Still praying 10 years later

I'd like to share a little bit of our history with you...

Red Community began as a (very) small group of men and women in Cardiff who were burdened about the issues of human trafficking and modern slavery and felt compelled by God to do something about it. However, we really didn't know where to start so concluded that before we could 'do' anything we should get educated and then get praying.

Consequently we committed to dedicating one Friday evening a month, every month, for the whole of 2013 to running 'Redemption Sessions' – prayer meetings in which we welcomed various guest speakers to share their experiences from the front line of local, national and international justice and mercy ministries, and then seeking God together in prayer (see photo above). These Redemption Sessions became known as 'Red Sessions' and those who gathered eventually became the Red Community.

One of my favourite memories from that time was an intense session of prayer one evening as we focussed on the issue of women being trafficked into sexual exploitation specifically in our city. Some months later we learned that a few hours after that prayer meeting a brothel was raided in Cardiff and 2 women who had been trafficked from Nigeria were rescued. That raid led to the successful prosecution of the traffickers. (You can read more about that story here).

It is fair to say that we learned the crucial importance of prayer that year.

Fast forward 10 years and, by God's grace, we have been able to show justice and love mercy in multiple, beautiful ways since those early Red Sessions. However, prayer remains central to all that we do at Red Community and we still commit one evening each month to praying for the trafficked, exploited and enslaved. This year (2023) we will pray on the 23rd of each month, starting on Monday 23rd January.

The pandemic forced our prayer times online, however, this year we are keen to pray together in person as often as possible. This month we will be meeting at Redeemer Church in Splott. Subscribe to our monthly newsletter or keep checking our website for updates on where we will be praying each month.

Looking forward to praying alongside you this year.

Dai