Awaken

Church News

Christ Church London is about to embark on a significant new chapter. Find out more

Across the world, many Christians are sensing that this is an important season, in which God is awakening His church. At the start of this New Year, we want to respond to His call to awaken, by devoting ourselves to prayer, seeking His presence, and following Him wholeheartedly.

History is full of stories of times when God has stirred His church to awaken; to hunger for more of His presence and pray for Him to move in fresh and powerful ways. There are many accounts of awakenings in our own city, where the church has devoted itself to prayer, and people have come to faith in their thousands.

Across the world, many Christians are sensing that this is an important season, in which God is again awakening His church and causing us to hope and dream that He will do something remarkable in our generation. So we want to begin 2019 with a short, sharp, sermon series – like a spiritual wake-up call – calling us to play our part in God’s plans for our city.

In this series, entitled Awaken, we will look at some of the spiritual practices that typically precede a fresh move of God: devotion to prayer, longing for His presence, the discipline of fasting, and a commitment to following Him wholeheartedly. We hope this series will help us go deeper in our relationship with Jesus, as individuals, but also as a whole church. As we give ourselves to God in prayer, who knows what He might choose to do through us?

Alongside this series, we have put together a short survey, which we hope will assist you in reflecting on your own spiritual life. This survey is completely anonymous. It is designed to help you think about steps you may want to take in following Jesus in 2019, and will also help us know how we can serve you better.

You may also want to read some books that will stir your faith and help you grow in prayer. I’m sure we will mention plenty of resources as we go through the series, but here are a few suggestions to get you going.

Dirty Glory by Pete Greig is a fantastic account of the story of the 24-7 prayer movement. It will inspire you about what is possible through prayer, and will encourage you to take steps in learning to pray.

Other great books on prayer include those by Philip Yancey, Tim Keller and Richard Foster, and The Spirit of the Disciplines by Dallas Willard is a brilliant introduction to spiritual disciplines, including prayer, fasting, and solitude.

When God Breaks In by Michael Green and A God-Sized Vision by Hansen and Woodbridge are both full of accounts of some of the ways God has moved in the past, encouraging us to believe that He might do it again.

You may also want to check out the Daily Devotions we created for our Week of Prayer.

Complete the survey

Faith

Liam Thatcher 6th January 2019

In a sun-scorched desert, Isaac finds himself unearthing ancient wells and remembering promises God made to his forefathers. In the first talk of the series, Liam considers how Genesis 26 invites us to return to God in faith and ask Him to do new and mighty things in our generation.

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Devotion

Jo Wells 13th January 2019

Every great move of God has been built on the foundation of prayer. In this talk, Jo considers how renewal in the world around us begins with renewal in our hearts through prayer.

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Thirst

David Stroud 20th January 2019

Ezekiel 47 depicts a beautiful scene, in which streams of living water pour out of the Temple, bringing life wherever they go. In this talk, David looks at the promise of the Holy Spirit, and how a Spirit-empowered church should be a source of life and hope.

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Hunger

Liam Thatcher 3rd February 2019

Right throughout the Bible, God’s people have undergone periods of fasting, where they have abstained from food and devoted themselves to prayer. In this talk, Liam considers the significance of this often-neglected practice, and how we can learn to enjoy and be strengthened by it today.

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Renewal

Lars Due-Christensen 10th February 2019

In Mark chapter 2, Jesus addresses the religious leaders of his day, and poses a strange riddle about wine and wineskins. In this talk, Lars explores Jesus’ saying and considers how the church needs to be made new, if we are to contain the fresh things God wants to do in us and through us.

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Mission

Andy Tilsley 17th February 2019

For centuries God had called His people to be a beacon of hope to the world. But instead, they had often kept their light hidden. In the final talk of our series, Andy considers Jesus’ teaching in Matthew 5 about how the church should shine as a light in a dark world.

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Perseverance

Liam Thatcher 24th February 2019

In the last talk of the series, Liam looks at the examples of Anna and Simeon in Luke chapter 2, and how they embody what it looks like to persevere in prayer even through personal pain.

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One Great City. One Great Church.

We made a presentation for Love London Sunday, documenting some of the great men, women and churches who have served this city for the past 1700 years. Here's a sped up version of the presentation; you'll want to watch it with a finger on the pause button!