columns regarding services available to prevent and cure STDs and the rising number of pregnancies while serving as co-editor of his high school newspaper. These articles generated a lot of discussion in his community and resulted in a free-press lawsuit against him.
