Green is the son of an Assemblies of God preacher and comes from a family of preachers. Green claims to have built his business squarely on biblical principles: "We're Christians, and we run our business on Christian principles."

He attributes his success to his faith in God. He has taken a public stance against the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act because of its inclusion of a provision mandating that companies provide access to the morning-after pill.

Green takes half of Hobby Lobby's total pretax earnings and commits it directly to a portfolio of evangelical ministries and as of 2012 it has donated an estimated $500 million. This includes a $10.5 million gift to Jerry Falwell's Liberty University in 2004, and $70 million to bail out Oral Roberts University in 2007. He has also put nearly 1.4 billion copies of gospel literature in homes in more than 100 countries, mostly in Africa and Asia.

Green lives in southwest Oklahoma City with his wife Barbara. One son, Mart Green, is the founder and CEO of Mardel Christian and Educational Supply and of Every Tribe Entertainment while his other son Steve Green is President of Hobby Lobby. His only daughter, Darsee Lett, is Creative Director for the Hobby Lobby stores.

In 1970 Green took a $600 loan and started a home business called Greco Products in his garage assembling and selling miniature picture frames, capitalizing on a decorating fad of the time. By August 1972 the business had thrived to such an extent that they were able to open their first store which had 300 square feet of retail space. Sons Mart and Steve started work for the company at the young ages of nine and seven, earning seven cents for every frame they glued together.

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