September, 2012 On returning last October from volunteering for 2 years with CMJ in Jerusalem, Israel, I found some exciting things happening in my small town on the south coast of England, and have become very involved in one of the projects; Street Pastors, which was just setting up. Street Pastors started about 10 years ago in a rough part of London, when a group of Christians trained and went out of the streets, in uniform, late at night Fridays and Saturdays, not to preach, but to listen, and help those (young people and older) who are in difficulties with drink, drugs, relationships etc. They never go out without a team at the base, covering them with prayer as they keep in touch by cell phone and the shop and bar watch radio given by the Police. At first the Police were skeptical, expecting to have to take care of them as well as deal with the problems of the night but were amazed that on the first night out their incident rate dropped by 75%! They thought it was a mistake until they realized it kept happening and have since become very supportive. The uniform has the great effect of creating interest and breaking down barriers. Our trademark is lollipops/sweets which we give out to build bridges, to comfort the distressed, and to defuse nasty situations that are brewing (you'd be amazed how effective they are!) We are also known for our flip-flops which the team carry to give to girls who can no longer stand up on their 6 inch heels after a night's drinking. Teams also carry water and plastic gloves and bags to clean people up if necessary and a first aid kit (having received basic training as part of a very extensive training program.) We have been on the streets since May and the police report a 21% reduction in incidents compared with last year and it is clear the prayer and the presence of Christians on the streets is having a tangible effect. I'm one of the Prayer Pastor team and cover the shifts every third or fourth week. I never thought praying with 2 other people in a small room for 7 hours, (8pm - 3am) could be so exciting! But it is, as we receive reports and prayer requests from the team on the streets, and then receive reports about how God intervened in situations and restored calm or enabled them to really help someone in distress. Often we are still praying about something when the positive result is phoned in and we turn to thanksgiving! There are between 250 and 300 Street Pastor groups in the UK now and it is beginning to go international with one group on Bondai Beach in Australia and a few others scattered around the globe. If you want to know more, look at their web-site, and maybe see if you can get something going in your area. It's hard work and late nights, but definitely worth it!
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