The founder John Piper was born in Chattanooga, Tennessee, to Bill and Ruth Piper January 11, 1946. In 1980, sensing an irresistible call of the Lord to preach, John became the senior pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, Minnesota, where he ministered for almost 33 years. What started with tapes and John’s books, Desiring God has blossomed into an international web ministry with 12,000+ free resources and 3.5+million monthly users. Today, John serves as lead teacher for the ministry.