Pastor John Gray Opens Up About His Father

Pastor John Gray grew up in Cincinnati, raised by a single mother. He was only 4 years old when his father walked out of their lives after the couple divorced. After that, John says, he only saw his father, who was battling a heroin addiction, four more times in his life. "My father not being there is probably the foundational tenet that kind of drives every other area of my life," John tells Oprah.

John says he has strived ever since to make his absent father proud. "On my dad's deathbed, I told him, 'I forgive you for not being there, and I'm going to make your name good.' Because I'm John W. Gray III, and I believe that I'm a continuation of his legacy," John says. "I was the last person to see him alive. I sang hymns over his bed, prayed with him, told him I was going to make him proud. And so, even now at 42, sometimes I look out the window, hoping he's coming down the street."

Here, John opens up about how the absence of a loving father drove him to become the man he is today.

Tune in to the season premiere of Super Soul Sunday on Sunday, April 16, at 11 a.m. and 7 p.m. ET/PT. Plus, don't miss the series premiere of OWN's new series The Book of John Gray on Saturday, April 15, at 10/9c.