Prayer is a vital part of our Christian walk. It connects us with God and roots our vision and priorities in God's strength.That's why, during Lent (10 February to 27 March 2016), we are inviting everyone across Bristol, Swindon, North Wiltshire and South Gloucestershire to take part in a season dedicated to praying for the ministry, mission and witness of the parishes and schools across our diocese.
Whether you set aside time during your church service or want to spend a moment remembering these things at home, we want everyone to be a part of this important season.
Prayer for our churches, communities and each other
As part of this season of prayer, the Diocesan Cycle of Prayer will be focused on the theme of Creating Connections, looking at our relationship with God, our communities and each other.
Many people joined us for a day of prayer at Bristol Cathedral in March. The guide for prayer which was used isstill available to inspire your prayers within this theme. This guide can be used in church services, home groups and parish prayer meetings and will be available in mid January.
You can download the guide for prayer to print off for your church notice boards and reproduced in parish magazines.
A Call to Prayer in the week leading up to Pentecost 2016
The Archbishop of Canterbury and the Archbishop of York have taken the unprecedented step of writing to every serving parish priest in the Church of England, inviting congregations to join them in a week of prayer for the evangelisation of our nation.
In the week leading up to Pentecost (8 May 15 May), the hope is to see a great wave of prayer across our land, throughout the Church of England and many other Churches.
The hope is
- for all Christians to deepen their relationship with Jesus Christ
- for all of us to have confidence to share the Gospel
- for all to respond to the call of Jesus Christ to follow Him as disciples, to live out the Gospel and to seek God's Kingdom from day to day
There is a website which features a number of ideas and resources to inspire you, such as:
Committing to a week of 24/7 prayer
A Help my Church to Pray guide
Special prayers for Sunday worship
A novena prayer card handed out to every member of your congregation
A parish retreat or quiet day or a school of prayer
Prayer for sexuality, scripture and mission
Between Epiphany (6 January 2016) and Shrove Tuesday (9 February 2016), our focus as a Diocese was on praying for the Church's unity as we considered human sexuality, scripture and mission. You can watch Bishop Mike's call to prayer on this below.