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Psalms Retreats Invite Vulnerability, Build Hope and Trust

When a congregation in Long Beach, California, designed a psalms retreat as part of a worship renewal grant, they had no idea how it would grow and blossom. Engaging with psalms of confession, praise and thanksgiving, lament, and hope and trust has helped hundreds of Christians develop a new language of prayer.

September 12, 2023
Keith M. Douds on Creating Safe Space for Church Groups

Church retreats, church governance meetings, and church small groups require honesty, vulnerability, and transparency to collectively draw closer to God. Psychologist Keith M. Douds explains how and when to step in with grace and preserve safety so that everyone has a chance to share and be listened to.

September 1, 2023

Nine Tips to Effectively Embed Dwelling in the Word

The communal practice of Dwelling in the Word has great potential for building congregational bonds with God, each other, and neighbors. These nine tips can help your church discern God’s promised and preferred future for you as you wait for Christ to return and make all things new.

August 18, 2023
Dwelling in the Word: Simple Practice Leads to Spirit-led Mission

Explore Dwelling in the Word, a communal way of engaging Scripture that helps people encounter God, fellow dwellers, and other neighbors. The change happens over time as people repeatedly listen to and discuss the same passage.

August 18, 2023
Children and Youth Can Dwell in the Word Too

Dwelling in the Word is a tool for helping people of all ages—even children—to read and reflect on the Bible together. Doing so helps them to see the Bible as an ongoing story in which God invites us to participate in God’s mission for the world.

August 18, 2023

Becas del Calvin Institute of Christian Worship permiten crear un cancionero educativo en español

Para el liderazgo de la Iglesia Presbiteriana El Redentor, la noticia del apoyo que estaba ofreciendo el Calvin Institute of Christian Worship (CICW) para implementar un proyecto relacionado con su comprensión del culto, la adoración, y la predicación, llegó de sorpresa. “Esa fue la primera impresión, cuando fuimos invitados a pensar en un plan y que podríamos tener apoyo financiero,” comparte muy emocionado el Reverendo Jorge Texidor, pastor de la iglesia en mención, junto a la líder Janira Colón.

August 17, 2023
Inesperadas Oportunidades de Crecimiento

El involucrarse en el Programa de Becas para Congregaciones Hispanas del Calvin Institute of Christian Worship abrió oportunidades inesperadas de crecimiento para Morada de Justicia Ministries de Miami, Florida.

August 3, 2023

The Colossian World Today: Opportunities for Preaching

In the 2023 Worship Symposium’s five main worship services we are looking at Colossians. In this session the five people preaching on Colossians will reflect together on how the situations facing the Colossian Christians long ago remain relevant today. Najla Kasab, Marshall E. Hatch Sr., Laura de Jong, Danny Román-Gloró, and Scott Hoezee will talk about what they observed in crafting their sermons for this year's symposium and on the larger opportunities all preachers have to bring forward Paul's words to address the many crises of our own time.

July 21, 2023 | 24 min video
Chalice and Loaf or Cups and Cubes

Our celebration of the Lord's Supper in the Reformed tradition is sometimes touched with uncertainty. Is there something sacred about wine, or is grape juice an acceptable option? Are there rules about whether the bread should be leavened or unleavened, store-bought or home-baked, white or wheat? Is a single chalice more meaningful than a tray full of small cups? Who should bring the elements to the table—and when? Does it make any difference what we do with leftover elements?

July 20, 2023 | 1 min read
Pouring Forth Speech: The Webb Telescope and God's Glory

Theologian John Stek called the physical creation "the glory robe of God." John Calvin liked to observe that it is our privilege to live in the “glory theater” of God's creation and that the reason God made human beings to stand upright is so we could better lift up our eyes to see the stars above. In the last year more of the universe's glory has been revealed by the stunning images emerging from the new James Webb Space Telescope. Few people can help us appreciate these new glimpses into God's creation better than astronomer Deborah Haarsma. In this session, Dr. Haarsma and Scott Hoezee will discuss what new facets of our Creator God's work have been revealed by the Webb Telescope’s images.

July 19, 2023 | 77 min video