Displaying items by tag: church

The Archdeacon of London has published guidance to priests about taking precautions in the light of the spread of coronavirus, principally in terms of the risks of infection arising from administering Holy Communion. Pray for God to give wisdom to churches until the infection risk is over. After a coronavirus case emerged in London, doctors there warned that the London Underground could be a hotbed for spreading the disease across the city’s extensive transport links. After a patient in isolation at Arrowe Park Hospital tried to leave, police have now been given the power to seize people in danger of spreading coronavirus and force them into isolation in handcuffs. The World Health Organisation said that the measurement of the coronavirus outbreak could be ‘the tip of the iceberg', as thousands of cases might be undetected.

TLG is a Christian charity that helps churches to bring hope and a future for struggling children. From school exclusion, to poverty and holiday hunger, there are children across the UK facing some of the toughest starts in life. TLG believes change is possible through early intervention: one coach per child, one hour a week, for children struggling in school because of bullying, bereavement, family breakdown, poverty, or being in the care system. These all have a huge impact on a child's education. Some children may be struggling with a lack of confidence, have no positive role models, or just need an adult to talk to. TLG Early Intervention gives the church a practical solution to support children, families and schools in their community. The programme enables trained volunteers to become coaches and work on a one-to-one basis with a child, improving their behaviour and in turn raising their levels of learning. 

CofE staff are being given ‘unconscious bias training’ in a bid to see an equal gender split across its leadership by 2030. The Bishop of London, Sarah Mullally, said, 'I certainly think that having women as priests enables different types of conversations that probably wouldn't happen if you're a man. My background as a nurse means people often talk to me in a different way.' The presence of female leaders within the Church has risen in recent years, with the number of women in senior leadership positions doubling between 2012 and 2017. Of the 115 UK bishops within the Anglican Church, currently 25 are women. However the door is still closed for female priests within the Catholic Church.

Somalia, located on the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean, has summer droughts and dust storms and floods during the rainy season. It has the seventh-highest birth rate in the world, the second-highest maternal mortality rate, and fourth-highest infant mortality rate. Decades-long instability has caused a 38% literacy rate, and 1/3rd of children are underweight. Sunni Islam is the official religion; the government functions under the Union of Islamic Courts, which has implemented Shari'a law, creating a mixed legal system with other customary laws, known as Xeer. 16 of the 22 people groups have never heard the gospel, but praise God that the Somali church (a tiny minority), though driven underground, has withstood sufferings, great persecution, and martyrdom. Pray for an end to radicalism and tribalism, and that the country’s leaders will help to unite people by bringing in policies that protect human rights and equality of all people.

Pastor Toby leads Spacnation South London, a faith-based organisation committed to transforming the lives of young people. In a generation where many young people have been dejected, abused and simply overlooked, Spacnation offers an alternative, whilst changing the narrative of this generation one step at a time. They are rescuing people from gangs, from addiction and from fear, with over one hundred baptised each week. They have set up 23 safe houses for gang members who are willing to turn their life around and escape from a life of crime; they say their safe houses are homes full of fun, food and fascinating stories. Shadow home secretary Diane Abbott has backed the initiative, saying the safe houses seem to be working and are part of a solution. See

Alexey, a middle-school dropout, first went to the missionaries’ church for food when he was a homeless beggar. When he got a job and could feed himself, he stopped attending church. He met Anya and they had a baby boy, but he fell into substance abuse and his income did not cover family costs. When child welfare authorities arrived at their door to take their son away, they successfully pleaded for more time to show they could care for him. Realising his need for God, Alexey took his family to church the following Sunday. He repented and asked believers to pray for them. ‘From that day, a huge change took place in our lives. We got married, I ended drug and alcohol abuse, and we read the Bible daily. Thanks to God for the miracle He has done in our lives.’

World Mental Health Day was 1 October. This year it was supported by the International Association for Suicide Prevention. Every forty seconds, someone commits suicide. ‘40 seconds of action’ raises people’s awareness of the frequency of suicide, and the role that each of us can play to help prevent it. In the UK one in four adults will have mental health problems at some stage in their lifetime. For every suicide, there are twenty suicide attempts. These have an impact on families, friends, colleagues, communities and societies. Pray for a proactive church to support vulnerable people with mental health challenges wisely. 20% of the UK population will suffer from depression. Pray for more friends, neighbours, and relatives prepared to stand with the sufferers with compassion and support them through their crisis.

All over the UK, God has been doing a hidden work through GATHER - a network of over 120 movements in villages, towns and cities across the UK with Christian leaders and churches forming vibrant mission-focused unity movements based on prayer and friendship. These networks are taking the prayer of Jesus seriously: ‘May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me’ (John 17:23). Tired of working in isolation from, or in competition with, other churches in their area, these networks are laying aside theological and cultural differences for the sake of reaching their local area with the love of Christ. GATHER is building a growing movement, not an organisation, which encourages and supports unity movements to grow and develop in their prayer, fellowship and missional transformation activities.

We praise God that hundreds of new Iranian and Afghan believers have been baptised in recent months in cities across the region. In Iran, these include teenagers who were deeply impacted recently by an Elam youth discipleship conference. The baptisms have been occasions of great joy and celebration, often lasting from morning to evening. Over 100 more new believers will be baptised soon at a service in Afghanistan. Please pray that all these new believers will grow in love and knowledge of Christ, and that God will protect them and give them wisdom as they witness to family and friends.

Most British schools reopen on 2 September. During the holidays, three million children were at risk of hunger. One in five children faced food insecurity, one of the highest rates in Europe, because they were no longer receiving a daily school meal. Because of this, a variety of organisations and churches dotted across the nation have been providing free activities and hot and healthy meals to children and families who would otherwise have gone hungry. They have also been supporting and building relationships with the most vulnerable in our communities. Pray for these relationships to continue to grow after the ‘hunger clubs’ close down. Pray for the church volunteers who now have contact with some of the hidden ones in their communities to continue to give families the loving support that a compassionate church can give. Also, 37% of teachers spot malnutrition when children return to school after the holidays. Please pray for sensitive relationships to be built between families in poverty, teachers, social workers, councils, and other agencies able to support the vulnerable. See