We’d like to invite you on Our Big Journey in March 2022 - over the weekend of 25th - 27th March. Our Big Journey is the opportunity for members of Urban Saints Groups, Camps teams and supporters of Urban Saints to do something simple to show that together we are part of something bigger.
What is Our Big Journey?
During the weekend of 24th to 26th March 2023, we are inviting you and your Group to go on a journey together. A journey of some kind, whether by foot or wheels, with a distinct start and end point. It’s as simple as that really! You get to choose how long or short, and whether the journey includes lots of people or just a few. Whatever your chosen journey, have a think about the following elements:
- Make it mean something - How can you make the journey to mean something to you as a Group? There are lots of ways you could add meaning to your journey! You might choose to go a mile for every year your Group has been in existence. Or you could travel around the outskirts of your community, surrounding the young people you serve in prayer as you go (and if you do this, check out these resources to help you!). You might instead opt for something that relates to those in your Group like the combined ages (or shoe sizes!) of the kids in your Group converted into the number of minutes you all go on your journey. The options are endless, just as long as the journey holds meaning to you as a group of people.
- Make it accessible - We don’t want anyone to feel left out of the experience. Our Big Journey is for everyone! We want you to consider how you can include anyone who wants to join in with your journey. We refer to this as “walk, roll or scroll”. Consider the route you choose and whether it could work for those who are unable to walk (e.g. wheelchairs, pushchairs, those more unsteady on their feet). Some may wish to join in for one part of the route, or they could become part of your support team (see FAQ’s for more information). You may also wish to look for ways to include people virtually, using media and technology, to share videos or photos, to encourage others on their journeys and to help others who cannot do a physical journey to share in the experience. Just make sure you have photo/video permissions from anyone before you share them. We’re doing this together – let’s make sure no one feels left out.
- Make it a challenge - However you choose to do your own Big Journey, consider how you can make it a challenge for those involved. Perhaps simply taking part will be a challenge to some. You could add elements of challenge by setting unusual tasks to be completed on route (see our 'Getting Creative' page). Encourage everyone to dig just a little deeper than they think they can – and watch what happens!
- Make it fun - Doing stuff together is always fun and while taking on a challenge like this might not always feel fun at the time, it’s the memories that will last. We encourage all taking part to look for memory-making moments. We’re sure you’ve got lots of ideas already for how to make this fun, and we have also included some ideas later in this pack as to what you might try – to further inspire your creativity (see our 'Getting Creative' page)!
Different ways you get involved in Our Big Journey
There are several ways you can join in the fun over the weekend of 25th to 27th March but the following are the main ones:
Organise your own journey
We’d love to see as many different journeys taking place over the weekend, so why not gather some people from your Group and plan your own? This pack contains the information you’d need to organise your own plus we can help with specific questions and advice too.
How to make your own journey happen
Sign your Group up to someone else’s journey
If you’re not able to organise your own journey, we may be able to connect your Group in with other journeys happening near to you. For example, some of our local Impact Team members are planning to organise journeys involving a variety of people connected to Urban Saints. Contact the Urban Saints Team and we can see if we can help.
Join a journey as an individual
Not everyone is part of a Group so there are likely to be some opportunities to join a journey as an individual. For example, you may choose to join the Urban Saints Team as they walk between North London and Luton. Alternatively, you may have existing links with a Group as a supporter or church contact and they may be able to invite you along to take part. However, do remember that it may not be possible to join every journey due to safeguarding reasons. Your best option is to contact the Urban Saints Team and we can advise you on the best way to proceed.
Follow the progress of others online
We hope to offer a certain amount of coordination between the different journeys taking place so that people can follow along from home or just check in from time to time on the progress being made.
