Pray Wild is an opportunity to practice the ancient ways of Jesus and to grow in personal holiness through nature, prayer and intentional community.
Pray Wild is not about starting something new but a rediscovering of something old. Individuals and communities have been praying and connecting with God in the wild of creation from the time of Eden, to the Celtic Saints of days gone by. It is our desire to re-ignite those fires of elemental prayer in our 21st century context.
Our vision is to see organic small groups of friends begin to gather to ‘Pray Wild’ from Cornwall to Cape Town to California and beyond; committing to a life of prayer that works in unison with the rhythms of the natural seasons.
Our first Pray Wild group has officially launched in Cornwall, UK and finds its expression in sea swimming. A small group of us meet at 6am at a local beach and wade waist deep into the sea where we pray a liturgy and the scriptures for that week. We then swim all be it briefly before heading home to warm up.
If you're interested in starting your own PrayWild group fill in the form below and we’ll be in touch! You can also follow us on instagram @pray.wild where we’ll post different ways you can go on the adventure of learning how to Pray Wild.
Our Pray Wild Values…
“Jesus often withdrew to the wilderness for prayer.” Luke 5:16 (NLT)
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Pray Wild gatherings offer a space to rediscover the often lost practice of scripture memorisation as well as introducing believers to some ancient prayers and liturgies. Memorising scripture is an integral part of formation that leads to a renewal of the mind and our own personal transformation in becoming more like Christ. We have found it to be a faith strengthening activity to try and commit to memory the Pray Wild prayers and scriptures as a group. This also allows groups to be a digital free space, something that is harder and harder to find in most spaces in our culture.
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Pray Wild is not an individual pursuit but a space to build intentional community where deepening and honest relationships can be fostered. Relationship with the Holy Trinity is deeply personal but not independent. For the life of the Holy Spirit to be outworked in our lives, we need to be in community. There is no way of growing into maturity in isolation. It is in the context of relationships we grow, we change, we heal and we are formed further into the image of Jesus Christ. Pray Wild groups offer a space to deepen both our prayer life and our communal life within a closed group of friends.
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Pray Wild groups offer an opportunity to discover rhythms of prayer that deeply connect our spirituality with our physical bodies and outside of the comfort of our buildings and arm chair quiet times. We believe that the physical, mental and spiritual benefits of embodying our prayer life in the context of God’s wild, creative and beautiful creation are not just helpful but essential in an age of digital distraction.
How To Begin A Pray Wild Group…
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Decide who your Pray Wild group is for.
Do you want it to be a closed group for friends to deepen connection and intention around your prayer life or do you want it to be a more public community gathering that anyone can join? If you’re choosing to have a small closed group, we recommend 3-6 people as a good number. Agree on a location, time to meet and how often you can implement this rhythm. Where possible we encourage a more regular rhythm such as a weekly gathering.
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Choose your outdoor activity.
Decide what your ‘wild’ expression will look like according to your own context. It could be anything from cold water swimming to gathering around a campfire, stargazing, kayaking, committing to watching the sunrise or walking. The list goes on - it’s entirely up to you. The only condition is that it has to be in the context of creation and outdoors. Although a rural location may present more obvious ‘wild’ expressions, Pray Wild is not limited to rural places alone - even in urban spaces, the wild calls and can be found.
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Register your group, start praying and have fun!
Register your group via the form below and we’ll send you a resource pack with Pray Wild scriptures, liturgies and ideas to help you on your way.
Fill in the form to register your interest in starting a Pray Wild gathering in your own context.
✺ Frequently asked questions ✺
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The activities of Pray Wild are intrinsically tied to nature, embracing a broad spectrum beyond just physical exercise. While hiking, climbing, or kayaking might immediately come to mind, Pray Wild also values experiences such as stargazing and gathering around an open campfire. These moments can still be an opportunity to foster a deeper prayer life without requiring physical exertion.
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No! Pray Wild is one expression of Atelier (a UK non-profit) whose vision is to “cultivate beauty and deepen faith in both Church & Culture.” Atelier takes no legal responsibility for the health and safety of individuals engaging in any Pray Wild groups. The responsibility of any Pray Wild group is down to the individuals leading that group.
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Pray Wild is completely free. We simply want to create a resource that envisions others to deepen their prayer life and relationships in the context of God’s creation. If you feel led to give a gift towards supporting the ministry then you can do so via our giving page.
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Pray Wild gatherings can be small, private groups focused on connecting and journeying with deeper intention with Christians in your community, or public events where people curious about Christianity can come and explore faith and the power of prayer.
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Where possible, we recommend establishing a consistent weekly or bi-weekly practice to engage with Pray Wild, fostering a regular rhythm and deepening connection with one another.
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To establish a Pray Wild group, we require that participants are followers of Jesus, share our vision, and embrace our three core Pray Wild values: Liturgical, Communal, and Elemental. These essential principles serve as the foundation for our collective journey learning how to Pray Wild