Focal Minister Keith Lunn in Snaith decided to dip his toe in the water last year and look into what Wear Your Faith Fortnight was all about.
After chatting to the Diocese’s Lights for Christ team, Keith decided to give it a go in Snaith. He ordered some badges and had a look at the Wear Your Faith Fortnight resources.
Keith tweaked some of the prayers for his context and worked on a sermon which would include WYFF. He was keen to introduce WYFF, saying:
“I thought it would be a way to reaffirm our faith. The badge idea and the logos would mean different things to different people. My own favourite was the lightbulb, but other badges sprung bits into other people’s minds; they would think ‘that fits into my life or that’s something that’s happened to me’”.
Keith said there had been a very positive reaction. At the end of the service which had been used to launch WYFF, people came up to him and told him they had really enjoyed it. He added:
“It was really good to look down different avenues of faith and how we celebrate our faith. People are still wearing the badges now. I think it’s something a little bit different to the way we celebrate each week”.
Team Rector of Great Snaith, Rev Canon Eleanor Robertshaw observed that:
“When people chose their badges, they thought very carefully about what they would say when someone asked them about it; they thought about the story they would share. I love it when you walk down the main street in Snaith and you see people still wearing them – they’ve obviously meant something to people. They’ve taken their poppies off at the end of remembrance season, but they’ve left their WYFF badges on. It’s probably gone deeper than we perhaps realised.
“I think people are pleased to find a way to express their faith to others, because it’s not that easy; the badges are a conversation opener.”
Keith agrees, saying:
“People can’t see that you have a faith, but the badge is a sign that you do have a faith and people will ask the questions.”
If you’d like to find out more about this year’s WYFF badges please click here. If you’re a church leader and would more ideas for prayers please click here.