Sandra Maria Van Opstal

Summary: Worship and mission are integrally related; recognizing the greatness of God propels us into mission and mission involves inviting others across cultural boundaries to join us in worship.

Worship and mission were made to walk together, Sandra Van Opstal contends. For one thing, worship is meant to help us experience the greatness of God. And yet, our own cultural blinders often leave us missing dimensions of that experience. Worshiping with those from other cultures may open our eyes to these missing dimensions–lament, celebration, God’s power to bring freedom, to enlarge our vision of his greatness and majesty, to teach us to persevere in hope. This may lead us to personal transformation. Van Opstal writes:

“Our understanding of the church is transformed. As we worship crossculturally, we better understand our own worship as just a piece of a larger community. As we experience our differences we can more fully enjoy what it means to connect to the global church. Then we realize that we are a part of a bigger family. This helps connect us to the hearts of our brothers and sisters who live radically different lives than we live” (p. 18).

Worship rightly understood and lived out particularly transforms us into people who embrace the mission of God. Through worship, we enter a place where we may hear the call of God into the mission of God–to bring his good news through word and deed to those who in various ways are poor and oppressed (cf. Luke 4:18-19). Worship, when it is in the “heart language” of those to whom we go may itself be a powerful way of welcome and reconciliation that helps those we are seeking to reach to understand “this can be a home for me.” This is particularly compelling when it is accompanied by lives and deeds that seek justice for the marginalized people we may be trying to reach.

This brings Van Opstal to the conclusion of this short booklet. Just as we can only walk with two feet, so worship and mission must walk together. Worship sustains and empowers mission. Mission authenticates and incarnates worship.

Rarely do our churches exist in enclaves any more. They may be mono-cultural enclaves but I would suggest that one look at the community around the church would uncover great diversity in ethnic origins, religions and beliefs, economic status, and age. Even if the cultures represented on our communities are not yet in our seats, it seems a good principle that beginning to worship in some of the ways that these cultures might may both prepare us and propel us into our communities.

Van Opstal’s booklet is a concise argument for taking a look at our worship through a missional lens that a worship team, or whoever plans worship, might consider. Better yet, church leadership might read this to support the changes a worship team might introduce to move into a worship as mission mindset. The book even includes a brief appendix of further resources of songs that cross culture.

If this booklet whets your appetite for growing in crosscultural worship, Van Opstal goes into greater depth, and offers more resources in The Next Worship (reviewed here). Van Opstal draws on experiences ranging from her own congregation to leading national and international conferences to give us vision and practical help for leading worship that is not only a taste of the new creation, but that propels us into mission.

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DISCLOSURE OF MATERIAL CONNECTION: I RECEIVED THIS BOOK FREE FROM THE PUBLISHER. I WAS NOT REQUIRED TO WRITE A POSITIVE REVIEW. THE OPINIONS I HAVE EXPRESSED ARE MY OWN.… (más)

Summary: Using the language of an international table, this book gives both theological basis and practical help in leading Christian communities into multi-cultural and multi-lingual worship led by empowered multi-ethnic worship teams.

It does not seem so long ago when we were hearing of "worship wars" that consisted of conflicts between those who favored traditional (i.e. hymns) worship with choirs, piano and organ and those who favored contemporary music with guitars, keyboards, and percussion. While some churches are still wrestling with these different styles, the culture has moved on as the world has come to our neighborhoods. South Asians, Chinese and Koreans, African Americans, Latinos, and people from Middle Eastern countries all live in my neighborhood, have restaurants in our community, and at least sometimes turn up in our church.

Sandra Van Opstal uses the analogy of food to help us understand that our forms of worship are just as "ethnic" as those of other groups. We may consider PB & J to just be "food" but for many it is "American" food. For those who are from Mexico, what we consider Mexican food is just "food." Similarly "normal" worship looks very different in very different cultural contexts. If our hope is that our churches begin to look like our communities, it means that we begin to worship in ways that are more "normal" for others, that say, "this is your table, too."

She tells the stories of churches who have made these transitions. For those from Columbus, she features my good friend Katelin Hansen, and the multi-cultural worship she leads at The Church for All Peoples on the south side of Columbus. Many know Katelin for her blog, By Their Strange Fruit, which focuses on racial reconciliation and issues of justice. Sandra features the work Katelin and many other worship leaders are doing in bringing together leaders from different cultural backgrounds and intentionally leading their churches into solidarity in worship with the different cultures in their neighborhood, and around the world.

Transitioning to this style of worship isn't easy. Van Opstal charts the process from the first steps of reconciliation to hospitality ("we welcome you"), to solidarity ("we stand with you"), to mutuality ("we need you"). She traces the different options in worship that may be pursued. She discusses different types of worship teams, from monocultural teams with a strong leader who does all the planning to multi-cultural teams with shared planning and leadership. She outlines four models of multi-ethnic worship from Acknowledgement (a dominant style with hints of others) to Blended (the equal representation of two or more styles) to Fusion (mixing styles or creating original music) and Collaborative Rotation (where leaders and teams are rotated and host worship in their own cultural style).

Van Opstal, who herself has led worship in a variety of settings from Urbana Missions Conferences and the International Fellowship of Evangelical Students World Assembly (where I've seen her in action) to mainline churches talks about the different elements that go into a worship service and how she works with teams in planning. More than this, she talks about the challenging work of culture change and discerning how to work sensitively with different groups. She writes helpfully about avoiding "whiplash" where so many styles and languages are introduced at once that people are bewildered.

What I appreciated throughout was the model Van Opstal gives of honesty, vulnerability, and self-understanding. She writes at one point in chapter two:

"Let’s face it, my Mandarin stinks! I’d rather sing in Spanish. I’d prefer to pray in English. I really like to move during worship, which would likely be a distraction in many of the churches or college chapels I visit. Crosscultural worship is just what it sounds like: we are crossing over (a bridge) to another way of doing things, which creatures of habit rarely like to do. As Spencer Perkins, the late reconciliation leader and coauthor of More Than Equals, used to say, “Bridge building hurts!” Not only are we crossing a bridge, we are also acting as a bridge for other people to cross, which means we are always getting stepped on. It takes commitment and intentionality; it’s a decision to act. . . ."

I would commend this book for any Christian community from student fellowships to established congregations (particularly in neighborhoods of changing demographics). It offers very practical help for those who lead worship (and be prepared for challenges to the Cult of the Worship Leader!) but should also be read by pastoral teams and church leadership preparing to wade in these waters. For such groups, each chapter includes discussion questions. There are also nine appendices at the end covering everything from worship movements and artists to various order of service examples to practical help in teaching a language song.

This book is real. It is inspiring. And it is tremendously practical, reflecting the author's wide ranging experience in leading and coaching others to lead multi-ethnic worship. Some of the experiences I've had when I've observed her leadership have been "foretastes of heaven" as one begins to see what it will be like to worship with the nations of the earth. I can't help but think that such foretastes are one of most compelling testimonies of the greatness and grace of our global God. My hope is that through this book, the nations will rejoice!… (más)