In response to a survey by the Children’s Society which stated that tens of thousands of children are hurting themselves on purpose and a quarter of 14-year-old girls in UK have ‘self-harmed’, the Bishop of Gloucester said that no child should feel unhappy because they don’t conform to the expectations of their peers and society. For the past two years she has spearheaded #Liedentity - a campaign focused around engagement with children and young people in schools and colleges to combat the lie that ‘who you are’ is predominantly about ‘how you look’. To see a video of the Bishop’s talk on body image anxiety go to

Philippa Taylor, of Christian Medical Fellowship, writes on her blog, ‘The Department for Education is drafting guidance for schools which are now required to teach Relationships Education (RE) at primary school and Relationships and Sex Education (RSE) at secondary school. It is seeking views from the public on these drafts before they are put before Parliament and the final guidance is published. This is an important time in the development of sex and relationships resources in the UK. School sex education is intended, for good or for ill, to influence both attitudes and behaviours to improve sexual health. Whether improvements occur very much depends on what is in the curriculum.’

Theresa May visited Africa on a major mission to build up new trade relations ahead of Brexit. Pray that every detail of conversations with South African, Nigerian and Kenyan leaders will be used to re-engage with a fast-growing continent which some feel British business and politicians have neglected in recent years. Pray that the delegates who travelled with her (trade minister George Hollingbery, minister for Africa Harriett Baldwin, secretary of state for Wales Alun Cairns, a Stock Exchange representative, and the Lord Mayor of London Charles Bowman) will in the future be able to build on the links made. A Government statement before the visit stated, ‘This comes at a time of enormous change across Africa with a unique opportunity, as the UK moves towards Brexit, for a truly global Britain to invest in and work alongside African nations, with mutual benefits.’

On 28 August President Macron told French ambassadors in his annual address, ‘France wants to maintain a strong, special relationship with London but not if the cost is the European Union's unravelling’. He urged Europe to exert itself as ‘a trade and economic power’, which defends its strategic interests. See Meanwhile about 35 French boats surrounded and rammed five British vessels, leading to an angry standoff in an longstanding dispute over scallop fishing in the English Channel. The French accused British boats of over-fishing off the coast of Normandy, stating they are protecting scallop beds. As they threatened to reignite a simmering ‘scallop war’, the British fishermen called on the Government to intervene. Some believe this incident is exacerbated by the Brexit negotiations. See

The BBC's News at Ten recently featured a one-sided report on a film about Christian 'gay conversion therapy'. The Miseducation of Cameron Post is about ‘a gay teenager sent away to a Christian camp that uses prayer and therapy to try to change her sexuality.’ Despite the film clearly being used to agitate for a ban on any kind of therapy, no counterpoint or challenge was made. The programme was designed to promote the film without any attempt to balance its portrayal of the world. In July, the government released an LGBT action plan that included banning ‘gay conversion therapies’ and may press ahead with the idea in the autumn. However a recent study suggested that, at least for religious men, therapy to help move away from unwanted same-sex attraction can be beneficial in a number of different ways.

Last week it was reported that the Arctic Sea is breaking up for the first time on record, and we prayed for nations to acknowledge climate change and seek ways to turn it around. The acceleration of climate change has greater impact on the Arctic region than elsewhere, posing serious threats to the sensitive environment and those who depend on it. Good cooperation is needed between researchers, public authorities, companies, and Arctic inhabitants. Pray for the adoption of a new kind of climate-resilient thinking. Further development is needed in flood warning systems and dam safety. In response to these needs, and as part of its 2017-2019 chairmanship of the Arctic Council, Finland will be hosting the first Arctic Resilience Forum on 10-11 September 2018.

Pope Francis visited Ireland on 25 and 26 August and begged forgiveness for clerical child sex abuse. He said no-one could fail to be moved by stories of those who ‘suffered abuse, were robbed of their innocence, and left scarred by painful memories’. In a speech at Dublin Castle, the Pope expressed his shame at the Catholic Church's failure to address adequately the ‘repellent crimes’ of sex abuse by clergy. He later met eight survivors of sexual abuse, telling them that he viewed clerical sex abuse as ‘filth’. Since the last Papal visit Ireland has ‘modernised’ laws on abortion, contraception, divorce and same-sex marriage. Pray for the church to move on, even stronger, now that past sins are repented of.

On 1 September, the North African desert country Mauritania will have an election for its national assembly. 146 members will be elected for one- or four-year terms. Most of its population is nomadic, but a third of Mauritanians are registered voters. It is one of the world's poorest nations, and one of the most religiously restricted. Sunni Islam and Sharia law have ruled them over a thousand years. The government prohibits conversion to Christianity. Those who do so face the death penalty, and must not enter non-Muslim households. A caste system grants privileges to certain groups. They marginalise darker-skinned Mauritanians or anyone who holds a worldview other than Islam. The Islamic terror group AQIM (Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb) operates in Mauritania.

IJM has released a Freedom Sunday promo video to media houses, churches, and the general public in Kenya. We have been asked to pray for a positive reception and widespread engagement from the Kenyan church. This video is unique in bringing together leaders from a variety of Christian denominations (including Catholic, Anglican and evangelical) to speak with one voice about the role of the church in addressing police abuse in Kenya. Pray that many churches will participate in Freedom Sunday, and that members will be moved to help vulnerable families in their communities who have suffered from police abuse. Pray for an unprecedented number of churches to dedicate Sunday 23 September to ending slavery and helping to rescue every child, woman and man living in slavery.

At the time of writing Theresa May is visiting Kenya. There is a desire for both countries to develop trust and trade in the future. On her visit the PM was joined by several ministers and 29 business representatives from various industries. We can pray that her visit will initiate and bolster improved post-Brexit trade and cultural ties between the nations. Many believe that in the past Britain has not treated Kenya with equality, but rather as a bully, while the Chinese have humbly generated business: statistics show that China has dwarfed UK imports to Kenya over the last three decades. Pray for the West to rethink foreign policy. One of the Kenya-UK partnership agreements was a commitment to improve lives of people living with disability.