Prayer Spaces in Schools hosted a fantastic conference for leaders, ambassadors, and champions of the movement. The day began with worship alongside leaders from other parts of the 24-7 Prayer movement, including Youth leaders, Prayer Room hosts, and 24-7 communities.
During the day, time was given to hearing about new developments within the movement and the amazing news of how Prayer Spaces in Schools is spreading across the globe. In fact, new Spaces had happened in Bulgaria, Belgium, and Denmark just that week! The international leader of Prayer Spaces in Schools even sent us a video message from the airport as he was on his way to meet with 50 church leaders from 16 African nations, all interested in exploring prayer spaces in their schools. Fantastic! It blows my mind seeing how far-reaching this ministry is now given that here, in Colchester, was one of the first expressions of Prayer Spaces in Schools. We have such a rich heritage here, and our successful Prayer Spaces in Schools continue year on year to positively impact children and young people.
At the conference, I loved the opportunity to meet others and hear what God is doing in schools’ ministries up and down the country. Testimonies were shared of how young people are going on spiritual pilgrimages, leading worship in a newly in-post headteacher’s office, and staff teams having a prayer space as part of an INSET day and being deeply moved by it.
My key takeaway was the sense of possibility—the spark of wonder and peace that children can feel from being in a prayer space—but not wanting to stop at only that. If I want them to come to know Jesus, then prayer spaces will need to be followed up with something far more intentional to continue exploring: ‘Is it possible to know God?’, ‘Who was Jesus?’, and ‘Am I loved?’. These questions are begun in prayer spaces, but they are an invitation to facilitate further conversations with pupils afterwards.
I even got to reconnect with Frances Coe from the Brentwood Schools Christian Worker Trust. We first met when we both took part in the ‘Prayerfully Learning Together’ research project run by the Diocese of Chelmsford. All in all, it was an inspiring and thought-provoking day, helping me reflect on how we encourage and equip our Mission Partners who want to run a prayer space.
Want to find out more about running a Prayer Space in your local school? Use the Contact Form to get in touch!
written by Jo Wood