People are invited to lace up their shoes and hit the pavement through a new prayer ministry at Faith United Methodist Church in Fox Chapel.

A monthly prayer walk aims to connect people with the community around them – the ministry rotates between Blawnox, Fox Chapel and Sharpsburg.

“We walk so often with our heads down, quickly headed to the next place,” Pastor Susan Moudry said. “The prayer walks are a great opportunity to look and listen and really see the people around us.”

They are free and open to the public. The next one is 11 a.m. Sept. 20 in Blawnox. Anyone interested should meet in front of the Old Thunder Brewing Co. along Freeport Road.

Longtime church member Lyndall Huggler is leading the ministry.

A parishioner since 1992 and chairman of the leadership board, Huggler said the walks are an effort to be more intentional about prayer, as was often suggested by the church’s former Assistant Pastor Angelique Bradford.

Before being transferred to Greensburg earlier this year, Bradford ran a prayer labyrinth and a women’s brunch, where participants could share testimonies, music and a meal.

Instead of pitching something new, Huggler said the team wants to build on ideas that have proven popular.

“We’ve had a series of prayer walks in the past,” Huggler said. “A successful program in Sharpsburg is what led us to open the Roots of Faith outreach there.”

Since opening 11 years ago, Roots has grown into a self-sustaining service that offers weekly programs to help people with food insecurity, employment assistance and health screenings, among others.

People who join the community prayer walks can expect small groups trekking through new neighborhoods to notice how God is working there, Huggler said.

“We will be open to anything that moves us and see if it might develop into something even bigger,” he said.

Upcoming walks are scheduled Oct. 18 at Beechwood Farms Nature Reserve in Fox Chapel and Nov. 16 at Roots of Faith in Sharpsburg. Gatherings last about 30 minutes.

Moudry said the Faith UMC community is excited about the ways that walking in various neighborhoods can “reconnect us to the larger community and makes us open to new possibilities and connections.”

“We are part of the community and as we walk, wonder and listen for God’s direction, we recommit ourselves to loving our neighbors,” she said.

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