Hearts on Fire with a Vision for growth southwark.anglican.org/tkc

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1 #Pledge2Pray Thy Kingdom Come Prayer inside, prayer outside and prayer on the move from Ascension to Pentecost May 2018 Hearts on Fire with a Vision for growth southwark.anglican.org/tkc

Introduction In this booklet we hope to inspire you with creative ideas for prayer stations, spaces and resources that engage all ages during the nine days.

3 Introduction In this booklet we hope to inspire you with creative ideas for prayer stations, spaces and resources that engage all ages during the nine days. We have also taken prayer outside the church building, into the grounds and churchyards, and into the parish, with guidelines for prayer walks. You can download this booklet at and share it with others in your church. We hope that you are blessed in whatever ways you feel called and inspired to pray. We would also love to receive any stories and images of your adventures in prayer from Thy Kingdom Come 2018 please share your experiences with us by ing Vanessa Elston, the Revd Ian Mobsby, Chris Elliott and the Revd James Ashton On behalf of the Diocese of Southwark s Thy Kingdom Come steering group Dean Ayres 3

Prayer inside: guidelines for creating prayer stations and prayer rooms Setting up a creative and interactive space for prayer is a powerful way to engage worshippers of all ages.

4 Prayer inside: guidelines for creating prayer stations and prayer rooms Setting up a creative and interactive space for prayer is a powerful way to engage worshippers of all ages. If you can t dedicate a whole room to this, set aside a space in the church as a focal point for prayer, or create one or more prayer stations. Ask for help from creative and artistic people in your congregation. You could also involve young people in designing and building the prayer space. The Diocesan Resource Exchange Centre lends out kits that contain materials for creating prayer spaces and ideas for prayerful activities that are particularly suitable for children and young people. Go to anglican.org/cypmm/resourceexchange to download a membership form and ask for a kit to be posted to you. Design the space around a vision for mission and evangelism. You could focus prayer on a mission project in your parish or a particular group of people by displaying objects that reflect their concerns. For example, you could represent isolation among the elderly by setting out a chair, blanket, slippers, heater and tray with a cup of soup; the needs of a food bank could be represented by specially labelled tins and packets. Provide a variety of resources, including the materials in this pack. Further resources and prayer booklets are available at global. Hand crosses and rosary beads are a tactile stimulus for prayer. Prayer stools and cushions support different devotional postures. 4

From left: prayer kites and At Home in the Word, Dean Ayres; rosary prayer week at St Stephen with St Mark, Lewisham Creating a prayer space The aim is to engage the senses, to be welcoming,

Your space will need to be clearly defined: use screens, a rug and cushions on the floor. Drape fabric over tables and use lamps and string lights to create atmosphere.

5 From left: prayer kites and At Home in the Word, Dean Ayres; rosary prayer week at St Stephen with St Mark, Lewisham Creating a prayer space The aim is to engage the senses, to be welcoming, colourful, creative and interactive, allowing people to write, draw, paint or even sculpt an expression of their prayers. You can find lots of ideas and inspiration at Your space will need to be clearly defined: use screens, a rug and cushions on the floor. Drape fabric over tables and use lamps and string lights to create atmosphere. Stretch string across the space and provide pegs so that people can clip their prayers to it. Create a display using inspiring images, icons and religious art, along with passages from scripture and printed prayers. Leave a space on the wall or provide a board on which to stick prayers and pictures. Use objects such as small stones, water, sand and tea lights (which must not be left unsupervised), jigsaw pieces or Scrabble tiles. Provide beads and cords to make prayer beads or knotted bracelets as aids to prayer. Lay a large cross on the floor on which people can place prayers or small stones. Incense and scented oils are another sensory stimulus for prayer. Hymn and song books, headphones and music players or suggestions for phone apps can resource worship and contemplative prayer. 5

6 Installations for prayer stations Prayer tree: Use a small tree, potted plant or a branch with plenty of offshoots. Provide luggage labels or gift tags on which people can write their prayers, and ribbons or string to tie them to the branches. Prayer loom: Use sticks and twine to create a loom. Provide fabric pens or markers and pieces of paper or cloth onto which people can write prayers and weave them into the loom. Map of the parish: Use a large map with pictures of key locations in the parish. Provide small stickers and leave space around the edge so participants can write prayers for particular locations and people. Prayer labyrinth: A labyrinth is a powerful resource for all ages to engage in a prayer journey with three stages: the inward journey of letting go of anything that hinders our approach to God, a centre point of stillness and rest in God s love, and the outward journey focusing on the world. You will need to outline a path on a piece of canvas and provide prayer cards to guide people. For more ideas and resources go to Grants for prayer spaces Prayer tree at Messy Celebration 2017 Diocese of Southwark We are able to make small grants of 100 to help churches create prayer rooms and prayer stations. Please see the order form in this pack for more details. 6

Prayer outside: guidelines for setting up prayer spaces in church grounds, graveyards and porches Church noticeboard If your church is open for prayer during the nine days, you can advertise this on

7 Prayer outside: guidelines for setting up prayer spaces in church grounds, graveyards and porches Church noticeboard If your church is open for prayer during the nine days, you can advertise this on your noticeboard and also let people know that you will be taking prayer requests from the public, as well as where they can find prayer request cards and any other resources you are providing. Outside labyrinth Jonny Baker Church porch Church porches can be good spaces for small prayer stations. Why not set up a small prayer tree or wall, indicating that your church is praying for all the people of the parish during the nine days of Thy Kingdom Come and inviting visitors to add their own prayers. You could also set up a box for people to post their prayer requests into, perhaps using the postcards from this pack. See for more inspiration. Church graveyard or grounds It may be possible to create a short prayer walk around the church graveyard or grounds, using particular spots as a stimulus for reflection and prayer. You could also set up outdoor prayer stations, for example by tying ribbons to a tree or placing stones in a bowl although be sure to use weather-resistant items. You can find guidance on how to mow your own labyrinth here, if you have the space: mowing_a_grass_.html. It s a good idea to provide laminated labyrinth prayer cards to assist people in using the space, perhaps leaving them in the porch. 7

8 Prayer on the move: guidelines for prayer walking around your parish Prayer walking isn t just walking and it isn t just praying: it s walking and praying with your eyes and heart wide open, asking to see your surroundings through Christ s eyes. What would Christ celebrate here? What would Christ heal? How can we pray for what we see? You may be surprised at how God speaks to you. Before you start Plan a route through your parish that includes locations that are particularly significant for prayer. These might include: hubs for the local community such as schools, shops, businesses, cafés, sports and community centres or playgrounds; places of historical, environmental or spiritual significance; places of social deprivation, violence or crime; and local projects or areas with which your church is, or wants to be, engaged. Print out a map of your route and mark the points where people can stop and pray. Make sure your walk is not too long: an hour and a half is probably about right. While you walk Start in church with prayer and praise, asking the Holy Spirit to lead and inspire you. A short scripture reading could be shared. Hand out the maps and brief everyone on the route and your suggested stopping points. Ask people to remain in prayer for the duration of the walk. Although it is not the walk s primary purpose, encourage participants to be open to opportunities to interact with the people they encounter. If anyone asks them what they are doing, they should be prepared to respond: We re from Church and we are praying for this area. Would you like us to pray for you or someone you are concerned about? Split participants into groups of between two and four: people are more likely to pray in public in small groups than in large ones. Equally, don t send people out on their own. You can bring the whole group together at certain agreed points during 8

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10 the walk, or stagger participants leaving times but arrange for everyone to be back at church within a certain time. Signs of prayer You might wish to leave signs of prayer as you walk, marking the spots where you have stopped and prayed with a small cross in chalk, a word of blessing such as peace or hope, flowers, water sprinkled from a bottle, or ribbons or prayer cards tied to a nearby post or tree. What to say Pray for discernment: to see the community through Christ s eyes, to discern what God is already doing there, and for insight into how you might engage. Pray for blessings: on every person, home, school, business and situation you encounter. Pray for empathy: to see and feel what people live with every day. Offer intercessions for signs of brokenness and give thanks to God for the blessings and gifts in the community. Pray from scripture: Jeremiah 29:4-7; Isaiah 61:1-4; Mark 12:29-31; Luke 10:1-2; Revelation 21:3-5a. Pray in God s power: allow times of silence for God s spirit to speak to you, or through you. Once you finish J Malonson Gather over a pot of tea to share your prayers, observations and experiences. What did you learn? Where was God s presence especially apparent? What surprised you? What was hard? Where did you see signs of hope? How might the church engage in the lives of the people for whom you have prayed? 10

11 Some material in the Prayer on the move section is adapted from Neighborhood Prayer Walks, produced by the Episcopal Church in the United States.

12 Walking Welcoming Growing

Recognize. God. journal

Recognize. God. journal Learning to Recognize God journal 2010 Community of Christ Corporation Independence, Missouri All rights reserved Community of Christ 1001 W Walnut St Independence, MO 64050-3562 (816) 833-1000 Cover Design