Resource Search Results

My Soul Finds Rest in God

Join with singer-songwriter Sandra McCracken for contemplative songs and liturgical prayers, while making space within this worship service for both lament and joy.

Worship Service | Video | March 31, 2016

Worship Resources for Radical Hospitality

Scripture models well for us how to speak about immigration in worship. Together, with Abraham, Jesus, and the early church, we can model radical hospitality, we can lament the pain of leaving and the pain of the journey, we can witness God's faithfulness to the refugees and migrants in the past, and together, united as the body of Christ, we can seek responses that reflect God's heart. Ultimately, we can look forward with hope, knowing that our "citizenship is in heaven."

Resource Guide | March 14, 2016

Worship that Blesses the Whole Community with the Whole Gospel

Most Christians know that Jesus calls us to love God with all we have and to love our neighbors as ourselves. Canaan Community Church changed its worship to truly follow the Great Commandment.

Feature Story | August 06, 2015

A Prayer of Lament

This prayer of lament was prayed at Calvin Theological Seminary on May 1, 2015 in response to the earthquake in Nepal and the unrest in Baltimore.

Worship Service | May 05, 2015

Peggy Goetz on Planning Worship with Stroke Survivors

Peggy Goetz is a communication arts and sciences professor at Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Observing her speech pathology students in Calvin’s stroke clinic sparked her to research the experience of stroke survivors in their church communities.

Conversation | September 12, 2014

Psalms Encourage Family Faith Formation

It’s easy to see why parents would want their kids to know Psalm 23, “The Lord is my shepherd,” and Psalm 103, “Praise the Lord, my soul.” But do children also need to hear Psalm 13, “How long, Lord? Will you forget me forever?” or Psalm 22, “I cry out by day, but you do not answer”? Robert J. “Bob” and Laura Keeley say yes.

Feature Story | December 12, 2013

Shaped by the Psalms

The Psalms offer us language to express gratitude, lament, confession, and praise in worship. Worship Renewal Grant recipients will describe how they studied and prayed the Psalms to help children and adults understand how the psalms help shape the ways we speak to God and to one another through words, music and the arts.

Audio | January 26, 2012

Bob and Laura Keeley on Lament Psalms and Children

Robert “Bob” Keeley teaches education at Calvin College. He and his wife, Laura Keeley, direct children’s ministries at Fourteenth Street Christian Reformed Church in Holland, Michigan. They write books, curriculum, and plays. Here they talk about making lament psalms accessible to children.

Conversation | September 20, 2011

Worship Resources for September 11

Resources for remembering September 11

Worship Service | Article | August 17, 2011

Worship Resources in Times of Natural Disasters

Many of these resources, initially created for an immediate response to specific events, may be adapted or may help provide ideas for similar resources for other natural disasters or for services remembering these events.

Bibliography | March 16, 2011

Songs for Lent

A list of songs to shape Lent. These songs range from prayers of confession to cries of lament to expressions of trust and praise for God’s grace.

Article | March 04, 2011

The Longest Night - LaSalle Street Church

This service of lament and longing for God's light was held on the night of Wednesday, December 20—the night with the least sunlight of any day on the calendar in the Northern Hemisphere.

Worship Service | Article | October 22, 2010

Singing the Psalms Against a Backdrop of Persecution: A View from Pakistan

Find out how the psalms bring hope to suffering Christians in Pakistan and how the psalms can challenge theologians, poets, and musicians around the world to strengthen faith, ministry, and worship.

Audio | March 23, 2010

From Protest to Praise

Our church can be described as a singing church.

Article | September 01, 2009

What the Psalms Have to Teach Us about Song Writing

Psalms allow us to express a whole range of emotions in powerful ways and at the same time, they tell us a lot about God. This workshop will examine how worship song writers can learn from the psalms as they work on their own craft.

Audio | January 01, 2009

Too Deep for Words? Preaching in the Language of the Spirit

This session explored the possibility of discerning the presence of the Holy Spirit in preaching and then discussed some manifestations of the Spirit in sermons, particularly focusing on the expressions of lament and celebration.

Audio | January 01, 2009

From Lament to Praise

When we gather for worship on New Year’s Eve, we do so to praise God for the past year—to thank God for the wonderful gifts he has given us and to remember his wonderful deeds. But what if our year has not been good? What if, when we think back on the year, all we can remember is pain and heartache?

Article | September 01, 2008

Bringing Our Pain to God: Michael Card and Calvin Seerveld on biblical lament in worship

Lament is an essential ingredient of honest faith, but what does biblical lament look or sound like in real congregations? A feature story exploring how Christians can bring their pain to God in worship.

Feature Story | June 20, 2008

Interview with C.R. “Kees” van Setten about the Power of Musical Lament to Reconcile Jews and Christians

In this email interview from spring 2008, van Setten tells how the music of lament has helped heal European Christians ashamed of how they’ve treated Jews and helped Jews feel God’s presence. He explains how combining lament and praise can enrich evangelical worship.