Praying for the world

At this station we are going to take time to listen and pray for our world. This can seem daunting as there is often so much to pray for. We wanted to give you some tools to help you as you pray.

‘I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.’ John 16:33

Praying for the world is a way in which we get to humble ourselves in prayer by bringing different areas to God that might trouble us or in which we want to see change.

Respond in prayer

Here are a few suggestions of areas to pray for, equally feel free to pray as you feel led:

1 – War in Ukraine

On Saturday it will be two years since Russia invaded Ukraine, the largest attack on a European country since WW2. After two years of fighting, pray for a final end to this war. For peace and perseverance for Ukrainians defending themselves. And let’s especially pray for the young generation of traumatised Ukrainian children affected.

2 – Cost of Living

Let’s pray for people affected by rising prices and cost of living. For those struggling to buy food for their families, pay bills and debt or simply affording live. And pray for communities around the world who feel this reality most harshly.

3 – Interactive prayer

Why not write a prayer on the ‘paper people’, maybe for a specific person or group of people from around the world. Feel free to colour them in and hang them on the string in the area that they are based in the world. This could be anyone from a family member living in a local town to world leaders that you don’t know personally or have never met. Let's cover the world and the people living in it in prayer.

Praying for Bristol

At this station we are going to take time to pray for the Kingdom of God to come in Bristol, glimpses of the rule and reign of Jesus, the fruit of that Kingdom to break out in our city and claim Bristol’s identity as a City of Hope.

‘31 He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. 32 Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches.” - Matthew 13:31-32

Respond in prayer

We have highlighted some different areas where we want to pray to see God’s Kingdom break through in our city, and to thank God for the ways He is working in our city.

HERE ARE A FEW SUGGESTIONS OF AREAS TO PRAY FOR, EQUALLY FEEL FREE TO PRAY AS YOU FEEL LED:

1 – Governance

Pray for the way Bristol is led, the Bristol City Council, the Police, those who lead in Bristol’s Schools, all those who make decisions affecting others. Pray that God’s Kingdom would come in their life, in the way they lead and the areas they govern.

2 – PEOPLE OF BRISTOL

Pray for struggling families and individuals during this unprecedented time. Pray for families that cannot afford food or individuals that cannot afford bills. Pray for the Kingdom to come in our most challenged neighbourhoods. Pray for the hope of Jesus to change narratives around the most struggling parts of our city, and a sense of spirit-filled unity to descend on Bristol.

3 – CHURCHES & Charities

Pray for the different churches and charities in Bristol working to restore hope to those most in need in our city – scroll to the bottom of the page for suggestions of charities. Pray for churches across the city to be bolstered by the Spirit as they seek to be the Kingdom of God in the hearts of their communities for their communities.

4 – Interactive prayer

Take some time to bring different areas of Bristol before God. Use the chalks to write words, pictures and scriptures for each area rooted in the truth that Bristol is a city of hope.

More info

Praying for St Nicks

At this station we are going to take time to pray over our church and community, thanking God for all He has done over the last few years and all that He will do. We wanted to especially pray into the vision of the church that God will continue to strengthen us as we seek to play our part in the evangelisation of the nation, the revitalisation of the church and the transformation of society.

‘I pray that you may grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ- and to know this love that surprasses knowledge- that you may be filled to measure all the fullness of God.’ Ephesians 3:18-19

This is a scripture we felt the Holy Spirit highlight to us when St Nicks was planted. This verse has been a prophetic picture to us as a church. In all we do at St Nicks we want to aim high, giving God our best, dig deep, building a faith that lasts, reach wide to the people most in need in our city and go long, investing in the future generations.

Respond in prayer

As we pray we want to take time to pray for a move of God through this community, for the breath of God to lead us in all that we do and the love of God to be tangibly thick in all that St Nicks is.

Here are a few suggestions of areas to pray for, equally feel free to pray as you feel led:

1 – RADICAL MISSION

Let’s pray that as a church we are drawn ever deeper into the radical mission of Jesus for our city. That this community is a space where people feel drawn into encountering Jesus for the first time, and we as a community tell the story of Jesus in all spaces we inhabit.

2 – GROWING FAITH

Let’s pray that as we each grow in relationship with Jesus, God would speak powerfully to us, and lead us deeper into all that he is calling us into. That this would be a community built on the foundations of prayer and discipleship. Lets pray that God would take us and bring growth through his Spirit.

3 – WIDE REACHING DREAMS

Let’s pray that as we aim to reach wide, God would break our hearts for what breaks His in the city of Bristol. Let’s pray for powerful dreams and visions for our city that would fuel us, build our faith, and embolden us for the good things that God has in store for our city.

5 – Interactive prayer

Why not pick a lollipop stick prompt from the jar to inspire your prayers for different parts of St Nicks. Feel free to put the stick back in the jar for people to continue to cover that area in prayer.

More info

Head to our website where you can find out more about how we are seeking to reach wide through our social action response.

Practice listening

Here you might like to take time to listen for what God is saying to us as individuals. Often life is full of noise, business and distraction that stops us from hearing God clearly when he is speaking to us.

‘But those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.’ Isaiah 40:31

Spending time waiting in Jesus’ presence is how we renew our strength. It’s when we pause and sit in His presence that He refreshes us and fills us with more of Himself. It’s so simple yet so counter-cultural.

Respond in prayer

In a world that is driven by doing, why not take time to just be with Jesus. This could look like lying down and stilling your mind, or you might want to meditate on a Bible passage. However God speaks to you best, use this time to listen out for what God might be saying to you.

Maybe use your hands to help you pray

Palms facing down - Give things over to Jesus that you’ve been carrying

Palms facing up - Invite Jesus to come and be with you, to commune with you. 

‘We who have turned our lives over to Christ need to know how very much he longs to eat with us, to commune with us. He desires a perpetual Eucharistic feast in the inner sanctuary of the heart.’ - Richard Foster

Questions you might like to ask God

Jesus, what do you want to speak to me about today?

Jesus, where am I not seeing myself, or your world, as you see it?

Jesus, where do you want to lead me today?