Prayer Shawl Ministry

When our church’s Prayer Shawl Ministry began in 2018, we never imagined how wonderful and valuable this effort would be.  A small group of us began working away at shawls, recognizing that prayer shawls have been made for centuries to bring a warm embrace and God’s love to those in need of comfort. We’ve come to realize that those who knit them and those who receive them are both blessed. And we’ve learned, too, that the need for this support keeps growing throughout our congregation and community. In 2018 just 9 prayer shawls were given out, but in 2021 that number grew to 47 prayer shawls. So many who have received the shawls have told us just how much comfort they really felt when holding on to them, and their stories have truly touched our hearts. But we could use more pairs of hands (women or men!) to help us make more shawls, and we would love to hear from you if you enjoy knitting or crocheting – or even if you would like our help to learn how to do this.

Our group meets twice a month (1st and 3rd Thursdays, 11am) and on Monday evenings at 7:00 p.m. in the church library. Each knitter/crocheter brings along their own needles or crochet hooks and yarn. We also have yarn which everyone is welcome to use if that works well for them. Synthetic yarn is best because it can be easily laundered.

We have an attractive basic shawl design which many of our knitters have been using, but members are welcome to use any patterns they enjoy working with – knitted or crocheted. The size and style of the shawl is also up to each member – “variety is the spice of life”.

When shawls are completed, we bring them to our next group meeting so that they can be blessed with our prayers before they go on their way to comfort someone. Generally, our pastor gives a shawl to those who might benefit from them. And sometimes we have mailed shawls folks referred to us for comfort but living some distance away. All suggestions for those who could use a shawl are very welcome – and no, they need not be a member of our congregation. SO PLEASE CONSIDER JOINING US! Leave a message at the church office  (phone 609 395-0897 or e-mail firstrpresoffice@comcast.net)  for more information.