The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, wants politicians to look to the Church to learn lessons in kindness. He expressed disappointment in some of the dialogue coming from Parliament in recent weeks. ‘One thing which inspires me about our churches is a simple word - kindness. The Church does kindness so well - treating each other with civility and respect - and I wish we politicians learnt from that. We don't even have the patience to hear someone else's argument, giving people the benefit of doubt.’ Mr Khan was speaking to approximately 10,000 from the London Carols event at Wembley Arena. He thanked the Christian community for the ‘huge contribution’ they make to London.

As Brexit negotiations hit critical stages, the Federation of Small Businesses has published a guide which outlines the main outcomes and describes what good contingency plans should cover. Pray for our business leaders to have wisdom and clarity of vision to devise such plans. Ask God to give leaders in agriculture, fishing, manufacturing, engineering, and industrial developments the insights to deal successfully with any unexpected Brexit scenarios. We can ask God to give heaven’s direction as they consider risks and opportunities. Brexit will affect the rights of EU citizens living in the UK, and of UK citizens living in EU countries. Pray for justice to reign for individuals and families caught in this shifting situation.

Machines can replace human hands in some farming but not when harvesting many types of fruit or vegetables. Growers rely heavily on people for all these jobs in season and out of season. It might be possible to reduce seasonal labour by investing in mechanisation for some crops; however hand picking is currently the only option for quality of produce to meet consumer demand. Just 1% of seasonal farm workers are British. Most come from Eastern Europe, but with the end of free movement, growers could have to look even further for labour. Africa, Asia? Already, labour shortages have left produce rotting in fields and polytunnels. As Britain prepares for free movement of people to end, farmers are anxiously saying, ‘Who will pick the crops next spring? Brits won’t do it.’

Tens of thousands of people have prodigal family members. The dictionary defines a prodigal as extravagant, a big spender. The word describes the son in the well-known parable: does it also describe the Father, who threw a great extravagant feast in honour of to his errant son? You might empathise with him; he loves his son but has not seen him in many months and is worried about his adventure in the big, wide, often dangerous world. Fathers, mothers and siblings of prodigals know the deep ache as they pray for them to come back to Jesus. Prodigals are on God’s heart. Ask Him to prompt families to know when to open a reconciling conversation, and when to remain silent. May there be strengthened relationships so that people draw closer together.