• PRAYSPACE

    A pop-up safe space to come and PRAY

  • A little taster

    Still at the planning stage, but here's a little of whats in our heads.

    Timelapse of putting up the lights

    Rev Alex's little one came to help put up the first lot of LED lights.

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    What is PRAYSPACE?

    PRAYSPACE is a pop-up prayer-room.

    Safe space to come and pray.

    It's open to anyone from anywhere.

    There are prompts and tools to help you.

    There will usually be one or two people on site.

    Sometimes it's open just for personal prayer.

    Sometimes there are moments to come together.

    The only expectations are that you've come to pray.

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    The Space

    The space we're able to use for this pop-up, is the beautiful upstairs space at St Ninian's Church. It's large enough to give us 4 distinct areas to meet and pray. It's got under-floor heating, kitchen facilities and toilets downstairs, and privacy.

    It'll be open mostly 7am-10pm for October Half Term.

    The full timetable and schedule is on the 'Spaces' tab.

  • What to expect.

    Going into a prayer space can be daunting - how long are you expected to pray for, and how is the right way to go about it all? Here is a little overview of what to expect and how it's actually pretty simple.

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    Quiet Space

    As you enter, you'll see the quiet space. It'll have a couch, a small table, a bookshelf, candles and maybe even a rug! There'll be floor pillows and low lighting. In this space the idea is that you sit and be still in God's presence. Feel free to read the books we have on prayer and Christian spirituality, the Bibles that are there, or even have a holy nap. No snoring please.

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    The people wall

    In the quiet space, we will have our wall of people. Here there will be prompts for the 'types' of people you might want to pray for (or leave a name up for others to pray for). Groups such as family, friends, world leaders, politicians, people in need, ... and as the week goes on, feel free to add either names, or categories onto the wall. Every so often it will be harvested so that more names can go on.

    You can spend time asking God to remind you of people and putting them onto the wall - or you can spend time placing your hand onto one name at a time, and asking God to bless them, protect them, heal and guide them.

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    The Creative Space

    For some people, painting, writing, drawing or modelling something is a way to engage in prayer. You can sit in the creative space and ask God to prompt you to create something. There will be a couple of 'grafitti walls' where you can write up big prayers, draw them, or write bits of the Bible out. Maybe there's a single word that comes to mind, or an image in your imagination - write it, draw it, paint it.

    You can also visit the creative space and look at what's in there, then use those things as a springboard into something it moves you to pray about. When the creative spaces are too full, we will harvest some of that stuff, put it into a pile somewhere so that it's still there to be looked through, and make space for more expression and praying.

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    The Prayer Labyrinth

    We have a large floor-labyrinth - a winding journey of contemplation and prayer. This will be there sometimes, and not at other times. At the start of the labyrinth there will be a selection of prompt cards to use if you would like, and the labyrinth on the floor will have numbers for the journey. As you slowly and silently walk the journey of the labyrinth, think and pray about anything the cards bring up. The basic idea is that on the way 'in' to the centre you reflect on how you personally want to go deeper into your relationship with God, and then on the way 'out' you pray about ways you can work your faith out practically in the world around you. If the cards help, use them. If not, don't!

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    The Thankfulness Area

    One area will be dedicated to thankfulness and reflection on where God has been in your journey to this point. There will be space for answered prayers, to celebrate people God has put in your life, places that have meant a lot to you, music that has been important, Bible passages that have guided you, opportunities you know it was right to take and more. It won't take long for this part of the space to get full, so these will also be harvested every-so-often to make space for more.

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    The 'prayers to leave' area

    In here, you can write prayers that you don't want anyone to read. Don't write the whole prayer - but put on key words or phrases that will mean something to you, and not to anyone else. Roll these prayers up, and stick them into the frame we will have made. Once a day, just before we shut down for the night, we will be gathering to stretch out our hands and pray over these confidential prayers. Then they will be removed, and shredded or burnt. There will be instructions for no one except the leaders to remove these prayers.

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    Music

    There will be an acoustic guitar, an electric keyboard, a bluetooth speaker and possibly other instruments there too. For some people, music is a great way to worship - so there will be key times where we open up the instruments and gather to sing with whoever is there. One of those times will be at 7.30pm each evening. For other times, see the leader on duty at the time and ask permission. It'll partly depend on who is in the space at the time.

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    Praying for places

    We'll have a world map up, and a map of the IOM up too, and at some points we will remove our big labyrinth and replace it with a giant map of the Island, which people can stand around and pray over, placing things onto it should they wish.

    On these maps you can add notes for others to pray for things, or just stick on where you have been praying for.

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    Our wooden cross

    There is a large wooden cross as part of the space too.

    Here, you can write down things that you think need to be laid at the feet of God himself. Possibly there are things you believe the world needs to turn away from, things that are wrong, hurtful or cruel - we can write those things down and lay them at the cross, praying for God to act and move as you do. You can make this as personal and specific as you need to about yourself, or keep them general.

    Some people find it incredibly moving to sit at the foot of the cross for a while and read scripture (particularly the last 3-4 chapters of Matthew, Mark, Luke or John). Feel free to do this if it helps you.

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    Praying with others

    Each evening, between 7.30pm and 9pm, we will have a period of time where people come together to pray. Each day has a prayer focus, and will be a fusion of music and praying.

    During the day, should you want to have someone pray with you, either go to the person you'd like to pray with you and ask them, or ask the leader on duty if there's someone available. We will also have a certain space, and if you sit in that space, the leader on duty will ask if you would like to be prayed with. The space will be clearly marked.

    Praying in twos or threes needs to happen in public (not in private), and at the request of the people being prayed for. Please don't approach people and ask them if you can pray for them, because some people find it difficult to say no even if they mean it. There is a way for people to ask for prayer.

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    The glass arc

    As you enter, you'll see the large glass arc of our balcony. All along here we are writing prayers and blessinga in chalk pen.