Prayer initiative Thy Kingdom Come begins this month

More than a million Christians will join together in a global wave of prayer from Ascension on 29 May to Pentecost on 8 June. Thy Kingdom Come, the annual prayer movement that invites Christians around the world to pray for more people to come to know Jesus, will celebrate its 10th anniversary this year.

People from 85 denominations in almost 90 percent of countries around the world will join in prayer, creating a constant flow of prayer 24 hours a day for each of the 11 days.

Ascension Day, when Jesus ascends to heaven, comes 40 days after the Resurrection while Pentecost, which traditionally marks the beginning of the Church, is 50 days afterwards.

Thy Kingdom Come aims to support everyone who takes part to:

• Deepen their relationship with Jesus Christ
• Pray for five friends or family members to come to faith in Jesus
• Pray for the empowerment of the Spirit that we would be effective in our witness

A Prayer Journal

Rt Rev Dr Shaw Paterson, Moderator of the General Assembly, is encouraging congregations to take part in the prayer movement using the specially created ecumenical prayer journal available for all to download from the Thy Kingdom Come website.

"Last year I was privileged to participate in Thy Kingdom Come, and led the contribution on Pentecost Sunday," he said.

"I encourage congregations and individuals to again journey with this global prayer initiative.

"Now in its 10th year Thy Kingdom Come is a way to bring Christians together from different denominations and from all over the world to create a global wave of prayer for the 11 days between Ascension and Pentecost.

"Prayer is how all of us can open our hearts to God and become part of the peace we want to see in the world. We can pray anywhere and for anyone, asking God to bring the love and peace of Jesus Christ to our family, friends and to all people everywhere."

With each contribution based on a line of the Lord's Prayer, the prayer journal features contributions from a range of Church figures including:

• Rt Rev Rose Hudson-Wilkin the Bishop of Dover in the Church of England
• His Eminence Archbishop Angaelos the Coptic Orthodox Archbishop of London to the United Kingdom
• Cardinal Vincent Nichols the Archbishop of Westminster and President of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales
• Most Rev Andrew Chan the Anglican Archbishop of Hong Kong

Children

Cheeky Pandas offers a variety of free resources that seek to get children excited about Jesus, the Bible and prayer.

The aim is to ultimately help each child build a beautiful life-long relationship with Him while having some panda fun along the way.

The Bible-based videos can be used in family services, assemblies and at home, featuring songs, animated stories, prayer and interviews with special guests.

You can find videos and downloads on Thy Kingdom Come's Cheeky Pandas page.