Multiethnic Conversations: An Eight-Week Journey toward Unity in Your Church Spiral-bound – October 24, 2016

The authors present the material in Multiethnic Conversations in a way that is able to create engagement in a variety of environments, including small groups, leadership teams, and denominational or movement leadership. The weekly topics are presented in a way that systematically moves the material from theology, to history, to timely statistics or truths to consider. The material then creates spaces for the application of the material to developing relationships, communication, and competence between ethnicities. Multiethnic Conversations is also systematic in nature in the sense that it addresses a wide range of issues within contemporary Christianity concerning God's desire for multiethnic communities of faith, including the systemic issues that hinder the formation of multiethnic communities. The material also challenges the contemporary church to respond to what God is doing to bring people from all ethnicities into relationship with Him to join in the mission we have been given by Him. In addition, Multiethnic Conversations calls contemporary Christian communities of faith to examine their current condition when it comes to how they are engaging the ethnicities that make up their communities. Multiethnic conversations is a great resource that promotes reflection on the call of Jesus to be communities of faith that reflect the love of Jesus for all ethnicities and that represent the ethnic makeup of our communities.

In Multi-Ethnic Conversations, Mark DeYmaz and Oneya Fennell Okuwobi, have provided a valuable and practical resource for churches and ministries seeking to build and to nurture multi-ethnic congregations. The book can be used personally as a devotional to stimulate and to guide you in a careful examination of your own convictions and practices. However, its primary benefit is in offering you a resource for inviting open, honest, and helpful conversations within your leadership teams or within ethnically diverse small groups aimed at developing cultural competency and greater intimacy with those who are ethnically or economically different than yourself. I don’t know of any resource like it. It invites participants to think theologically, historically, personally, and relationally. If you progress through the study carefully, you will find yourself not only gleaning a greater understanding of those with whom God has called you to be united, but you will be taking practical action steps to move toward true and deep reconciliation. If you are open to seeing life from the perspective of those who live in a very different world from you, even though they may live next door or work in your community, and if your desire is to fulfill the call to live out the gospel fully and faithfully, the book will be extremely beneficial!

This eight week workbook has a topic to read, followed by a couple of questions to journal about and then discuss, hopefully in a diverse group. The book is Christian oriented and based on scripture, which is important to know ahead of time. The questions are probing but not hostile or confrontational and, I think, will lead to much fruitful discussion among people who come from different backgrounds and want to get to know each other better. Highly recommended.

I have been using this book, with small groups (about 4 to 5 groups per year). The conversations that result from the use of this book are very good. I have learned from the students as much as they have learned by these conversations.

As with other books written by Mark DeYmaz, I found this book to be engaging and highly applicable to my ministry setting. I pastor a small church with other a dozen nations represented in our membership. To many Christians, that sounds like a taste of heaven, but there are many issues that come from having such diversity. How do we communicate with people from a culture that is new to us? How do we handle translation of the sermon or those who have just moved to our country? These are questions we’ve wrestled with and it’s clear that DeYmaz has as well. DeYmaz planted a church in Little Rock with the intention of being a diverse, multi-ethnic congregation that resembles the community they are in. This book is designed to challenge church leaders to aim for diversity by daily meditations and questions along with anectdotes and stories from DeYmaz’s life and ministry. This was beneficial to my ministry and to me as a Christian who seeks to reach all nations, tribes, and tongues with the gospel.

Phenomena book. I'm learning so much!

This is a valuable resource that addresses the issue of multiethnic conversations from various perspectives and gives life to the biblical precedence of multiculturalism on the life of the church.

Great experience with this book.