I come from a close-knit family. Not perfect, but present. The kind of family where you show up, where the past matters, and where relationships are assumed before anything gets accomplished. It was only natural that I would look for the same thing in ministry. 

At the time, I was about to step into the leadership of a ministry my father planted 45 years earlier. That kind of transition has a way of clarifying what matters. You realize that leadership without relational covering is fragile. I needed more than common convictions or organizational harmony. I needed family.

Welcomed as family

My introduction to Converge came in an unexpected way. I was browsing a website and came across a brief biography on John Piper. It mentioned that he was part of the Baptist General Conference. I had been a fan of Piper’s writing, so that caught my attention. I started researching the Baptist General Conference and discovered that it had changed its name to Converge. 

That name matters, but what spoke to me were three words: “Start. Strengthen. Send.” They were clear, focused, and missionally grounded. They spoke plainly, and they spoke to me.

I reached out to the national office. For two weeks, I exchanged emails with someone there. No pressure. No sales pitch. Just conversation. Eventually, they connected me with my local Converge region. 

And it was like meeting my older brother for the first time. I was welcomed with open arms, as family.

Relationship over rupture

In a culture often driven by metrics, speed, and individual platforms, relational devotion does not always get celebrated. But it is powerful. It is the difference between affiliation and family, between connection and covenant. 

Acts 2:42 captures this clearly: “They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread, and to prayer.” This is not a church-growth strategy. It is a description of a Spirit-formed community identified by deep relational commitment, staying close enough for lives to be shaped and faith to be sustained. 

There have been times when crises rose up within the Converge family. But I can say this with confidence: we made it through each one. Not because we always agreed. Not because the situations were easy. But because we chose to talk, not fight.

I have heard people say, half-jokingly, that Converge is “the Baptists who don’t fight that much.” I take that as a quiet compliment. Not because conflict never arises, but because when it does, love keeps us at the table.

Part of our witness

Relational devotion creates the conditions for healthy disagreement without division. It forms leaders who care enough about one another to listen, speak honestly, and stay dedicated even when the work gets hard.

In Converge, relationships are not an accessory to the mission. They are the environment in which the mission thrives. 

We learn together through shared theology and mutual sharpening. We break bread together because ministry happens best when people are seen and known. We pray together because the work we are called to is bigger than our skill sets. And we stay connected because isolation has never been a fruit of the gospel.

In a culture shaped by independence and self-promotion, relational devotion calls us to a better way. It insists that how we treat one another is not secondary to the gospel but part of our witness. Helping people meet, know, and follow Jesus has always been central to Converge. That mission is strengthened and protected by our relational devotion. 

Being relationally devoted is not something Converge occasionally practices. It is who we are. It is what we do. Because at our core, we are family. And family is better together.