Difficult Conversations Formed a Church

Over lunch, I said to my friend: “Am I doing what God wants me to be doing?” I was working as a professor at Michigan State University, and I found it good and satisfying. Yet God was gently calling me toward pastoral ministry, and I started to pursue formal theological training. At the time, I had no idea how He would lead me toward a multicultural, church planting vision.  

I heard a statistic about MSU that caught my attention: it was (and maybe still is) one of only four campuses in the U.S. that was in the top 10 for having international students come to its main campus while also being in the top 10 for sending American students internationally for study abroad. What would it look like for a church to serve the nations here in Michigan?  

I was no expert in diversity. I had never lived in another country (other than multiple short-term stints), and I had never lived as a minority. On the other hand, my wife and I, along with our three kids, had the opportunity to spend many summers in Europe as I taught there for MSU, and we loved the times to worship in international churches. We sensed this vision of a church made up of people from many places around the world, worshipping in Michigan. 

Refining the vision 

A friend of mine explained it this way: He was born and raised outside the U.S. but lived his entire adult life here (which was longer than being abroad). He still retained an appearance and accent that to many didn’t seem “American.” He would show up at a church, and the people would be very welcoming. Then they would say, “We have a ministry for people like you!”  

Rather than seeing him as a full member of the main body, the expectation was that he would fit better in a side ministry for internationals. As another friend said, “We were welcomed like a side dish in a meal, something that people could sample if they wanted." 

During this time, I also sought the help of ReachNetwork, the EFCA’s church planting ministry. In 2013, I joined an EFCA church planting cohort, driving to the Chicago area multiple times for training and workshops. I was challenged to think through a unique vision and strategy to clarify the ministry. 

That summer, I went through a church planter’s evaluation, doing a variety of assessments of myself and sessions with my wife. Thankfully, the team determined I was ready to be an EFCA church planter. 

With this additional training and endorsement, we started the journey, and by God’s grace, a community formed. 

Jumping in 

In the summer of 2014, my family and a handful of people met for the first time in my home for worship. One of the most encouraging parts of the beginning came from a woman who was born and raised outside the U.S. but had lived her entire adult life here. As she led part of that first worship service, she said, “I’ve been waiting for this church for 40 years!” 

This vision was far from simple, though––and increasingly difficult. With real grief, I watched people step into our community, seemingly excited about the vision, only to step away from it after a season. 

Through the struggles, it became clear to me that we would have to be intentional about growing into this vision. It wouldn’t come by merely being open to it. 

Forming the direction of the ministry 

Intentionally pursuing rich (but often challenging) conversations was a key part of the church’s journey. Each month on a Sunday afternoon, we invited people to our home to talk about significant issues in the direction of the ministry, but we often struggled to navigate different communication styles. 

Some people, whether by culture, personality or upbringing, were comfortable speaking up, disagreeing and interrupting. For others, speaking up was incredibly challenging, or even shameful. Some were raised with the expectation that others should speak first, especially those who were older or had important roles. Some even felt that, since they were different (whether by accent, culture, appearance or life experience), they were supposed to stay quiet. 

Then we made a wonderful discovery: we adopted a round robin strategy. That is, when a topic was open for discussion, we would circle around the whole room and invite each individual to share his or her thoughts. That person was free to speak, decline to speak or ask to wait until after others had spoken. This practice helped to create space for each of our cultures. It also had the unexpected benefit that it helped to address individual personality differences. 

We also talked about what to call our church. We landed on Crossway Multinational Church, with “Multinational” emphasizing how the church is for all of us, no matter a person’s geographic or national journey. 

The power of prepositions 

By learning through difficulties and challenges, we landed on a focal point: We long to be a church that is for, of and by the peoples of many nations.  

Being for all people means that we all benefit, no matter our passport or accent or appearance.  

Being of the peoples of many nations means we all belong. We all call this church home. It’s possible to benefit from a church yet still feel like an outsider even when people say, “you belong here.” We want visitors to quickly become guests who quickly become members of the family, no matter their country of origin or their time in the U.S. They sense that they belong, not merely that room has been made for them. 

What was hardest for me to see, though, was how important it was to become a church that is by the peoples of many nations. This has turned out to be both the most important and the most challenging pursuit. This means that everyone, no matter our accent or passport or appearance, has shared opportunity to shape and lead who we are together.  

A person in our church once said, “It is one thing to be invited to the party; it is something quite different to have the opportunity to rearrange the furniture.”  

Healthy discomfort 

Years ago, someone told me that diverse ministry requires an embrace of “healthy discomfort.” In this journey, I have learned the deep value of this form of discomfort where we are challenged to question our own assumptions, and to give the time and effort needed to consider other perspectives.  

Collaboration with other ministries has proven invaluable. In our first year, we connected with Asian Christian InterVarsity, a chapter of InterVarsity at Michigan State University, and we also partnered with Bridges, the international student ministry emphasis of Cru. Our first missionary support went to interns with Bridges, and we had many significant opportunities for joint ministry. These connections helped us experience a multitude of perspectives, moving us out of our comfort zones. 

In the weeks after launching in our house, we worked on finding a regular gathering space; we looked at rental units, possibly remodeling an office suite and even explored gathering in a Seventh Day Adventist building. Thankfully, God provided a space. A ministry called Work of Christ Community offered their building for us on Sunday mornings. And now, 10 years later, we continue to use their building, leading to a rich friendship in ministry. 

Today, we have about 80 people in our worship services on Sunday mornings (including kids). And no single ethnicity accounts for more than half of our people. We are still learning what it means to be for, of and by the peoples of many nations, and that learning includes important conversations on our board. We are stepping into a season of Spirit-led strategic planning, knowing that the values and practices of strategic planning can be very different across cultures. 

Speaking in the tongues of men 

Reflecting Revelation 7:9, we regularly include other languages in our worship services. We hear Scripture in multiple languages. We encourage people to pray in the language that expresses their heart. We invite people to teach us songs from their home languages and home cultures, so we can sing them in the other language, and often in English, too. 

We find great joy in being a growing community of people across cultures, nations, tribes and languages, hearing and expressing the Word and praise of God with one voice made up of many different voices and languages. 

When God began to call me into the vision of a diverse unity in Christ, I had initial ideas of the beauty and the challenge. In reality, I was pretty naive.  

The church of Jesus is both more mysterious and more beautiful than I knew, and I am eager for the work He will continue to do as we anticipate the amazing experience of God’s people united in worship before Him forever.