Could your church, presbytery use $5,000-$15,000 for a worship project? Read on.

Each year the Calvin Institute for Christian Worship disburses about $500,000 in worship renewal grants. My church was awarded one this year (described later). This is the tenth year of the program and grants were awarded to 43 projects in 2009. The CICW website has a 16-page Guidebook describing the purpose, eligibility, selection criteria, project preferences, what’s not eligible, FAQ’s, etc. The website also has a list of all previous grant recipients with project summaries for 2000-2009 by year and geographic region. www.calvin.edu/worship/grants/wrgp.php

[Editor’s note: the original URL (link) referenced in this article is no longer valid, so the link has been removed.]

Applications for 2010 grants are due January 11, 2010 (postmarked) and applications will be received after December 1. Grant recipients will be announced May 1 and funds disbursed June 1. I highly encourage you to submit a preliminary proposal to Mrs. Betty Grit, the program manager. She will give you invaluable feedback and advice for your final application (as she did for us last December).

From the CICW website, here’s the description of our project: “To offer seminars for pastors, laity, worship leaders and local artists to help deepen understanding and appreciation of the Lord’s Supper and prepare the congregation to create new sacramental furniture in a congregation that celebrates the Lord’s Supper weekly and meets in a neighborhood theater.” (ChristCentralChurchPCA, NECharlotte – Revs. Howard Brown, senior pastor and Giorgio Hiatt, associate pastor). Also receiving a grant this year was Christ the King PCA in Raleigh: “To immerse the congregation in the Psalms of Ascent with the help of linguists, musicians, visual artists and pastors that will help the congregation form faith, identity and tradition in modern life.”

If you’re interested, request a copy of our six-page proposal and grant budget we submitted last year. ([email protected]). This program is made possible through a Worship Renewal Grant from the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship, Grand Rapids, Michigan, with funds provided by Lilly Endowment Inc.
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Howie Donahoe