Diocese Prayer Run: Day 1
Day 1: Misson to Retford
Today was the start of the diocese prayer run! A 120km route stretching from the north of the diocese to the south. The run is taking place over the 21st – 26th October and is an opportunity to pray for Living Hope in the city, towns and villages of Nottinghamshire and beyond. Each day is split into a number of 5km and 10km runs that people can join, as well as prayer meetings at over 20 churches across the diocese.
St John The Baptist Church, Misson 9:00-9:30am
The village of Misson is one of the few areas in our diocese outside of Nottinghamshire and just inside the boundary of South Yorkshire. Although there’s only a population of a few hundred in the village, there was an incredibly warm welcome for the runners setting out on the first leg of the journey. One of those runners was Bishop Paul who was keen to support the start of the journey as it stretches through the diocese over the next 6 days.
During the time of prayer there was an opportunity to share some of the vision of the Prayer Run as we together pray and seek for a fresh move of God’s Holy Spirit in every parish of our diocese. As we prayed together, one picture was shared of gold dripping off the feet of all the runners, leaving a golden path of God’s glory and goodness. We carried on praying for needs within the community, as well as the recent fundraising efforts for the church.
After closing with the Lord’s Prayer, the runners were cheered and waved off on the first 5km of the run towards Bawtry (and filled up with wonderful homemade flapjack by Janet!)
St Nicholas Bawtry 10:00-10:30am
Potentially one of the most special welcomes of the whole route awaited in Bawtry, as the bell-ringers sounded the bells as the runners came around the corner. It was great to celebrate this with the group that had gathered, and share stories together. During this time one of the churchwardens shared his personal journey of becoming a part of the church, and the way God spoke to him through the incredible sense of peace he felt entering the building. As the group entered a time of prayer, there was a particular sense of praying for the ‘harvest’ of all the seeds that have been planted over many years in the community.
Shortly after, the group set out to the next church, 5km south in Ranksill.
St Barnabas, Ranskill 11:00-11:30am
Ranskill has been without a Vicar over the past few years, and so this was a particular opportunity for the group to pray for the church as well as the wider community and parish. It was great to have runners Martin and Jane join the group (as well as Jane’s two daughters and their dog for the start!) as they set out on the longest leg of the journey down to Retford.
Opting away from the roads, the group followed a unique route passing lakes, crossing fields and over hills. The route provided opportunity for a very brief stop to pray outside St Bartholomew’s in Sutton cum Lound. Following this, the route winded back down towards Retford as the group continued praying for the communities and people they passed along the way.
St Swithun’s Retford 13:00-13:30am
The final prayer meeting for the day was at St Swithun’s Retford. Particular joy was shared over the appearance of ‘Morrison’s doughnuts’ which Jacob (who is leading and running the whole 120km route) had only 30 minutes earlier during the run declared were ‘the best store-bought doughnuts available’. However, this was replaced with a much deeper joy as the team at St Swithun’s shared some of the wonderful stories of God at work recently through baptisms, Alpha courses, and many lives transformed. The group prayed together for the schools work and faculty processes, as well as interceding for more signs and wonders of God’s power and love in the community they serve.
It was such an encouraging start to the journey, with one day down and five to go. The full route is available here for the coming days. The next update will be days two and three combined!
There’s still opportunity for you to get involved, contact us at comms@southwell.anglican.org if you’re interested in running, joining a prayer meeting, or feel free to send a message of encouragement for those running!