CHURCHES across Hampshire under the Diocese of Winchester have answered the Archbishops' calls for a great wave of prayer.

Both Archbishops' of Canterbury, Justin Welby, and York, Dr John Sentamu, have asked for "a great wave of prayer across our land, throughout the Church of England and many other Churches".

Thy Kingdom Come marathon of prayer will begin on May 6 and culminate at Pentecost on Sunday, May 15, inspired by the simple words of the Lord's Prayer.

The Diocese of Winchester has responded well to the national movement, with Hampshire churches pioneering a variety of creative new approaches to prayer. Many have set up prayer stations which will be manned 24/7 for continuous prayer in the week leading up to Pentecost; others will be going out onto their local high streets and into coffee shops offering to pray with people in the community. Worshippers will also perform a Novena Prayer – an act of worship lasting nine days between Ascension and Pentecost, two of the principal festivals in the Christian calendar.

The Right Reverend David Williams, Bishop of Basingstoke, said: “It’s encouraging to see the way people from parishes across the diocese have taken up this call to prayer with such enthusiasm. "Pentecost celebrates the coming of the Holy Spirit and the start of the Church’s mission to the world. We will be recapturing something of what happened on that first Pentecost Sunday as Christians across the diocese pray for the confidence to share the good news in the 21st century.”

The Lyndhurst Deanery parishioners have taken the idea of continuous prayer to create a special clock.

On a map, the 13 churches which make up the Deanery represent the hours of the day, with Lyndhurst at 12 o'clock, Lymington at 6 o'clock and Brockenhurst and others spread at other times.

In the days leading to Pentecost, prayer will sweep around the Deanery like the hands of a clock, passing from one church to the next. A mobile phone will be passed around the churches and people will be encouraged to send messages to the phone with prayer requests.