Praying Together

Each Monday evening in July, 6 to 8 St Denys folk came together to pray, whilst others prayed at home. Centred on our verse 'In quietness and trust is your strength', our intention was to lean on God, and pray for the ministry and mission of the church. Over the four weeks, we prayed along the themes of 'Place', 'People', 'Deep & Wide' & 'Connectedness.' There was a strong sense of dependency on God, of a gentle openness to his ways, and also of deeply valuing so much of St Denys church and community. 

As we prayed a few themes emerged that I thought it would be good to share with you, so together we can be shaped in our journey with God.

Praying with a 'looking, leaning and listening' attitude

Rather than telling God what to do, we sought to express our dependency on God and to share our hearts with him, so that he in turn would share his heart with us. So we used a simple structure to shape our prayers: Firstly 'looking' at the church, community and Bible passage, and then thanking God for the good things we saw. Secondly, 'leaning in' to God with the concerns and needs we were aware of, the emphasis being on expressing concerns and an openness to being shaped by God through praying. So thirdly, we wove in 'listening' to nudgings, themes, and things that seem to strike a chord.  There were a number of things that emerged through praying this way, and I'll just note three here:

• Remembering our dependency as we look at situations around us. In looking at Isaiah 30:15-18 through a number of different translations, our attention was drawn to words and images that reminded us of our deep dependency on God. As we look to our resources, the needs around and within us and also to the possible ideas of what we could do, there was a sense of being reminded that we depend on the fullness of who God is. I think this removes striving, and the sense of being overwhelmed or feeling inadequate, and instead gives a gentle, hopeful expectation of provision, guidance and 'enough-ness'.
• Rediscovering grace. I was really interested that this emerged as a theme and it felt like an invitation to explore what God's grace looks like in the St Denys context. This intrigues me, and I'm committing to explore, read and pray into this more over the summer. Maybe you could too!
• Recognising our connectedness. This theme emerged strongly in the last couple of sessions in a number of different ways: our connectedness to other churches and to other groups in the community, the potential of connecting with groups that are currently hidden or marginalised, and the value of unseen connectedness that comes through things like prayer. 

I've created a simple image that I think captures some of these threads and serves to remind and inspire us as we continue on our journey. Our St Denys tree is placed amongst others in recognition of our connectedness, and all are placed in the hand of God, in recognition of our dependency in him. 

An Expression of Faith: 'Today I believe'...

Each evening we concluded with the same prayer*.  There was a sense of it anchoring us, and equipping us as we stepped into the week ahead. People commented that they found it helpful and realistic, and so I thought I'd conclude by offering it to you too.

Expressions of faith

Lord, You have always given

bread for the coming day;

and though I am poor,

today I believe.

Lord, You have always given

strength for the coming day;

and though I am weak,

today I believe.

Lord, You have always given

peace for the coming day;

and though of anxious heart,

today I believe.

Lord, You have always kept

me safe in trials;

and now, tried as I am,

today I believe.

Lord, You have always marked

the road for the coming day;

and though it may be hidden,

today I believe.

Lord, You have always lightened

this darkness of mine;

and though the night is here,

today I believe.

Lord, You have always spoken

when time was ripe;

and though you be silent now,

today I believe.

* 'Expression of Faith' from Evening Prayer - Northumbria Community