Working in a prison is a hard job, involving risks and difficulty and not well understood by others. It can bring out the best and the worst in any of us. Every day prison staff deal with the vulnerable and dangerous, often with great boldness and imagination, despite the lack of resources and recognition. Living…
Posts by Mark Churchill (Page 6)
Prisoners and victims of crime all come from our communities, and return to them. We need to boldly proclaim the role of communities as places of nurture, renewal and healthy growth for individuals. They need to become places where honesty and humility are possible and where we seek new and bold, life changing solutions to…
When families of perpetrators or victims are caught up in the consequences of crime, it can be costly and shocking; turning the familiar upside down, stripping away any sense of security or comfort and exposing the innocent and uninvolved to distress, judgement and condemnation. It could happen to any one of us. Generous God, always…
To become the victim of a crime is to be undermined at a very deep level, to become distrustful and fearful for the future. Others are needed, to gather round to sustain and support; God’s grace and strength is needed to carry on. Loving Father, we pray for all who are the victims of crime,…
Inside a cell, the temptation is to give up, to abandon hope and just wait for release. It requires courage and boldness for any one of us to acknowledge wrongdoing and seek forgiveness. Merciful God, full of grace, give strength and humility to confess any wrongdoing. Give to all those who seek truth the courage…
Lord, you offer freedom to all people. We pray for those in prison. Break the bonds of fear and isolation that exist. Support with your love prisoners and their families and friends, prison staff and all who care. Heal those who have been wounded by the actions of others, especially the victims of crime. Help…
‘Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.’ HEBREWS 4 v16 NKJV Starting tomorrow, we will be engaging in a week of prayer for prisons and all of those connected with them. We’ll be re-publishing the prayers here along…
Today was our Harvest Songs of Praise service and wow did the congregation give it some welly! Many of the voted for favourites were included, top of pile was 10,000 Reasons, which saw us to the benediction, then finishing off with a powerfully played and sung rendition of I Know He Lives. If you didn’t…
Sunday 9th September was our Gift Sunday for BMS Disaster Recovery Fund and Prison Fellowship. Please see the videos below to understand something of their work. If you would like to make a contribution, please place a marked envelope in the offering bag, indicating whether we can claim Gift Aid also, or speak to our…
On 30th September we’re having a special “Songs of Praise” service, and we want YOUR requests! This is a chance for anyone in the congregation to nominate their favourite hymn or worship song, and we’ll sing as many as we can… We also really want to encourage anyone who’d like to be involved to dust off…