Christianity Today's Book of the Year Award of Merit

What happens when a diverse church glorifies the global God?

We live in a time of unprecedented intercultural exchange, where our communities welcome people from around the world. Music and media from every culture are easily accessible, and our worship is infused with a rich variety of musical and liturgical influences. But leading worship in multicultural contexts can be a crosscultural experience for everybody. How do we help our congregations navigate the journey?

Innovative worship leader Sandra Maria Van Opstal is known for crafting worship that embodies the global, multiethnic body of Christ. Likening diverse worship to a sumptuous banquet, she shows how worship leaders can set the table and welcome worshipers from every tribe and tongue. Van Opstal provides biblical foundations for multiethnic worship, with practical tools and resources for planning services thatreflect God's invitation for all peoples to praise him.

When multiethnic worship is done well, the church models reconciliation and prophetic justice, heralding God's good news for the world. Enter into the praise of our king, and let the nations rejoice!



Sandra Maria Van Opstal is a second-generation Latina pastor, an activist, an author, and a powerful leading voice on the intersection of faith and justice. She is executive director of Chasing Justice, a movement that mobilizes Christians to livejustly. Sandra's distinctiveness comes from working in both local and global contexts as a practitioner and an academic. She has reached audiences around the world on topics of reconciliation, global justice, and worship.



Mark Labberton is the former president of Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California. He previously served as Lloyd John Ogilvie chair for preaching and director of the Lloyd John Ogilvie Institute for Preaching. Prior to that, Labbertonwas senior pastor of First Presbyterian Church of Berkeley, California. He has also served as chair of John Stott Ministries. Today he continues to contribute to the mission of the global church as a senior fellow of the International Justice Mission. He is the author of The Dangerous Act of Loving Your Neighbor and The Dangerous Act of Worship.



Foreword by Mark Labberton



Acknowledgments



Introduction



1. Tension at the Table: Challenges and Opportunities in Diverse Worship



2. Is PB&J Ethnic Food? The Myth of Normal Worship



3. Food Fights: Reconciliation inWorship



4. Hosting Well: Shared Leadership



5. Designing Your Menu: Models of Diverse Worship



6. It's Not Just the Food: Components of Diverse Worship



7. Guess Who's Coming to Dinner: Creating Culture Change



8. Master Chef: Training Worship Leaders



Epilogue: North Park University



Appendix A: Cultural Values Continuum



Appendix B: Additional Resources



Appendix C: Worship Movements and Artists



Appendix D: Order of Service Examples



AppendixE: Components of Worship



Appendix F: World Assembly International Conference Songs



Appendix G: Songs for Crossing Cultures



Appendix H: Teaching a Language Song



Appendix I: Worship Cultures



Notes



"While acknowledging that inclusive worship will look different in each congregational context, The Next Worship shows how we can move toward gathered worship that 'points to the future celebration of God's people from every tribe, tongue, people and language.' Besides being full of stories acknowledging the challenges of multiethnic worship, this immensely practical volume also provides hope and how-to advice for preparing (sometimes reluctant) congregations to worship in ways thatconnect them with the global church in their community and abroad. In a refreshingly broad approach, Sandra Van Opstal goes beyond discussions of music styles to explore what multiethnic worship might look like in Scripture reading, prayers, other arts, the Lord's Supper, the teaching of the Word and more. Furthermore, her own rich experience in mentoring worship leaders has given her keen insight regarding collaborative service planning and the development of diverse worship leadership. The summaries of key concepts at the end of each chapter along with probing questions for reflection and discussion make this a vital resource for pastors, worship leaders, worship planning committees and training programs."