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Thy Kingdom Come (TKC) is a global ecumenical prayer movement that invites Christians around the world to pray from Ascension to Pentecost for more people to come to know Jesus.

For more information please see the Thy Kingdom Come website.

***2023 resources available for pre-order.***
NB: Stocks due to be ready around 30th March 2023.

Climb when ready…

This is the call all rock climbers wait for, and recognise as the signal to say “everything is as safe as it’s going to be for you to start climbing”.

 The decision to set off climbing is now based on a mixture of faith in your ability to meet the challenges ahead, and confidence in your preparations. When I see someone leave prison, as a chaplain I face the same mixture of faith and fear. Instead of “climb when ready”, my parting shot is usually “I never want to see you again in my life!”

I can remember those feelings of faith when I was involved in pastoral ministry too. Having finished my sermon prep, made sure the worship team were briefed, that the welcome team were all sorted, the children’s workers had arrived, final prayers said (usually whilst in the loo!), and … ready. But always with a little fear, and always waiting for that little extra thing God might want to do on any given morning. For me, readiness needs to combine both preparation and faith. Only when I see these two combined can I bear the mixed feelings of the present.

As ministers in chaplaincy, church, pioneering or community settings our preparations are essential. But I have come to realise that we are only really ready when we combine this with faith in the one who will be with us on the next steps of the journey. We can look back and know that God has been at work in us to this point, but it is even more important that today we also realise that he will be with us as we journey forward. Today I need to know that God will help me face my anxieties with faith, trusting that he will speak clearly about the path which he will lead me on.

Having every little thing tied down is really not readiness. I am quite convinced that only when we combine our preparedness with faith are we truly ready. Only when we are in an attitude of listening to Jesus say “try fishing on the other side of the boat” (para John 21) are we really ready.

My prayer today is that daily we will face the opportunities and challenges that will surely come along. Prepared, perhaps a little fearful, but ready.

 We have made things as safe as they can be, to get off the ground we need to be “confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” (Phil 1:6)

Climb when ready! The journey for today awaits 😊

Revd Bob Wilson

Secretary for the Free Church Prison Chaplaincy

This article was originally written for Eastern Baptist Association.

Day at the Palace

A reflection from Yvonne Campbell, General Secretary of the Congregational Federation and Director of the Free Churches Group

On Thursday 9th March I travelled to London to see the King. It was such an honour to be asked to be part of a small group of twelve to represent the Free Churches which are recognised as a privileged body to the Monarch.

There are 27 privileged bodies including Church denominations, various universities, royal boroughs, and cities. In times gone by it was the only way the Monarch would hear their news and be assured of their loyalty. However, in 2023, when communication is much better, the purpose and formality remain.

We met at the Free Churches Group office in Tavistock Square. As well as me from the Congregational Federation there was a representative from the URC, Independent Methodist, CIC, Baptist Union, Salvation Army and our Moderator, Helen Cameron. We had a photo and prayed together, then travelled by minibus to the palace. The driver was just as excited as us as we drove through the gates. It turned out his Dad had met the Queen in his role as ambassador of Grenada.

The Palace was grand, plush carpets, Queen Victoria’s cypher over the doorways, beautiful staircases, and huge paintings on the wall. We collected our name badges and were given an order booklet which contained everyone’s names and the history of each of the groups.

As we walked into the ballroom, we were shown to our seats, some of us on the front row and others just behind on the second row. An orchestra played as we waited patiently for the King. When he arrived, we all stood, Beefeaters took their place first and the King was accompanied by Gurkhas.

The orchestra played the National Anthem and then we all sat.

One by one a representative from each of the privileged bodies stood in front of the King and gave a speech. They all declared their loyalty, offered sympathies for the late Queen, spoke a little of their organisation and either assured the King of prayers or wished him good health and happiness.

Each time the King stood, accepted the speech and said a few words. Helen spoke beautifully and the King thanked her for the generosity and grace of our address and for the assurance of our prayers.

At the end of all the speeches the King gave an address which included a note for us to tell those who work with us of his admiration and appreciation for all we do.

There was a reception afterwards when the King mingled and spoke to lots of people including a few from our group. We ate quail eggs and lemon macaroons while we mingled with others, I spoke to some of the military Knights, the King’s ushers, Iain Greenshields, Moderator of the Church of Scotland, Canons from Westminster Abbey, who joked that if you stand still long enough at the moment you would be dusted or painted in preparation for the coronation, Cardinal Nichols and Sadiq Khan.

As one of the trustees, I had helped prepare the brief history and the speech that had to be made to the King. It was so wonderful to experience the event, be in the Palace and raise the profile of the Free Churches and all the wonderful work our churches do to serve their community and build the kingdom.

Hello I’m Anth Dent,

Hello I’m Anth Dent, 

I’m the managing chaplain at HMP Low Newton, a Womens prison in the North East of England. 

If someone had said to me 15yrs ago that I’d be working as a prison Chaplain, I would have said, “you must be having a laugh”. 

God had other plans. 

We were living the dream in a beautiful little village on the Cumbrian border. I was the Children’s and Families worker at a small Methodist Church in the village. My wife was the manager in the village preschool, and our youngest daughter went to the village school. It was wonderful, it felt like being on holiday as we walked through our village every day. It was so comfortable.

We were surrounded by the beauty of creation. Leighton Moss was just around the corner. (Leighton Moss is a nature reserve and not a racing driver as my wife once thought)

We saw God do incredible things in that village: children’s and youth ministry thriving, great connections with the village school and with the Anglican Church in the village. All was good.

Six years in and guess what, God had other plans.

I’ve discovered “God send me” Let your will be done as it is in heaven” is a very dangerous prayer.

Picture this…………I’ve just collected my daughter from school on a beautiful spring day, the birds are singing, the cows are mooing and the first cut of crass is in the air. I’m sat watching my daughter play in the village park, on route home. The park is next to a small village pub and the beer garden surrounded by a dry-stone wall is strategically placed, enabling me to not only supervise my daughter but have small glass of mead (half a lager). As I take a sip, looking at my beautiful surroundings God clearly said to me “stop admiring the view Anth”. Nooooooooo! “But I love the view!. It was then I remembered the dangerous prayer “send me Lord, let your will be done”. 

To cut a very long story short………I ended up in prison!!! NOT as a prisoner but as a Chaplain back home in the not so grim Northeast.

I love it!!! The view is slightly different, trees replaced with barbed wire and gates, but oh my word - if you ever want to see what God can do! 

Please, whatever you do, pray this prayer: “Lord send me, let your will be done as it is in heaven”.

Strap in and be amazed!

A Loyal Address from the Free Churches

The Free Churches Group was pleased to lead a delegation to Buckingham Palace to give a Loyal Address to King Charles on the occasion of His Majesty's Accession.

The ceremony for the presentation of Loyal Addresses by Privileged Bodies took place on Thursday, 9th March, 2023 and was followed by a reception.

A Loyal Address from the Free Churches, including

THE FREE CHURCHES GROUP, including representatives of the Baptist, Methodist and United Reformed Churches

THE GENERAL BODY OF PROTESTANT DISSENTING MINISTERS OF THE THREE DENOMINATIONS, Presbyterian, Independent and Baptist

THE BODY OF PROTESTANT DISSENTING MINISTERS OF THE PRESBYTERIAN (UNITARIAN) DENOMINATION

THE PROTESTANT DISSENTING DEPUTIES representing lay people of the Three Denominations

TO THE KING’S MOST EXCELLENT MAJESTY

May it please Your Majesty

As representatives of the Free Churches, including the bodies of Protestant Dissenters enjoying the ancient and highly valued privilege of personal access to the Sovereign, we offer Your Majesty our loyal congratulations on Your Accession to the Throne.

At this time of complex change and crises, the need for spiritual support and loving communities has not been greater, and we thank God that we have a Christian monarch committed to serving this nation and the whole Commonwealth. These years of pandemic have been challenging, but we are grateful to God that our congregations have been enabled by the Holy Spirit to continue worshipping in new ways and serving their communities.

Ours are mostly gathered churches, experiencing friendship and care among ourselves, but at the same time seeking to be good neighbours in the way that our Lord Jesus Christ taught us by word and example – striving to share His love in our rich and increasingly diverse society. This concern for others has been demonstrated by an active involvement in education since the 17th Century, prison and hospital ministry since the 18th Century, and whilst some Free Church denominations have been involved in chaplaincy to the armed forces since the beginning of the 20th century, this opportunity has been recently extended to the full range of Free Churches.

We give thanks for the growing depth of love and understanding that exists between the many different Christian denominations within Your realm, and with communities of other faiths, and none. In all of these we have been grateful for the example both in word and deed that Your Majesty has displayed. The impact of global warming and the ecological crises are currently of concern to so many and we are grateful that this is a concern Your Majesty also shares.

We value the liberty we enjoy to worship according to our consciences and the freedom to proclaim the Gospel. We share with others a vigilant concern for the tolerance, freedom and mutual care we have enjoyed in Great Britain, represented by the privilege of address granted now through fourteen reigns, appreciating differences and valuing diversity.

May the celebration of Your Majesty’s Accession be a profound example of this United Kingdom coming together in celebration and an opportunity for many to demonstrate to Your Majesty their appreciation for Your service.

May the blessing of Almighty God continue to rest upon His Majesty the King.

This Loyal Address from the Free Churches is available to download HERE.

The Loyal Address - Verbal Address by Rev Helen Cameron, the Moderator of the Free Churches Group is available to download HERE.