Displaying items by tag: United Kingdom

At 3pm on Good Friday, thousands stood in the street outside their homes to pray against the negative effects of coronavirus and for restoration and healing in the land. The National Day of Prayer and Worship team are now calling Christians to join a 24-hour prayer chain to run through April, May and June until there is complete victory and tangible answers to our prayers. 1,000+ churches have already chosen a prayer slot. The target is for 2,000 churches to choose a day when they will pray for 24 hours. Individuals or small groups can also pick an hour slot when they will pray. To register to pray at a certain time, click the ‘More’ button, go to the specially prepared website, and choose a date. No amount of time you give is too small or too big.

When Angela Barry's grandfather died last year she realised just how difficult many of his generation were finding life, often feeling isolated. As the country went into quarantine, she was determined to ensure that the older people in her community did not feel alone. Her solution - fruit and vegetables. Along with her husband and three children, she has set up a weekly free fruit and veg stall outside her house in Bolton and delivers bags of fresh produce to those who need it most. So far they have served 50 isolated neighbours. Sons Joshua (9), Ben (7), and Isaac (4) are manning the stall, which has created many opportunities for new relationships. Angela says, ‘This is a really great time for us as a church to be the light. We are all at home and it is a brilliant chance for us to really show what church is in our local community.’

At the time of writing, Boris Johnson is still in hospital, but out of intensive care and 'responding to treatment' after contracting coronavirus and not improving in isolation at home. The Archbishop of Canterbury urged Britain to pray for Boris and thanked the NHS in the country's fight against coronavirus. Boris is being closely monitored by a top lung doctor and his fever has eased while he remains clinically stable. He has been sitting up in bed and engaged positively with the clinical team, although not yet working. He can contact those he needs to as lockdown rules are discussed at this critical time. The NHS medical director warned, ‘Now is not the time to become complacent’. Downing Street hopes that Boris is over the worst of the infection. Pray for health and God’s healing to touch his body. Pray for God to impact his immune system.

London Prayer has launched a new initiative called 'Pray for NHS'. People wanting to pray for the NHS are invited to text 07857051229. They will then be invited to join a group. The group sends out a daily prayer update with targeted points based on information received from London medical staff and other sources. NHS staff will also use the number to submit urgent prayer requests. The founder of London Prayer said ‘I'm so thankful for the work that the NHS is doing, we want to see them supernaturally enabled, strengthened and equipped. There has to be a partnership between the Church and people of prayer to stand behind frontline workers – putting our hands prayerfully upon their backs to ensure the line that they are holding in terms of treatment is held.’ This London initiative will go further, as people in Southampton, Birmingham and Manchester have enquired about organising the same initiative in their areas.

In 2016 we prayed that a vision to build a wall of one million bricks, each brick representing an answered prayer, would become a reality, and it did. Now the Wall is seeking 10,000 testimonies during April to share hope with the nation online and sow faith at this challenging time. People have more time on their hands than ever, and as they read stories of answered prayer they will find fresh hope instead of fear, joy instead of anxiety; and encounter the God who answers prayer. They are inviting each intercessor to be a social media warrior and give them 15 minutes a day - or take time to share an answered prayer on their website. To do so, please click the ‘More’ button. It is encouraging to see the answered prayers that are beginning to come out of this crisis. To be involved, contact

On 8 April Rishi Sunak announced that the Government has promised an extra £750 million coronavirus funding for frontline charities across the UK. The support package will ensure that they can continue their vital work during the coronavirus outbreak. The Government will also match funds with whatever the public decides to donate to the BBC’s Big Night In charity appeal on 23 April, starting with a contribution of at least £20 million to the National Emergencies Trust appeal. Mr Sunak said, ‘Our charities are playing a crucial role in the national fight against coronavirus, supporting those who are most in need. It is right that we do everything we can to help the sector during this difficult time.’ Among the charities that will benefit will be those supporting domestic abuse victims, end of life hospices, foodbanks, those delivering food or essential medicines, and those providing financial advice. Pray for the administration between departments identifying priority recipients to flow smoothly and speedily.

The National Domestic Abuse helpline has seen a 25% increase in calls and online requests for help since the lockdown. The charity warned that the lockdown heightened domestic tensions and cut off escape routes like the school run. It is believed that domestic violence and potential homicides will escalate as social distancing restrictions continue. Many perpetrators already use isolation ‘as a tool of control’. Last year 1.6 million women in England and Wales experienced domestic abuse. Pray that the women and children currently spending concentrated time with perpetrators may receive all the support they need from social services, police and charities. Pray that friends, family and neighbours who may have suspected abuse in the past will keep in contact with the vulnerable and report suspicious situations. Recently the UN reported, ‘Over the past weeks, as economic and social pressures and fear have grown, we have seen a horrifying global surge in domestic violence’.

Psalm 127:3 states, ‘Children are a gift from God’. In the Name of Jesus, we pray for children to be safe and secure, loved, enjoyed, and protected, and that everything God has put within them of fun, of laughter, of imagination and gift will be released and encouraged. We pray that this will be a time of unprecedented learning, growth and experience for them at every age. May their education come in multiple ways, with rich life-learning for all ages and stages at this time. We ask God to bless vulnerable children with safety, protection, and provision of shelter, food and love. We pray for children suffering from autism, dyslexia, ADHD and related issues. May they be surrounded at this time by those who love them, and may patience, acceptance, confidence and peace overwhelm every fear and anxiety.

So far this year almost 500 migrants have been intercepted while crossing the Dover Straits, from coronavirus-infected Calais camps. On 8 April four boats carrying 57 migrants (23 of them Iranian) were intercepted by the Border Force in the English Channel. The previous day 63 migrants had tried to cross the Channel, despite lockdown measures remaining in place in the UK. Last week 52 Iranian, Iraqi and Afghan nationals, including five children, came ashore at Dover. All such migrants will be monitored for signs of Covid-19, the Home Office added. They go into isolation, and twenty places are reserved for those with coronavirus symptoms. Up to 3,000 migrants are living in northern France in desperate conditions, at high risk from coronavirus. Pray for the home secretary and her French counterpart as they tackle this situation, complicated by the coronavirus crisis. See

As the impact of coronavirus increases we hear of ‘tsunami waves’ of patients filling hospitals, however there is also a ‘tsunami of prayer’ flooding the nation. Many are saying that we are probably experiencing a level of sustained prayer not seen since WW2. Our homes, home groups, prayer groups, and church congregations are meeting online to pray. There are reports coming from Scotland that home groups who used to meet weekly or fortnightly are now praying together online every evening; churches are holding online morning or evening prayer sessions, with attendance two or three times higher than their usual prayer meetings. Church leaders are experimenting with connecting in new and innovative ways to pray. Globally there is united prayer being generated across every time zone See