Education Sunday is coming up soon!

Education Sunday will be celebrated on 13th September this year. You can download and share the prayers and resources for this year HERE.

The theme for for this year is: A learning people in a time of change.

At this start of the new academic year, may I share this gathering prayer, which I wrote in 2017, as part of the Education Sunday materials:

Let us come together and pray…

Loving God, Gather us in from north, south, east and west, from city, town and village.

Gather us together, in your name, as your church, to praise your Holy name.

Gather us and let your kingdom come. Let us rejoice in your glory and grace.

Gather us, like fragile saplings, at the start of this new term / new season*, eager to learn, even if we feel unsure. Let us know we are always rooted deep in your love. Give us strong branches to reach out in trust.

Gather us, as we draw close to Christ, listening to Jesus’ words. Let us be sustained by his ministry and saving love.

Gather us ever closer to you when we know we have let ourselves and others down. Let us know your reassurance and the promise of forgiveness, so we can start afresh, this term / this season.*

Gather us around the glow of the Holy Spirit; the Spirit that gives us fire in our hearts to yearn for and work for justice. Let us be inspired and transformed to embody the change we want to see in the world.

Gather us, like threads, from all walks of life, from schools, colleges and universities; from homes and workplaces; from places of transition and refuge. Let us be woven together, in your name, to create a haven of hope and wonder for all; to make a rich and diverse tapestry of love and life in all its fullness, which reflects your Holy image.

Gather us and strengthen us to serve in the world; to reform all that is unjust; to reshape and cherish the planet, to nurture the earth, as you intend.

Gather us and empower us, living God, to share the Good News of your grace and mercy.

In the name of Jesus, our friend and teacher.

Amen.

Prayer by Revd Sara Iles, Congregational Federation in Wales and FCG Media Support Officer

(cover photo courtesy of Nathan Anderson @ Unsplash)

HE CHAPLAINS' COFFEE AND CHAT MEETING on 27th August...

HE chaplains are invited to virtual “Coffee and chat” sessions on a weekly basis (tea and any other beverages are equally acceptable! )


This will be a time where anyone, who would like to, can connect.

There will be time for prayer and reflection and time to chat, share ideas, ask questions – whatever you like.

Here are the dates for the HE chaplain’s coffee and chat meetings:

Thursday 27 August 4 p.m.

Future dates:

Bank Holiday, so no Monday meeting on 31 August;

Thursday 10 September 4 p.m.;

Monday 14 September 10 a.m.;

Thursday 24 September 4 p.m. 


We will send the Zoom code to chaplains on our list before the first event, but please get in touch if you’re not sure if you’re on the list and wish to be included: sarah.lane.cawte@freechurches.org.uk

(photo courtesy of Clay Banks at Unsplash)

Prisons Week is coming up - 11-17 October

Save the date!

Make plans in your churches and community groups…

Join with us as we pray with Prisons Week this year - the theme for the week of 11th to 17th October is UNITED IN LOCKDOWN

Resources and materials to help you pray and support Prisons Week will be available soon!

Watch this space for further details…

For forty years now, Prisons Week has prepared prayer literature to enable the Christian community, through individuals and churches, to pray for the needs of all those affected by prisons: prisoners and their families, victims of crime and their communities, those working in the criminal justice system and the many people who are involved in caring for those affected by crime on the inside and outside of our prisons. Prisons Week raises awareness and generates prayer. It motivates volunteers to step forward and give their time and gifts, in prisons and in their own communities. It provides an annual focus and reason for Christians to work together, building capacity and motivation to make a difference for people who are out of sight and often out of mind.

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On the radio! All across prisons in the UK... pray with us and the Prison Fellowship

This Sunday we are encouraged to pray with Prison Fellowship for the work and ministry of the National Prison Radio…

I recall giving a live radio interview from a poky little BBC studio in Oxfordshire some years ago! A nerve wracking, but rewarding experience.

The Interview was to share news about the youth mentoring programme I was a tutor and mentor for. The mentoring scheme was part of the work that the Youth Offending Team were doing in partnership with local Christian charities. As a result of the radio programme, many more mentors came forward to volunteer on the project. Hallelujah! All my radio broadcast nerves were worth it!

Radio can be a powerful medium to reach people. The Sunday morning service which the Prison Fellowship is hosting later this month has the potential to reach thousands of prisoners and to touch their hearts. May it be a blessing to all who tune in! (Sara Iles, FCG Media Support Officer)

So let us pray for the PF and their service and for all those who tune in…

Prayer for Sunday 23rd August -

Prison Fellowship is hosting the Sunday morning service that is broadcast on National Prison Radio today. Pray that those who tune in will be encouraged and challenged by what they hear. Amen

Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayers…

You can find out more about the work of the National Prison Radio HERE.

You can download the prayer diary for August and pray alongside the PF and partners HERE.

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him,

so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”

Romans 15:13

The Free Churches Group and our work in prison chaplaincy have worked with The Prison Fellowship (PF) for many years.

(image below from NPR and cover photo courtesy of Naadir Shahul at Unsplash)

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