The free YouVersion Bible App, which lets the user read, watch, listen, and share the Word of God, has reached 250 million downloads. ‘We are humbled by how many people use the Bible App on a regular basis,’ stated Rev Bobby Gruenewald, who devised it. ‘When we made the Bible available as an app, we never imagined how much it would revolutionise the way people engage with Scripture.’ Statistics estimated that 13 billion Bible chapters have been read and listened to, and there are more than one billion highlighted bookmarks. The most popular verse of 2016 is Romans 8:28: ’And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.’

Back in 1976, concerned at the emphasis being placed on necessary and costly building programmes at Belfast Cathedral, Dean Crooks decided to stand in front of the cathedral with a small barrel for donations to charitable causes. Dressed in the familiar black Anglican clerical cloak, Dean Crooks ‘sat out’ each day of the week before Christmas and began the tradition of deans sitting out for charities. The local press described him as ‘Belfast's Black Santa’, and the description struck a lasting chord with the public. His successor, Dean Jack Shearer, involved members of the Cathedral Chapter in the ‘sit-out’. The event has continued to develop; the current Dean, John Mann, is ‘sitting out’ this week to collect money for local charities, with a proportion going to Christian Aid.

The World Prayer Centre, in partnership with HOPE and the Prayer Magazine, invites you to join in with Friday Focus prayer every week,starting on Friday 6 January 2017. Friday Focus 2017 provides the opportunity for us to pray where we are and unite across our nations, supporting all ongoing mission and preparing the way for future mission. HOPE’s aim is to see the entire Church mobilised during 2018 to make Jesus known. Each week Friday Focus will take a different theme: supporting national initiatives of prayer and mission; key seasons in the church’s calendar; different people-groups highlighted in the Talking Jesus report; and prompting us to pray for those we know and meet and the communities we are part of. Will you join us in seeking our Father for His ways?

Let us give thanks that Prime Minister Theresa May has made no bones about the fact that she is a keen supporter and ally of Israel, which she called ‘a remarkable country’. In a firm speech to the Conservative Friends of Israel, our Prime Minister described Israel as ‘a beacon of tolerance, an engine of enterprise, a thriving democracy, and an example to the rest of the world for overcoming adversity and defying disadvantages.’ She talked about the shared values and positive relationship between Israel and Britain, emphasising her hopes for an even stronger friendship between the two countries post-Brexit. Crucially, in the face of parliamentary and civic attempts to derail the 2017 Balfour Centenary celebrations and force Britain to apologise for her role in creating the Jewish homeland, the PM staunchly defended the document as ‘one of the most important letters in history, which demonstrates Britain's vital role in creating a homeland for the Jewish people.’

The threat of a terrorist attack in the British Isles remains high, and more police have been deployed in sensitive areas after the Berlin truck massacre. Many of us are boarding planes and ferries to visit family and friends, shopping, and singing carols in prominent places - all soft terror targets. Please pray for God’s protection over all ‘gateways’ into this country: airports and aircraft, cruise liners, ferries and ports; railway stations and peak train journeys; motorways and tunnels (especially the Eurotunnel); places where large crowds gather such as sport stadiums, shopping centres, Christmas markets, theatres and concert halls; schools and colleges; and all churches. We can pray for God’s plans for peace, mercy and hope to blot out every plan and purpose of terror, death or destruction. May the British Isles be safe under God’s authority and canopy of prayer over Christmas and into 2017. See also

In a TV programme broadcast last Monday Prince Harry said it was ‘fun to be good and boring to be bad’. And ‘If you're me, if you're your Average Joe, whoever you are, if you can't affect politics and change the big things in the world, then just do whatever you can do. Whether it's in your local community, your village, your local church, walking down the street, opening a door for an old lady, helping them cross the road. Whatever it is, just do good. Why wouldn't you?’ Prince Harry said he no longer struggles with his royal role and wants to ‘make something’ of his life. He made these comments while speaking in a documentary about his charity work in Lesotho.

This Christmas please pray for those sleeping rough or in temporary B&B accommodation, and ask God to work through society to bring about more housing and adequate places for the vulnerable to settle into. Pray for the unemployed, and especially for homeless and vulnerable people selling the ‘Big Issue’ magazine on street corners. One vendor said, ‘It’s great when people stop and say hello, it’s nice to feel part of the community and feel that people actually care.’ May God’s mercy flow so that they will soon be housed adequately in a place they can call their own. Give thanks for the many churches and charities providing shelter, warmth and food for ‘rough sleepers’ over the winter; pray God’s blessing on everyone involved, and for the provision of every resource they need.

The death of someone we love, who matters to us, is a devastating experience. We are faced with the painful and daunting task of coping with all that bereavement brings and with the challenge of finding a new sense of life and purpose. All of this takes time - nearly always longer than we think - and help of many kinds may be needed. At Christmas many widows, widowers, orphans, brothers and sisters of close relatives experience a particular pain mixed in with seasonal celebrations. Please pray for all those for whom Christmas is not a time of rejoicing and ‘making merry’, but a time of sorrow due to loss of loved ones at this time.

Canopy of Prayer over Europe recently wrote, ‘When we look back on this year 2016, the most outstanding events for Europe were the Brexit vote of Great Britain, the victory of Donald Trump, the breakdown of the cornerstone of the EU - the solidarity of her members - and therefore the endangering of the EU as a Union. All these events have to do with the fear of migration: from Mexico to the USA, from the Near and Middle East into Europe. These anxieties were readily used by all European populist parties to fuel fear, envy and negative prejudices; cheering Brexit, congratulating Trump, and supporting every opposition against Europe.’ In 2017 there will be significant leadership elections in many discontented European countries, and within the hierarchy of the EU. Click the ‘More’ button for insights to help you pray about the elections and situations that could bring about political changes in Europe next year.

In the week before Christmas a truck was used as a weapon of terror in Berlin. The Russian ambassador to Turkey was murdered (see separate article), and in Switzerland a gunman shot three people at a Zurich Islamic centre and then was found dead by police. Pray for European countries to continue to invest significant resources in maintaining and developing security, and effective information-sharing and networking.