Storytelling and Narrative Worship in Small Churches

Small churches often mourn what they no longer have. But the relationships and stories they still have can be a source of awe and renewed faith and mission. Learning about storytelling, narrative worship, and story maps has blessed many congregations that had once considered disbanding.

Ordinary Time Resource Guide

This resource guide for Ordinary Time includes sermon ideas, worship songs and hymns, visual arts, and readings to help you plan “ordinary” worship—times in the church year outside the seasons of Advent, Christmas, Epiphany, Lent, Easter, and Pentecost. The season’s liturgical color is green, symbolizing a time of growth in the Christian life. This guide also includes ideas for worship on Christ the King Sunday, Thanksgiving, and All Saints’ Day/Reformation Sunday.

Artwork: "PSALM 85" by John August Swanson

Dwelling in the Psalms: Music for Organ, Choir, and Congregation

A Psalm Festival presented by the Chapel Choir of Princeton Seminary and director Martin Tel, with performers and choral conductors Brandon Boyd, Mina Choi, Ahreum Han-Congdon, Evelyn Simpson-Curenton, and Eric Wall.

September 18, 2026, 7:00 PM
Princeton, New Jersey

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Vital Worship, Vital Preaching Grants

Applications are open for the upcoming October 15 deadline for the Vital Worship, Vital Preaching Grants program.

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Wisdom in the Age of AI

Join top Christian thinkers, practitioners, and the broader public as we explore how faith can shape the responsible development and use of AI, while advancing human flourishing and contributing to shalom. The Calvin Institute of Christian Worship is pleased to sponsor the track AI in the Church. 

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Explore More Resources

Rebecca Chaffee on Intergenerational Storytelling in Worship

Learning to give testimonies, add visuals, and enact scripture helped one small congregation build intergenerational relationships and learn to see their stories within God’s story. 

August 5, 2026 | 7 min read
Ron King on Narrative Worship and Story Maps

Many churches, especially smaller ones, feel as if their glory days are over. But learning how to collect and tell stories in narrative worship can help them identify God’s work, wisdom, and will in their congregations and inspire them to see how God is still working in their midst and beyond church walls.

August 5, 2026 | 9 min read
Exodus Through Egyptian Eyes

Carmen Imes has spent the past fifteen years immersed in the book of Exodus, writing about it for both her master’s thesis and her doctoral dissertation. In this lecture, Imes will share some of the most paradigm-shifting insights she’s had while reading Exodus through an Egyptian lens. 

August 4, 2026 | 82 min video

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