Work and Pray

 

Regular prayer for the world of work can be a significant feature in Sunday services, and ICF seeks to provide various resources to help those who prepare these. Prayer of this nature can be important for various reasons:

 

· It encourages Christians to see their working lives as part of their Christian Identity

 

· It helps those involved in the world of work, particularly when their job makes it difficult to participate in church activities, to feel affirmed and valued.

 

· It is a vital part of our intercessory responsibility to the community around us.

 

· It communicates a faith that is relevant to real issues to those who visit our churches

 

Each week, different groups of workers can find a place in prayers at Sunday worship, with individual members including them in personal devotions during the preceding and/or following weekdays. Consider what might be said in the context of the congregation’s thanksgivings, confessions and intercessions, both for the workers concerned and for those present. The list below is wide ranging but by no means comprehensive and should be complemented by knowledge available to each local congregation.

 

This page is regularly updated to provide a whole year programme. Use the links to find more resources.

 

 

  Week 13 - commences Sunday 30th March

 

             Those who work in recycling, waste disposal and cleaning

 

Recyclers of waste materials, scrap metal merchants, conservationists, refuse collectors, staff of landfill and waste disposal facilities. Furniture and picture restorers, steam and blast cleaners, metal restorers, energy conservationists. Launderers, dry cleaners, contract cleaners and providers of linen services. Car Wash staff, suppliers and manufacturers of cleaning equipment. collectors and sellers of second hand goods and charity shop staff

 

Week 14 - commences Sunday 6th April

 

             Those who work in the Leisure Industry

 

Manufacturers of sports equipment and clothing, staff of leisure centres, bingo halls, bowling alleys, caravan and camping sites, amusement arcades, and theme parks; Theatre and cinema staff, concert promoters, designers of computer games, devisers and makers of toys games and board games. Staff at travel agencies, holiday company reps, hotel owners and staff. Fairground staff and manufacturers of fairground equipment. Those who work in casinos, public houses, restaurants and fast food outlets. Ground-staff at sports stadia, golf and sports clubs and local authority leisure services staff.

 

Week 15 - commences Sunday 13th April

 

               Historians and those whose work involves preserving and understanding the              past

 

Historians, antique dealers, archaeologists, curators, archivists, genealogists, those entrusted with listed buildings, those who care for ancient monuments and historic houses, biographers, diarists, researchers and preservers of ancient manuscripts, authenticators, palaeographists, librarians, microfilmers and record office staff. Staff of the National Trust, English Heritage.

 

 

Week 16 - commences Sunday 20th April

 

             Those who work in Community Health

 

General practitioners, practice nurses, medical receptionists, ambulance workers, paramedics, first aiders, dentists, dental technicians, spiritual healers, hospital consultants and junior doctors, surgeons, anaesthetists, optometrists, speech therapists, haematologists, acupuncture practitioners, chiropractors, chiropodists, herbalists, pharmacists, homeopaths, hypnotherapists, osteopaths, speech therapists, psychiatrists, toxicologists and treaters of allergies.

 

 

Week 17 - commences Sunday 27th April

 

             Those who provide computers and information technology

 

Software designers, web-site designers, systems analysts, computer hardware manufacturers, keyboard operators, computer-aided designers and mapmakers, information technology teachers, staff of the Data Protection Registry, computer engineers, chip manufacturers, computer peripheral designers and suppliers, data analysts, designers of computer models for strategic planning, computer virus eradicators, data processing managers and staff.

 

Week 18 - commences Sunday 4th May

 

             Those who work in transport and logistics

 

HGV drivers and operators; bus and coach drivers, aircrews, railway staff, taxi and minicab drivers; freight handlers, timetable planners, airport and seaport employees; delivery drivers, couriers, parcel and post service workers, motor-cycle couriers; constructors, designers and maintenance staff of transport networks, maintainers of traffic lights and roadsigns, traffic police and staff of the highways agency; driving instructors and test supervisors; staff at the DVLA

 

 

Week 19 - commences Sunday 11th May

 

             Those who work in leadership and management

 

Director-generals, chief executives, directors and managing directors; line managers, human resource managers, forewomen, foremen, team leaders and supervisors; shop stewards, management consultants, company secretaries, administrators, board members, quality controllers, internal auditors and inspectors, assistant and deputy managers. Managing trustees, project managers and site managers

 

 

Week 20 - commences Sunday 18th May

 

                 Interior Designers and providers of home furnishings

 

Manufacturers and suppliers of fitted bedrooms and kitchens, furniture designers and manufacturers; makers and designers of curtains, blinds, bedding and soft furnishing; tableware, ornaments and paintings; wallpaper manufacturers and makers of floor and wall tiles, carpets and linoleum; painters, decorators and paint manufacturers; interior designers, kitchen, bedroom and bathroom fitters.

 

 

Week 21 - commences Sunday 25th May

 

             Those who work in the field of research and knowledge

 

Philosophers, inventors, medical researchers, biologists, physicists, analytical and research chemists; explorers, astronomers and those involved in the exploration of space; developers of alternative energy sources, research assistants, forensic scientists, private detectives, fraud investigators, pure researchers, mathematicians, theorists, abstract thinkers, theosophists and all enquirers after truth.

 

 

 

This resource is adapted from Touching the Pulse - worship and where we work by permission of the publisher and copyright owner Stainer & Bell Ltd, 23 Gruneisen Road, London, England N3 1DZ http://www.stainer.co.uk Tel. 44 020 8343 3303 Fax. 44 020 8343 3024

  Industrial Christian Fellowship - Worship and Prayer Resources