Pray for Co‑Mission

Please join with us in praying for The Boathouse Church, Putney, now led by David Lee…

Give thanks to God for:

• How he has sustained the Boathouse church family through a difficult couple of years in which Ben Shaw (their previous pastor) has been battling cancer (https://co-mission.org/prayernews/why-the-resurrection-matters-to-a-pastor-fighting-cancer/). Praise God for the faith, hope and love they have shown and experienced in this challenging time.
• A series of three online events that explored the Bible’s answer to some of the questions of lockdown life. Thank God that the Christian faith brings hope even in a global pandemic and for the church family and guests who came to listen, discuss and question during these events.
• How the adult Sunday service has been able to meet in person since the start of the year (having not done so since the previous March). Thank God that the school they meet in is willing to have them and for the technical expertise in the congregation that means they can stream services for those who are shielding.
• Our online Sunday school. Particularly praise God for Sunday school leaders who are working hard to make the sessions engaging over Zoom; for attentive children; and that the gospel isn’t constrained by technical limitations.

Please pray for:

• Our Easter events. Pray that our family Easter Egg-travaganza on Good Friday would engage local families with the good news of Easter; that our Good Friday meditations would be a real encouragement to our church family; and that our all-age Easter Sunday service would be a wonderful celebration of the resurrection.
• Our ongoing evangelism. Pray for energy and boldness as we seek to share the gospel with friends, family, colleagues and neighbours; and for opportunities, especially as restrictions ease, to connect with people in Putney we don’t yet know and to speak to them of Jesus. Please pray that God would lead us to those in whom he’s working.
• Our summer sermon series looking at meals with Jesus in Luke’s gospel. Pray that as we look forward to enjoying one another’s hospitality again relatively soon, we would be excited by our King who invites us to feast with him at his table.
• Ben Shaw and his wife, Karen, in his ongoing battle with cancer. Pray for precious time with friends and family, now that they have moved back home to Australia, and that God would work through the chemotherapy he’s receiving to bring healing.

Please join with us in praying for Grace Church Beckenham, led by Matt Dew-Jones, as they continue to partner with Christ Church Bromley and build towards a full launch (God willing) in September 2021.

People – Praise God for growing a great leadership team and a launch team (of around 30 adults and 15 children) with a lovely mix of gifting and age, and an evident passion to serve Jesus. Pray a few more would join as we move towards September.

Venue – Pray the Lord opens the right doors and gives us wisdom in our decision-making. Alongside ongoing conversations with local churches, the council have asked us for a formal ‘expression of interest’ as they look for a new leaseholder for Beckenham Public Hall.

Reaching out – Pray for a new mums’ ‘support group’ that got off to a great start last week. Please pray for the 10 new mums coming along and for the Christians in that number as they look to speak of Jesus. As personal evangelism has grown harder and harder in Lockdown 3.0, pray for renewed boldness and opportunities as restrictions begin to ease. 

Discipleship – Please pray God establishes a few new believers amongst us and saves a few people who are seriously looking into the gospel. Pray as we equip the church for works of service.

Please join with us in praying for New Life Church Catford, led by Zim Okoli and Remi Adedire…

Give thanks to God for:

• An online, three-week Christianity Explored course we ran in January in partnership with a few south-east London churches (Grace Church Brockley, Grace Church Sydenham, Honor Oak Christian Fellowship and Mosaic Multicultural Church). Thank God that from each church a couple or more non-Christians guests attended. Pray those who came would be converted this year as we keep engaging with them.
• The continued good attitude of our church family in engaging with online church provision during lockdown.
• The church family also being highly engaged with our Week of Prayer at the end of January. We sense God used this to prepare us to persevere spiritually during the third lockdown.
• Two women who started regularly attending online church recently. Pray they stick with it despite the oddness of joining a new church on Zoom, although we thank God they’ve felt warmly welcomed. One of the women has a large family and we think this could be a great boost to existing families in our church in terms of companionship.
• Linda Allcock (of Globe Church) who spoke at our Parents’ Seminar on 6 March, addressing the topic of ‘Shepherding a child’s heart and development’. She was a great help to parents feeling at times overwhelmed with attending to their children’s spiritual well-being in these odd times of lockdown.

Please pray for:

• Us to be able to return very soon to meeting physically on Sundays and centrally midweek. We know a lot is out of our control, but pray for good outcomes from conversations with our venues. One of the difficulties for us is that our Sunday venue is a cinema, but they are willing to consider possibilities that allow them to keep shut as a cinema while opening solely for worship.
• Mental energy and spiritual resilience for pastors Zim and Remi, our other elders and our church family. The monotony and restricted social contact of lockdown can be discouraging and demotivating.
• A baptism service on 21 March (postponed twice since March 2020). We’ve managed to secure a one-off venue for this. Please pray all the logistics and covid precautions run smoothly, and this would be used wonderfully by God to encourage us all in the faith we profess.
• Each of us to be feeding on Christ in this season of journeying to the cross, and that out of joy we’ll be seeking relational opportunities to speak of Christ crucified and risen. Pray we might be able to have an Easter service (God-willing in person) that both encourages us and proclaims Christ to non-Christian guests.

Please join with us in praying for St John’s Chelsea, led by Andy Mason…

Give thanks to God for:

• The few new people who are coming along to services.
• The congregation holding together pretty well during the pandemic.
• A new Bible study group that has been formed.

Please pray for:

• N, who has been studying the Bible one-to-one over the last twelve months. Pray that he would come to faith in Christ.
• A, who over the last few months has come to church for the first time. Pray that she would come to faith in Christ.
• Wisdom as we refresh St John’s vision post-lockdown.
• New volunteers for our kids’ ministry as a few people leave for other pastures.
• Spiritual refreshment and maturity as we go through the whole of John’s Gospel over the next year.
• An opportunity to do a kids’ holiday club in the May half-term.

Please join with us in praying for Christ Church Mayfair, led by Matt Fuller…

Give thanks to God for:

• Some of our church family being able to meet in person for Sunday services.
• The people coming along to Christianity Explored. Please pray that they would be convicted of their need for Jesus. 
• Those who use the gifts and time the Lord has given them to serve on the music and tech teams during this time.

Please pray for:

• Us to keep growing in our faith, whether we join church physically or online. 
• Our virtual weekend away on 20 March as we study Genesis 22. Pray particularly for newcomers to get to know others in the church family.
• The Lord’s continued protection on our meetings as we move to having two evening services from 14 March. Please ask he would also preserve our unity as a church family during this time.

Please join with us in praying for Grace Church Worcester Park, led by Sam Williamson…

Praise God:

• That the church has been able to continue meeting in person, as well as on Zoom, throughout the latest lockdown. This has been a great encouragement for many. 
• For the opportunities to partner with other local churches in running or publicising online events through the past year. 

Please pray for:

• Wisdom and creativity for our outreach plans over Easter, as many restrictions will still be in place. Pray for church members to think carefully about how to reach out to family, friends and neighbours with the good news of Christ.
• The Christianity Explored course we hope to run after Easter. Please pray that many people will respond to that invitation. 
• The training webinar Word One to One have agreed to run for church members to equip them in using John’s gospel to read one-to-one with non-Christians. Pray this will be an effective tool and give people confidence in sharing God’s Word.