Nurturing Vital Worship: A Day of Learning and Worshiping Together
The Calvin Institute of Christian Worship invites you to Calvin College for a day of exploration and worship designed to encourage and equip all those who plan and lead worship with wisdom from CICW staff and affiliates and gleanings from 32 grant-funded congregational renewal projects, culminating in an inspiring worship service in the Calvin Chapel. This event is free to the public but please register.
Date:
Wednesday, June 20, 2018 from 1:30PM to 9:30PM (EDT)
Location:
Calvin College Covenant Fine Arts Center
Grand Rapids, Michigan
SCHEDULE FOR THE DAY
Check-in
12:30-1:00 P.M.
Calvin College Covenant Fine Arts Center, Lobby
Welcome
1:00-1:15 P.M.
Covenant Fine Arts Center, Recital Hall
Session A Workshops
1:30-2:30 P.M.
Session B Workshops
2:45-3:45 P.M.
Sessions are led by CICW staff, affiliates, and Vital Worship Grant advisory board members. They are offered twice with a travel break between the sessions.
Choose two:
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PRAYING THE PSALMS IN LIFE AND WORSHIP
Kevin Adams and Paul Ryan
Covenant Fine Arts Center, Room 264
In joy and in sorrow, in faith and in doubt, the Psalms can help us to worship and pray. Though their original contexts may seem strange, the Psalms meet us where we are. The Psalms are raw and real, they express intimacy with God, and they help us bridge the gap of understanding with others. In this workshop, we will hear from a church planting pastor and a campus minister about the vitality and relevancy of the Psalms in their communities. We will share experiences and examples from daily life and corporate worship and provide ample opportunity to listen and learn from all who attend. -
REFLECTIONS ON RACIAL CONCILIATION AND ETHNIC DIVERSITY IN CHRISTIAN WORSHIP
David M. Bailey and Mark Charles
Covenant Fine Arts Center, Room 230
David Bailey is an African American worship leader working in an urban environment in Richmond, VA. Mark Charles is a Navajo pastor coming from the Navajo reservation. Both David and Mark value cultural inclusivity and diversity and will be speaking from their experience as national leaders who are also deeply invested in their local communities. David and Mark will teach for 40 minutes followed by 20 minutes of dialogue and Q&A. -
WHERE TWO OR THREE OR MORE ARE GATHERED: CREATIVE BEST PRACTICES FOR SMALL CHOIRS AND WORSHIP TEAMS
Emily Brink, Kai Ton Chau, and Norma de Waal Malefyt
Covenant Fine Arts Center, Room 115
Small can be beautiful, also true, honorable, pure, and pleasing (Phil. 4:8). That’s what we aim for in offering our best in worship. Three experienced church musicians will share ideas and resources to encourage songs and music that is fitting (in both content and placement), excellent (calling forth the best from those in our worshiping community), accessible (exploring resources sometimes hidden in plain sight), and pastoral (with leaders showing love to those who offer their gifts, who in turn offer their gifts mindful of the entire community). -
SIX THINGS THE AMERICAN CHURCH CAN LEARN FROM WORSHIPING COMMUNITIES AROUND THE WORLD
Doug Brouwer and María Cornou
Covenant Fine Arts Center, Room 252
Drawing on their experiences of worshiping with Christians around the world, María Cornou and Douglas Brouwer have identified six ways that the American church could learn from Christian sisters and brothers in places like Europe, Africa, and South America. Those attending the workshop will be invited to join the conversation and extend the list of ways worship could become more like the vision in Revelation 7:9 (“after this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands...”). -
PRAYER AND SPIRITUALITY IN PROTESTANT WORSHIP AND CATHOLIC LITURGY: A MUTUAL CONVERSATION
Dale Cooper and William Johnston
Covenant Fine Arts Center, Room 263
Is “prayer” the same whether it’s private prayer (Matthew 6:6) or public worship? How does the communal worship service itself give expression to our prayer and form us in prayer? Are Protestant worship and Catholic liturgy similar or different in this regard? Let’s see what we can learn from each other! -
#WHATCANIDO?: MILLENNIALS AND GenZ IN WORSHIP
Lynn Barger Elliott and Noel Snyder
Covenant Fine Arts Center, Recital Hall
The Millennial and GenZ generations have been the focus of much research and attention in recent years. Many churches have done their own research, strategizing and hand-wringing about ministry among these generations. Drawing upon our experience and research, this seminar will explore the implications of trends among young people in relation to the practice of corporate worship. -
WORSHIPING THROUGH WORDS AND ART
Betsy Steele Halstead
Covenant Fine Arts Center, Room 222
Blessed is the congregation in which the Word is proclaimed not only through words, but also through artistic expression. In this session, we will look at wise practices for thoughtful integration of visual art into worship through your presentational technology. -
"THE WAY, THE TRUTH, AND THE LIFE": SINGING A WORLDWIDE FAITH FOR THE SAKE OF THE WORLD
Michael Hawn and Greg Scheer
Covenant Fine Arts Center, Room 135
What does John 14:6 mean from a global perspective? No one culture has a complete understanding of how God works in the world. Christianity is worldwide, but Christians in various places reflect their faith in different ways. These differences are more than “ethnic curiosities”, but windows into how different cultures bear witness to faith given their location and challenges. The 21st century offers the Christian community the opportunity to understand more fully how God cares for humanity. The local congregation that sings and prayers globally has the potential to be much more vital and open to God’s presence. This session will connect local congregations with the worldwide church. Be prepared to sing (and dance) -
KINDNESS AND LEADERSHIP: LEADING IN HEALTHY WAYS IN AN AGE OF DIVISION AND INCIVILITY
Duane Kelderman and Reggie Smith
Covenant Fine Arts Center, Room 255
This workshop explores kindness as a needed and counter-cultural virtue for leaders today including stories of failure and victory that can encourage all leaders as they nurture this important fruit of the Spirit in their leadership. - WORSHIP AS ONE: DISABILITY
Barbara Newman
Covenant Fine Arts Center, Room 227
What voices are present in your congregational worship? What voices are missing? If you have not yet had the joy, opportunity, or strategies to clearly hear or include the voices of persons experiencing autism, dementia, intellectual disability, learning, hearing, or vision differences, or other areas of disability, it’s time to widen your welcome. Discover the practical framework and tools you will need to have worship times that more clearly reflect the picture painted for us in 1 Corinthians 12—One Body Together in Christ! -
PREACHING AS AN ACT OF WORSHIP
Cornelius Plantinga, Jr. and Lisa M. Weaver
Covenant Fine Arts Center, Room 125
Preaching today, as always, is a centering and substantial act of worship. What are some best approaches to the preaching event? How does the preacher approach Scripture? Dig up its treasures? Anchor preaching within the liturgy? How can the preacher naturally be her/himself within the preaching event while also leaving plenty of room for the mysterious movement of the Holy Spirit? This workshop will discuss some of the strengths and challenges of various methods of sermon development and of preaching. -
LIFE-GIVING WORSHIP: SPEECH-ACTS, STORIES, AND DOING WORSHIP
Joyce Ann Zimmerman
Covenant Fine Arts Center, Room 229
Virtually all grant recipients are concerned with improving worship in one way or another. The habit of doing good worship requires a clear understanding of what worship truly is. This workshop will delve into speech-act theory, stories, and the challenge to DO worship in daily living to come to a clearer understanding of various elements of vital worship and how they work together to praise God and challenge the way we live.
DOCUMENTARY “11 A.M.: HOPE FOR AMERICA’S MOST SEGREGATED HOUR"
4:00 P.M.- 5:00 P.M.
DeVos Communication Center, Bytwerk Video Theater
Hosted by David M. Bailey
This documentary tells the story of Arrabon’s efforts to engage in culture-making and leadership development through internships and music-making. In the wake of increased racial tensions, an organization in Richmond, Virginia, steps into the fray with a fresh, bold vision: Raise up and train a new generation of artistic leaders to write a new narrative in the former Capital of the Confederacy. With such a challenging diversity of backgrounds, beliefs, and experiences, could this group of young musicians really bring hope for change to America’s most segregated hour? Watch the trailer.
POSTER SESSION AND DINNER
5:00-6:30 P.M.
Prince Conference Center, Great Hall
View posters from the 2017 Vital Worship Grants, talk with their representatives, and engage in informal conversations, learning from each other as you move about the room. Hot and cold hors d’oeuvres will be served throughout the session as the evening meal.
WORSHIP FESTIVAL
7:00-8:30 P.M.
Calvin College Chapel, Sanctuary
DESSERT RECEPTION
8:30 P.M.
Calvin College Chapel, Patio (Undercroft if rain)