Many of us have probably prayed as we’ve watched accounts of the knife violence on London’s streets in the news, and whilst there have been local victories the issue is still significant. At the churches’ “Standing Together against Knife Violence” rally earlier this year I saw the WWI inscription on a statue the edge of Trafalgar square “[we] must have no hatred or bitterness for anyone” and felt God speak to me.
I was reminded of Matt 5:21 ff where Jesus says if you have anger in your heart you have the same murderous attitude. The church standing together in that rally was rejecting the divisive attitudes sometimes expressed between church denominations. It was closing the door on the division of hatred across the church in London and across our streets.
One Accord is a continuous, united year of prayer and fasting in which individual churches take responsibility for a day to fast and pray over three specific London-wide issues: Peace, leadership, and transformation. It is the whole body of Christ in London standing in One Accord on these issues, geographically and across the church traditions. It is also being in “One Accord” with our grieving communities as we are encouraging church to invite their community to participate in prayer with them.
It is our hope that prayerful communities will take these prayer points and host a day during which they could prayer walk their local streets, gather together to pray, or maybe host a prayer space. There is request that as a church/group you would pray for 4 hours during that day, there is not a requirement to pray 24-7. We would also love to see churches provide meaningful ways for local residents to engage in this prayer for peace on their streets too.
What we are looking for now are groups and churches to sign-up to take part. Could you consider if your church/group could sign up for a day, or maybe a regular day each month? It could be that you already have a prayer week planned in 2020 that you could make part of One Accord and stand with the churches in London to see a breakthrough in the areas of Peace, Leadership, and Transformation.
There needs to be social action response to knife violence and creative solutions for the issue, but ultimately, the thing that will result in the biggest change is a move of God upon people’s hearts, so let pray for that in One Accord.
