1855 Knollcrest Circle SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49546-4402 USA
On the campus of Calvin University
© 2026 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 grow in practices of lament, contemplation, and engaging art in worship through learning trips, coaching, and sharing learnings with congregational partners.
To anchor congregational worship in the Psalms through the practices of prayer, Scripture reading, and sharing testimony, so that members will be firmly rooted in long-standing healthy habits that biblically inform congregational identity.
To foster healing-centered worship among Punjabi immigrants by incorporating music, meditation, and psalms into trauma-informed liturgical practices.
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 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 build healing-centered, trauma-informed worship practices using the psalms and the arts through a variety of community events and workshops.
To promote a deeper understanding and practice of psalm-singing through teaching and singing the psalms in preparation to write, record, and sign modern responsorial psalm settings.
Lisa D. Maugans Driver
To revitalize the practices of confession and forgiveness in worship by developing theological, instructional, and practical resources to encourage greater intentionality in individual and corporate confession.
Myles Werntz
To help worshiping communities learn about the moral life by connecting categories of moral reasoning to the ongoing practice of worship and discipleship as described in Psalm 23.
To integrate psalms into corporate and private worship habits in an ecumenical setting, primarily through guided conversations and scholarly-artistic engagement with university students and local pastors.
To help students develop spiritual formation practices and build Christian community by mentoring student leaders and creating a weekly worship opportunity focused on prayer and lectio divina scripture study.
To encourage a deep and ongoing engagement with scripture by singing, teaching, and praying the psalms of ascent as an intergenerational community.
