Converge, Week 5

Day 5: Prepared for the Mission
Devotional
Cultural engagement isn’t something we stumble into unprepared - it requires intentional preparation and courage. Just as a soldier trains before battle and an athlete prepares before competition, we must equip ourselves for the conversations and challenges ahead. This preparation involves three key areas: knowing Scripture deeply, developing our ability to articulate truth clearly, and building courage for difficult moments. First, we must be students of God’s Word, understanding not just what the Bible says but why it says it. Second, we need to practice explaining biblical concepts in ways that make sense to people who don’t share our worldview. Third, we must cultivate courage, knowing that standing for truth will sometimes cost us comfort, popularity, or even relationships. The mission is clear: we’re called to represent Christ faithfully in every sphere of influence He’s given us. This isn’t about winning arguments - it’s about winning hearts by demonstrating the beauty and truth of God’s design. When we’re prepared, we can engage with both grace and truth, offering hope to a world that desperately needs to know their Creator. The harvest is ready, and God has positioned you exactly where you are for such a time as this.
Bible Verse
In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven. - Matthew 5:16
Reflection Question
What specific steps will you take this week to better prepare yourself for faithful cultural engagement in your sphere of influence?
Quote
Who will define your mission? Jesus or sinful man?
Prayer
Father, prepare my heart and mind for the conversations ahead. Give me wisdom, courage, and love as I represent You in this world.

Converge, Week 5

Day 4: Reality Points to the Creator
Devotional
There’s something powerful about acknowledging reality as God designed it. When we affirm biblical truth about gender, marriage, family, and moral order, we’re not just making cultural statements - we’re pointing people toward their Creator. Reality itself is evangelistic because it reveals the character and design of the One who made all things. Every time we help someone see God’s design clearly, we create an opportunity for them to encounter the Designer. When we explain why marriage between a man and woman reflects God’s covenant love, we’re sharing the gospel. When we affirm the beauty of biblical gender roles, we’re revealing God’s intentional creativity. When we stand for the sanctity of life, we’re declaring the value God places on every human being. This is why cultural engagement isn’t separate from evangelism - it’s a form of evangelism. People who learn to acknowledge reality in one area of life become more open to acknowledging the ultimate reality: that God exists, that He loves them, and that He offers them salvation through Jesus Christ. Our faithful witness to God’s design in everyday matters prepares hearts to receive the greatest truth of all.
Bible Verse
So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. - Genesis 1:27
Reflection Question
How can you use conversations about God’s design in everyday life as opportunities to point others toward their need for a relationship with their Creator?
Quote
People who acknowledge reality lead people to God, who created reality.
Prayer
Lord, help me see every conversation about Your design as an opportunity to share Your love. Use my witness to draw others to You.

Converge, Week 5

Day 3: True Kindness Tells the Truth
Devotional
Our culture has confused kindness with niceness, but they’re not the same thing. Niceness avoids difficult conversations to maintain comfort. Kindness engages difficult conversations to promote genuine wellbeing. A nice person tells you what you want to hear. A kind person tells you what you need to hear. When we speak biblical truth about God’s design for life, relationships, and morality, we’re often accused of being harsh or unloving. But consider this: is it more loving to affirm someone in a path that leads to destruction, or to lovingly point them toward life? Is it kinder to let someone believe a lie that feels good temporarily, or to share the truth that brings eternal freedom? Real love sometimes wounds in order to heal. A surgeon’s scalpel causes temporary pain to remove what threatens life. Similarly, biblical truth can initially sting because it exposes our need for God’s grace and transformation. But this momentary discomfort leads to lasting healing and hope. When we choose truth over temporary comfort, we offer the greatest kindness possible - the opportunity for someone to know their Creator and find their true purpose.
Bible Verse
Faithful are the wounds of a friend; profuse are the kisses of an enemy. - Proverbs 27:6
Reflection Question
Think of a relationship where you’ve been choosing ‘niceness’ over ‘kindness’ - how might speaking truth in love actually serve that person better?
Quote
Advocating for reality is kindness.
Prayer
God, give me wisdom to know when to speak and courage to choose kindness over mere niceness. Help me love others enough to tell them the truth.

Converge, Week 5

Day 2: Salt and Light in Action
Devotional
Salt preserves what’s good and adds flavor to what’s bland. Light exposes what’s hidden and guides what’s lost. Both create noticeable change in their environment. Too often, we’ve misunderstood our calling to mean we should blend in seamlessly with the world around us. But salt that doesn’t preserve has lost its purpose. Light that doesn’t illuminate serves no function. Our distinctiveness isn’t meant to make us arrogant - it’s meant to make us useful. When we engage our culture with biblical truth, we’re not being divisive for the sake of division. We’re fulfilling our God-given purpose. The world needs what we carry - the truth that brings life, hope, and genuine transformation. This requires courage because salt stings wounds and light can be uncomfortable to eyes accustomed to darkness. But without our faithful engagement, society loses the very elements that preserve and guide it toward flourishing.
Bible Verse
You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet. You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. Matthew 5:13-15
Reflection Question
In what specific areas of your life is God calling you to be more distinctly ‘salty’ and ‘bright’ rather than blending in?
Quote
The biblical vision would have us understand that to build a biblical culture inside of the walls of the church necessitates that we engage in unbiblical culture outside of the walls of the church by challenging them with the Bible and with all that the Bible entails.
Prayer
Father, give me courage to be the salt and light You’ve called me to be. Help me preserve what’s good and illuminate what’s true in my community.

Converge, Week 5

Day 1: Everything Belongs to Him
Devotional
When we look around at our world today, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed by the cultural shifts happening around us. Yet there’s a foundational truth that anchors our perspective: everything belongs to God. From the smallest atom to the grandest galaxy, from every human heart to every cultural institution - all of it exists under His sovereign rule. This reality changes how we view our role in society. We’re not outsiders looking in, hoping to find our place. We’re stewards of God’s truth in God’s world, called to represent His character and values wherever He places us. When we understand that our workplace, our neighborhood, our children’s school - all of it belongs to Him - we approach these spaces with both humility and confidence. The culture around us may reject this truth, but that doesn’t change the reality. God’s ownership isn’t dependent on human acknowledgment. His standards aren’t negotiable based on popular opinion. This gives us tremendous peace and purpose as we navigate challenging conversations and cultural pressures.
Bible Verse
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth’ - Genesis 1:1
Reflection Question
How does knowing that everything belongs to God change the way you approach your daily interactions in secular spaces?
Quote
Everything that exists belongs to God. And everything and everyone in creation is responsible to Him, regardless of what they think about him or regardless of what we think about his nonexistence.
Prayer
Lord, help me remember that You are sovereign over all creation. Give me confidence to represent You well in every space You’ve placed me.

Converge, Week 4

Day 5: Disciples Make Disciples

Devotional
There’s something amazing about watching a parent teach their child to ride a bike. First, they run alongside, holding on tightly. Then they let go for just a moment, ready to catch them if they fall. Eventually, they watch with pride as their child rides confidently on their own, and someday, that child will teach their own children to ride. This is the natural progression of discipleship. After being faithfully discipled for several years, learning to feed yourself spiritually and growing in maturity, you reach a point where you’re ready to help others on their journey. This isn’t about having all the answers or being perfect. It’s about being willing to share what you’ve learned and walk alongside someone else as they grow. Just as you once needed someone to encourage you, answer your questions, and help you navigate challenges, others need that same investment from you. The multiplication principle is crucial—if disciples don’t make disciples, the mission stops with us. But when we embrace our calling to pour into others, the impact multiplies exponentially. The person you disciple will disciple others, who will disciple others, and the kingdom continues to grow. This might feel intimidating, but remember that God doesn’t call the equipped; He equips the called.. You just need to be faithful with what you know and willing to learn alongside those you’re helping.

Bible Verse
‘Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few.”’ - Matthew 9:37

Reflection Question
Who in your life might God be calling you to invest in as a disciple, and what’s one small step you could take this week to begin that relationship?

Quote
Disciples make disciples.

Prayer
God, thank You for those who invested in my spiritual growth. Help me to see the opportunities You’re placing before me to disciple others. Give me wisdom, patience, and love as I seek to help others grow in their faith.

Converge, Week 4

Day 4: It’s Not About You

Devotional
One of the most difficult truths to accept is that spiritual stagnation often isn’t about needing a better method, a different church, or more inspiring teaching. Sometimes, the problem is much closer to home—it’s about our heart attitude. When faith becomes primarily about what we get out of it—how it makes us feel, what benefits we receive, how it serves our needs—we’ve missed the point entirely. This self-centered approach to discipleship is like trying to drive a car while only looking in the rearview mirror. True spiritual growth happens when we shift our focus from “What’s in it for me?” to “How can I serve God and others?” This isn’t about earning God’s love or trying to impress Him with our good works. It’s about recognizing that we were created for something bigger than ourselves. When Jesus called His disciples, He didn’t promise them comfort, convenience, or personal fulfillment. He called them to deny themselves, take up their cross, and follow Him. This radical reorientation from self to service is what unlocks spiritual growth. The paradox of the Christian life is that when we stop making it about us, we actually find the joy, purpose, and fulfillment we were seeking all along.

Bible Verse
‘And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.’ - Ephesians 4:11-13

Reflection Question
How might your spiritual growth accelerate if you shifted your focus from what you can get out of your faith to how you can serve God and others?

Quote
The reason you are stagnant in your faith is not because there’s a problem with the process. The reason you are stagnant in your faith is because it never stopped being about you.

Prayer
Lord, forgive me for the times I’ve made my faith all about me. Help me to find joy in serving You and others. Transform my heart from selfishness to selflessness, and use me to build up Your kingdom.

Converge, Week 4

Day 3: Growing Up in Faith

Devotional
Remember when you were a child and needed someone to help you with everything? Your parents had to teach you how to tie your shoes, brush your teeth, and make good choices. As you grew older, you gradually became more independent and capable of helping others. Spiritual growth follows a similar pattern. When we first come to faith, we need others to feed us, teach us, and guide us through the basics. This is natural and necessary. But God’s design is that we don’t stay spiritual infants forever. The writer of Hebrews addresses believers who had been Christians long enough that they should have been teaching others, yet they still needed someone to explain the basics to them repeatedly. This isn’t meant to shame us, but to challenge us toward growth. Maturity in faith means developing spiritual discernment—the ability to distinguish between good and evil, truth and deception. It means being able to feed yourself spiritually through personal Bible study and prayer, and eventually being able to help feed others. This doesn’t happen overnight, and it doesn’t mean you’ll ever stop learning or needing encouragement from others. But there should be evidence of growth, increasing wisdom, and a developing ability to help others in their faith journey. God’s heart is that you would grow from being someone who constantly needs spiritual care to someone who can provide spiritual care to others.

Bible Verse
‘For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic principles of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food.’ - Hebrews 5:12

Reflection Question
In what areas of your spiritual life do you see evidence of growth, and where might you still be relying too heavily on others to feed you spiritually?

Quote
The normal Christian life, according to Scripture, is one marked by growth and maturity, just like biological life is as well.

Prayer
Father, thank You for Your patience with me as I grow. Help me to mature in my faith, developing discernment and wisdom. Show me how I can begin to help others grow.