Walking the streets in a new light

‘I’ve been here and walked these streets for many years, but it’s been incredible walking them again, in a new light, with an expectancy that God would move,’ said Toby Thomas, one of the lead pastors of Shoreditch Church, talking to HOPE Together about prayer walking around his parish in East London. ‘And the expectancy was that not only would God move my heart for people, but that he would also move in a miraculous way.’

Toby’s experience of prayer walking before embarking on a new phase of the church’s life connects with the heart behind the ‘Just Pray’ initiative from Hope For Every Home. It dreams of seeing individual people join together to pray for our local communities as we enter the Hope 23-24 year of mission. Through the OIKOS prayer app, we hope to see every street, road and lane in the country covered in prayer.

Who has been treading these paths before me? What am I joining in with?

‘There’s something that happens in prayer walking where you find yourself asking, “Who has been treading these paths before me? What am I joining in with?” said Toby. He and his church have been very deliberate about asking God to move in their area. ‘We’ve been praying around the proximity of the church. I walk it every day and pray,’ he said. Nearby is housing for people in transition, who have recently returned to the community from prison or rehab. Toby described how, as a church in a creative, influential area of London, they wanted people to ‘walk in and see a diverse group of people’. So, they were delighted when three people from this estate recently came along to church and connected into life there. ‘All this happened from us walking past those buildings and just saying, “God, would you move?”’

A few months ago, Toby got chatting to a lady while they were both out walking their dogs. She lived two streets away from the church, so he invited her to come along – and was disappointed when she didn’t. However, four months later, she reached out to share that she had just lost someone close to her. Toby and his wife opened up the church to give her space to grieve and talk to God. This lady wasn’t a Christian, but she didn’t know where else to turn in her time of loss and grief. ‘This turned into an amazing friendship,’ said Toby. ‘She’s now joined the gardening team in our church. Someone who wasn’t previously part of the church family has learned that she belongs before she believes. We’re constantly praying for her and the next steps of her story.’

Someone who wasn’t previously part of the church family has learned that she belongs before she believes.

While these stories are inspiring and encouraging, we know that the idea of prayer walking can sometimes feel intimidating to people who haven’t done it before. So, what’s Toby’s advice to anyone feeling that way?

‘I think it’s about trust,’ he said. ‘If you feel scared, take someone with you. A friend - someone who is believing for change in the area with you. For me, that’s one of my co-pastors, Naomi – we just walk around and say to ourselves, “This road used to be this”, or “We see this happening over here – let’s just pray about that!”

To encourage people to step out into their communities in prayer, HOPE for Every Home (part of HOPE Together) have launched the OIKOS Prayer App – which aims to get people tagging the streets, roads or lanes they have prayer walked, across the country. The vision is to see every area covered in prayer – and it starts with each of us stepping out our front door.

‘Don’t be scared, just give it a go!’ said Toby. ‘I find when you pray for something, God moves your heart towards it. There’s power in proximity and place.’