Displaying items by tag: United Kingdom

Police are appealing for information after 39-year-old Hatun Tash suffered a knife attack at Speakers' Corner in London on 25 July. The former Muslim, now a Christian speaker, was treated by the ambulance service then taken to a central London hospital. See  Meanwhile Christian street preacher Joshua Sutcliff who was fined and prosecuted for evangelising in London on Good Friday 2020 was acquitted recently, but another judge upheld a Covid fine against Christian preacher Andrew Sathiyavan, who was out for the same reasons the same weekend. The Christian Legal Centre were pleased that Joshua was acquitted but are concerned that prosecution came this far. ‘We are seeing a lot of inconsistencies from the police and the judiciary in these cases. Christians have been easy targets during the pandemic while other groups gathering in significant numbers have not been targeted by the police.’

Mark 6: 31 says ‘Come with me to a quiet place and get some rest.’ May this holiday season be a season of rest, recuperation and restoration for individuals, couples and families. For those who are unable to take time off, we can pray for a supernatural season of rest and refreshment. Father, in that place of rest and relaxation, may Your people be in your presence, hear Your voice and know your ways, just as Moses encountered You in the wilderness. May this be a season of fresh encounters, restoration and breakthroughs, with Your Spirit brooding over this nation. May Your people forget what has gone before and press on toward the upward call of Christ Jesus. He is calling forth those who will lead in the days ahead, not because of title or position but because of the depth and obedience of their walk with God.

There is more flash flooding, partly caused by climate change. Parts of London and the south of England were left under water and roads became impassable this week. Just 30cm of water is enough to move a car. Infrastructure and transport networks were damaged. London hospitals asked patients to stay away after they lost power. Urban areas experience ‘surface water’ flooding because they have a lot of hard surfaces - paved front gardens, car parks, roads and high streets. On 28 July several towns in Scotland were flooded, with more to come. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-57970845 Reading University says urban areas could benefit from permeable pavements and green roofs which can help rainwater to soak away rather than causing floods. Weather and flood forecasting has improved rapidly, and it is now possible to forecast surface water flooding events in advance.

In a letter to Boris Johnson, cabinet ministers and the NHS England chief executive, the NHS Providers group says demands on staff are rising. Many chief executives are saying that the overall level of pressure they are now experiencing is different in shape, but similar in scale to what they saw in January when the NHS was under the greatest pressure in a generation. The letter calls on the Government to make ‘the right decisions’ as it finalises NHS funding for the second half of the financial year. Hospital pressures include going ‘full speed’ to address the backlog of mental health and community care services, and record demands for urgent and emergency care. There are growing hospital admissions for Covid, along with more than a million cases of long Covid and people suffering poor mental health. Hospitals are currently running enhanced infection control measures, leading to ‘significant loss of capacity’, with staff self-isolating or suffering stress and mental health issues.

A £1.6bn strategy to improve the lives and opportunities of disabled people was announced by the Government. It aims to tackle shortages of suitable housing, inaccessible public transport and barriers to education and work. Work and pensions secretary Therese Coffey said the government was listening and consulting. The shadow minister for disabled people said the consultation process failed to consult properly with disabled people or organisations; many critical areas were ignored. Disabled Tory peer Lord Shinkwin said the plans did not go far enough. He said the document was a ‘broken promise’ and he did not believe it would prevent disabled people from being shut out of society. ‘The Department of Work and Pensions, which has led on the development of this strategy, does benefits but it doesn't do equality. It shows this government doesn't understand the desire and potential of disabled people to be seen as more than just recipients. We are contributors, we are all people.’

Last year you prayed for justice for a Franklin Graham event after posters for Graham’s ‘Time For Hope’ event were banned from Blackpool buses. Nevertheless, thousands heard him speak at the town's Winter Gardens, and hundreds responded to his altar call. Blackpool council refused the posters because of concerns that he would incite hatred because of past comments he had made about Islam and homosexuality. This week the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association was awarded over £100,000 in damages as the council said they accepted the advertisements were not offensive, and in removing them they did not take into account that this caused offence to other members of the public. They also regretted they did not consult with the organisers before taking their decision.

The Church of England will hold an unprecedented ‘act of repentance’ service for the medieval expulsion of Jews in 1290 and other anti-Semitic acts. The move comes as the 800th anniversary approaches of the 1222 Oxford Synod, which introduced notorious anti-Semitic laws, including forcing Jews to wear clothing to distinguish them from Christians. Despite the CofE not existing in the 13th century (Henry VIII created it much later), Justin Welby’s office said it is exploring the idea of such a service, in conjunction with the Council of Christians and Jews, as well as the potential for a liturgical resource that might be offered to local churches to model an appropriate symbolic repentance. David Rich of Community Security Trust labelled the apology a case of ‘better late than never. The historic trauma of medieval English antisemitism can never be erased, and its legacy survives today with rising anti-Semitism’.

Many churches will be running a wide range of school holiday clubs throughout the summer months. Pray for the themed weeks to inspire children as they discover their Father in Heaven’s love and the friend that they have in Jesus. May the new songs that they learn be sung at home with their families and friends. Pray for God to give His strength and stamina to the many adults who will be guiding the children through various craft activities, sports and games, presenting interactive mime and drama, storytelling, singing and dancing, messy play and much more. May they find many opportunities to introduce their groups to Christ in each session. Pray for the clubs aimed at children who would normally receive free school meals. Pray for the evening clubs and café clubs aimed at older children to be fun and safe for all. May every Christian holiday club be used by God to open avenues between churches and communities.

Iceland said photographs of empty shelves in supermarkets, signs of panic buying, were isolated incidents. While there were ‘some availability issues’, they said their supply chains are resilient. M&S and other businesses said growing numbers of staff have been ‘pinged’ by the NHS Covid-19 app and they must self-isolate for 10 days. Businesses want people who have been double-vaccinated or have daily tests to be able to return to work. The British Retail Consortium said shops were facing increasing pressure as they try to keep shelves stocked with rising numbers of staff self-isolating. It said ministers needed to ‘act fast’ and allow fully-vaccinated retail workers or those who had tested negative for Covid to go to work. The Road Haulage Association said a shortage of 100,000 HGV drivers is disrupting supply chains as workers return to Europe following Brexit.

From 19 July England’s church congregations can be free from face masks and allowed to sing. Congregational singing and other in-person interaction is important for Christians. May churches be gracious and wise as they use their freedoms as scientists warn ‘lifting of almost all restrictions is a mistake as not enough people have been vaccinated’. Prof Robert West said government predictions of 100,000 cases a day over the summer are optimistic: ‘We could be seeing even double that.' The test and trace system remains the only way the Government can contain the virus to an acceptable level. So the message on how closely people should follow the advice to isolate if ‘pinged’ by the app is crucial. Although it's not a legal requirement to do so, any suggestion that ‘it's up to you, optional, or a judgment call’ risks undermining the Government's entire approach. Pray for everyone to navigate wisely the tricky issue of keeping everyone safe as they use their new freedoms.