This time of praying in unity across the Scotland / England border follows many years of prayer by groups and individuals – times of confession, repentance and forgiveness for centuries of wrongdoing on both sides, for specific acts or events, as well as for general history.

This evening gathering follows an afternoon of declaring a Blessing Prayer across the border at 8 locations on either side, criss-crossing the border over 4 hours. For more details about the afternoon see www.prayforscotland.org.uk or www.cumbriaprayer.net

On 28th April we are not asking folk to pray into history once again, or to pray specifically about any other practical or political issue. Our position is that we already have unity in Christ (Eph 4:3) and the purpose of the 28th is to celebrate, declare and affirm our unity, our oneness in Christ, through the speaking out of blessing prayers from one end of the border to the other during the afternoon and then celebrating our unity in Christ in the evening.

The evening will include worship and times of prayer using the letters of UNITY as the theme for each section.

Two images that have guided our preparations are:

1) Through all the previous prayer and intercession, the border has already been ‘stitched together’, in the same way that a surgeon stitches up a wound. When the surgeon removes the stitches, a stronger ‘union’ is left. On the 28th we will be ‘removing the stitches’ as we speak out the blessing prayers.

2) The border is like a wound that has been healing, and the hard scab has formed to protect the wound as it heals. In the natural, one does not (or should not) pick off a hard scab. We add cream or oil to soften it so that it either dissolves or can be removed easily. The prayers on the day will be that oil, softening the scab for its removal, again to leave a strong union.

When we talk about ‘union’ we are not making any political statement. We are talking about the unity of the Body of Christ in these islands. God may have set boundaries for peoples, but He does not see political borders – He sees His people – the family of God across these islands.

Jill Scurfield, Hawick Colin & Chrissie Greaves, Cumbria Prayer Net

Steve Weatherill, Tulips Alistair Barton, Pray for Scotland