Time With God

I have now added a set of photos on flickr for last weekend's Time With God. Please feel free to have a look and read some of the 'writing on the wall' and 'washing line' prayers.

For those that don't know, for a few years now our church has done a 24 hour stint - every 6 months or so - where our centre is open for people to spend some time with God. People have the option of candles, music and the chance to write on the wall – actually on flipchart paper that we blu-tack on the wall. Two or three years ago we started bringing in art materials too and on one occasion we had some prayer stations including last time the idea of writing or drawing your prayers and pegging them to a washing line. We have always said that how people spend the time is between them and God. But this time the feeling was that at least some of the time was to be spent in intercession for the world.

So last weekend we were busy bringing in more candles and throws and beanbags. We provided people with loads of suggestions for prayer including local items and information on international issues such as the current financial crisis. Helen made displays about Christians that we have relationship with including some in Zimbabwe. We used visual prompts such as a globe and maps. For example, Nettes & I laid out an activity to turn weapons fashioned out of tinfoil into ploughshares as people prayed for peace. We also placed some herbs in the kitchen to eat while people could read a meditation on slavery and a prayer for those enslaved today.

Steve Watts, our elder, was excited about finding a set of ‘soaking’ CDs that someone had loaned to us for the time. He soon began to meditate on God relaxing on a beanbag. Through the night we were praying, worshipping and producing pieces of abstract art. People came and went in the early hours of the morning. I had a good time praying with Jackie early in the morning about liberation and we were writing out things that we wanted to get rid of in our own lives as well as in the world - such as fear, insecurity and poverty - and throwing them in a waste bin. On Saturday, Nettes and Callie went and Callie took part by painting a picture of heaven and by praying for China. Callie is only five.

We received some really positive comments about the event and hope to do this again later in the year.