1855 Knollcrest Circle SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49546-4402 USA
On the campus of Calvin University
© 2025 Calvin Institute of Christian Worship
CICW has awarded Vital Worship, Vital Preaching Grants for over 20 years to teacher-scholars and worshiping communities in 45+ states and provinces and across 40+ denominations and traditions—including Orthodox, Roman Catholic, Pentecostal, non-denominational, and other Protestant communities.
While worship styles and practices vary greatly across these traditions, the grant projects typically explore at least one of CICW’s ten core convictions related to worship. Explore the hundreds of projects we’ve funded across both streams of the program.
To foster unity, inclusivity, and spiritual growth across generations and cultures by developing dialogue-focused worship practices and liturgical resources for multilingual and inclusive worship.
To equip Filipino American pastors to lead their congregations in lament, pastoral care, and celebration through a learning cohort focused on theologies of worship and communal practices.
To promote unity, shared discipleship, and renewed vitality in congregational life through intergenerational creation and leading of worship using labs, story circles, mentoring, and shared worship services.
To promote deeper participation in worship and embodiment of justice and mission by offering an intergenerational liturgical formation program.
To deepen the prayer life of the community and to grow in practices of praise, confession, lament, and thanksgiving through a year of formation around learning, praying, living and singing the psalms.
To develop the congregation’s capacity to integrate worship and discipleship by exploring story and narrative in the contexts of scripture, worship, and daily life.
To cultivate diverse lay leadership and discipleship through intercultural and intergenerational cohorts focused on theological reflection, responsive action, and contemplative spiritual practices.
To cultivate cross-cultural worship exchanges by exploring music as storytelling that expresses resilience, cultural identity, and gospel joy in Antiguan congregations.
To strengthen intergenerational bonds, nurture creativity, and connect with the surrounding community through creating neighborhood public art inspired by scripture.
Lindsay Hanson
To reimagine how sacred spaces are experienced and to deepen Christian practices through movement, presence, and community participation by bringing contemporary choreography into sanctuaries through an immersive live performance that will transform how congregations and communities experience dance, music, and sacred architecture, creating meaningful embodied encounters that connect faith and art.
To help congregations and individual Christian worshipers grow in their understanding and practice of lament in the context of a diverse, collaborative community by equipping them with resources to weave lament into regular worship services and into a collaborative ecumenical Ash Wednesday service.
To equip current and emerging worship leaders for their roles through theological and musical training.
