The process for developing a grant proposal for your worshiping community’s project has several steps:
- Gather a Collaborative Team
Developing your grant proposal should be a group effort. Therefore, the first step is to gather a group from your organization’s leadership and community who can explore and learn about worship together.
- Identify a Project Director
From your group, select a project director. The project director’s main roles are to administer the grant project and be the point of contact with the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship.
- Study What Vital Worship Means
Review the following resources as you consider your grant proposal.
Required Reading:
- What Is Vital Worship?
- Ten Core Convictions about Christian Worship
- Three Meanings of the Term Worship
Additional Resources:
- Worship as Formation
- Vertical Habits
- Worshiping the Triune God
- Nairobi Statement on Worship and Culture
- An Open and Discerning Approach to Culture (video)
- Discuss Your Context
The SWOT assessment tool (pdf)—which stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats—will help your project team start the conversation about your community’s context. Assessing these factors about your community will help you determine the best path to success for your project.
- Refine Your Ideas
The following resources will help you develop your grant proposal. Search our database of past grants and sample proposals to get started:
- Sample Discussion Questions & Sample Proposal Ideas
- Current and Past Grants (review for ideas that may inspire your proposal)
If after reading these materials you are uncertain whether your project idea fits, you may request a consultation with the CICW grants team. To schedule a consultation, email worshipgrants@calvin.edu.
- Apply for a Grant
Create an account in our Grant Management System. To complete your profile, you will need your organization’s tax ID number.
Enter your answers to the application questions. Note that the system allows you to:
- Save your work and return to it later
- Preview the full application before submitting it
- Create a PDF of the proposal form to share with others