Rain didn't deter thousands of people showing up to pray outside parliament the night before the general election, with more than 75 areas and 700 churches across the country praying alongside them in solidarity.

Last night the Evangelical Alliance joined National Day of Prayer, 24/7 Prayer and YWAM and many other Christians in Parliament Square to "stand up, show up and stand out" before the polling stations opening this morning.

Prayer began at 7.14pm, marking 2 Chronicles 7:14. People prayed for the election process, the counting of the votes, the candidates and their families and the next government.

The Evangelical Alliance's general director Steve Clifford was at the event.

He said: "It just felt so right, the night before one of the most complex and uncertain elections in living memory, to be gathering hundreds of Christians in Parliament Square. We prayed for the United Kingdom, for good and stable government to be established, for a government that would respond to the needs of all, not just for a few, that would care for the poor and indeed would play their part in the international arena. 

"Ultimately, the prayer was 'let your will be done on earth as it is in Heaven'."

Before the event, Dr Jonathan Oloyede, convenor of the National Day of Prayer and Worship, published a letter asking for Christians to unify in this poignant way before voting begins.

In his letter he said: "We can no longer divorce our faith from politics. 

"It has been an encouragement to see the recent Church of England House of Bishops Pastoral letter to all its parishes, the launch of a Black Majority Church manifesto, The Christian People's Alliance activities, the Show Up project and political party leaders appearing on Church platforms in aid of their campaigns." 

The Evangelical Alliance was hugely encouraged to see so many people take up the call to pray for our nation and our general election on the eve of one of the most uncertain elections in a generation.