1855 Knollcrest Circle SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49546-4402 USA
On the campus of Calvin University and Calvin Theological Seminary
© 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 connect church musicians and pastors of local Chinese Christian churches through a year long cooperative process of learning and reflection on worship and the role of music in worship.
To include the prayer life of children, expand the use of testimonies in worship, and deepen the understanding of baptism and the Lord’s Supper to unite people of different cultures, generations and denominations while celebrating their diversity.
To study and evaluate past worship practices and create new liturgies that practice inclusivity, collaboration, creativity, and social justice and that encourage the gifts of musicians, artists, dancers, children, writers, and persons with disabilities.
To create and train intergenerational worship planning teams of congregational members and ministry leaders in the planning of liturgies, music, mime, dance and visual arts to engage and unite worshipers of all ages with particular attention to social justice.
To invite painters, woodworkers, sculptors, musicians, graphic artists and photographers of all ages to use their gifts in worship leadership through ongoing study, practice, workshops, and worship experiences.
To connect two diverse congregations in a collaborative effort to build community, transform space and inspire worship through the incorporation of visual arts into liturgy and the worship space.
To engage in study and reflection with leaders from several congregations on how visual arts, technology, drama, and liturgical movement can deepen corporate worship.
To educate all members of the congregation in New Testament worship through a series of workshops and small group discussions that will explore the elements of corporate worship to develop a lifestyle of worship.
To engage in a year long renewal of God's promises in baptism and the book of Revelation through sermons, Bible studies, liturgy and education that will culminate with the Easter Vigil.
To explore with children, youth and adults what it means to be a baptizing community by focusing on the ways baptism impacts worship, vocation, and outreach.
To immerse the congregation in the Psalms through regular reading and memorization of the Psalms, a retreat, preaching, and pastoral care education that will teach people to pray all the emotions expressed in the Psalms.
To partner college students and congregational members in a study of worship and the arts that will lead to worship planning that encourages testimony and students in leadership roles.
