ROSARY HiKe Develop a relationship with Mary (and through her, Christ) by praying the Rosary in a dynamic context. Also reflect on ways to say yes to Christ, as Mary did. Review the entire lesson plan in advance so you are prepared to lead and discuss comfortably. Adjust the suggested time allotments as necessary. Time Section Session 10 minutes CONNECT Talk about relationships with mothers, and then introduce Marian motherhood. Read Luke 1:26-38, and write seven ways to say yes to Jesus in their lives. 65 minutes DISCUSS Go on a Rosary Hike. Discuss the experience and opportunities to grow in relationship with Mary. 10 minutes COMMIT Ask for Mary s intercession in closing prayer. Bibles Rosaries (for participants to take home, if possible) 7 Sacramentals (or photos of items) Lighter 7 candles Print-outs of how to pray the Rosary, including prayers (1 per person) Participant Sheets Pens or pencils 1
You ll need to provide Rosaries and copies of the Rosary prayers for each person. Check your local Bible store or search online for how to pray the Rosary. Here are some options we like: catholic.org/prayers/rosary.php and ewtn.com/devotionals/ prayers/rosary/how_to.htm. Choose seven locations for your stations place them far enough apart to create a hike if possible (a substantial 3-5 minute walk between each station). At each station place a candle and a sacred item (or photo of an item) ideally one that corresponds with the mystery being prayed. Listen to Matt Maher s song Lay It Down on YouTube prior to the session. Ask a core team member, group member, or youth leader to be the session s music leader for the basic chorus and verse of the song (with or without a guitar). Lyrics are printed on the Participant Sheets. Ask five different participants to lead a decade of the Rosary prior to the session. Discipleship is about more than discussing the faith and participating in a small group. Discipleship requires learning from the example of a rabbi in this case, participants learn from your daily example. It is healthy for your group members to do regular, everyday activities together because they will learn from your example and the example of their peers. As they grow in fellowship and deeper friendship through these activities, they will grow as disciples. ACTIVITY SAY: Welcome! Thanks for saying yes to coming tonight. We have choices to make every day about what we re going to say yes to, and what we re going to reject. Sometimes when we make no decision at all, we re basically rejecting something, right? Sometimes we don t know what choice to make. As you were growing up, your mom probably helped guide you in making choices. Before we begin, let s each share a bit about our moms or a woman who plays a significant role in our lives. Turn to a partner and talk about these questions. 2
Ask the following questions one at a time, allowing a minute for discussion before asking the next. What do you love and value about your mom? Is it ever difficult to say yes or no to your mom? Describe a time your mom said yes to something that surprised you (like going camping with a friend s family or getting a new puppy). How did that make you feel? Do you think she had to overcome any fears to say yes in that situation? SAY: Our moms obviously play a significant role in our lives. So it s only fitting that we look to another mother to help guide us in the important journey we re on each day the journey of continuously growing in our faith by saying yes to Jesus. This session is about developing a relationship with Mary, who said yes to becoming Christ s mother. Mary is actually considered the first Christian because she was the first person to say yes to Jesus; she is also called Mother Mary, Virgin Mary, or the Blessed Mother. Today, we will pray the Rosary and reflect on how we can say yes to Christ in our lives. SAY: Let s begin in prayer. Ask for a volunteer to read Luke 1:26-38 as others follow along in their Bibles. Then distribute Participant Sheets and writing utensils. The Father chose Mary to be Christ s mother, but she still had to say yes to Him. Mary s yes changed everything because her yes brought the Incarnation and, ultimately, our Savior, into the world. 3
On your Participant Sheet, write seven ways that you still need to say yes to Christ in your life. Examples are things such as overcoming a certain sin in your life, bringing Christ into your relationships, talking to someone who is difficult to talk to, or trusting in God s plan for your life after high school. Take the next five minutes to write out seven ways to say yes to Christ in your life. You ll only be writing in the left column for now. We ll come back to this activity later, so hang onto it. Allow five minutes. Let participants know when they have just one minute remaining to wrap up their writing. And Mary said, Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word. Luke 1:38 Distribute the Rosaries and prayer sheets to each person, and then prepare to walk together to the first station. SAY: For the remainder of our session, we re going to get active and walk we are about to begin a Rosary Hike! Throughout this time we will be praying the Rosary, singing, and walking with Mary. There are seven stations that we ll be journeying to, and for each station I encourage you to pray for one of the ways you need to say yes to Jesus. At each station we will pray a different part of the Rosary, light a candle, and offer our yes to Christ. In between each station, we will sing a simple song by Matt Maher called Lay It Down. This song will be our prayer throughout this session as we lay down our worries, anxieties, and desires to Christ, completely trusting in God as Mary did. 4
The group will say the following at each station: 1. The Creed, the Our Father, and the first three Hail Mary beads 2. The First Decade 3. The Second Decade 4. The Third Decade 5. The Fourth Decade 6. The Fifth Decade 7. The Hail Holy Queen & Closing Prayer While the group walks from station to station, sing the chorus of Lay It Down by Matt Maher. As you arrive at each station, have someone light the candle. Gather everyone together after the Rosary Hike. When we take time to pray the rosary, it helps us focus on giving our worries and anxieties to God and reminds us that we have Mary and the saints who will intercede on our behalf. Praying the Rosary can help us to more easily say yes to God, just as Mary did thousands of years ago. Let s take a few minutes to talk about what we just experienced. Have everyone get into pairs or trios and discuss the following questions, which are on the Participant Sheets. Encourage note taking. ASK: Describe what it was like to ask for Mary s intercession and to pray with her. When do you think are good times to pray the rosary? How can you pray the rosary more in the upcoming week? What are some of the ways you need to say yes to Jesus in your life? How can praying the rosary help you to follow through with those commitments? 5
SAY: On your Participant Sheet, I now want you to make note of your next practical step to follow through with the commitments you made to Say Yes to Christ. Go back to the seven items you wrote before our Rosary Hike, and consider how to live out these actions. For example, if you want to say yes to Christ by acting nicely toward your sister, a practical step might be to do chores for her tonight so she can study for a big test. If you ve been worried about trusting God s plan for your life after high school, maybe you can share with a friend how it feels to let go of that worry. Or maybe you want to make time tonight to write a prayer to God, thanking Him for His plan for you. There are no wrong answers here. For each response, consider how praying the Rosary can strengthen your resolve and help you overcome any fears that you may have so you can say yes to Christ in that area. Allow up to 10 minutes for completion of charts. Then if time allows, spend a few minutes reviewing the Tips for the Week on the Participant Sheets, and encourage everyone to put these ideas into practice this coming week. PRAY: Mother Mary, we thank you for your yes to Jesus. We ask that throughout the next week you would intercede for us and pray that we might have the grace to say yes to Jesus in everything we do. We look to you as a model of prayer, humility, trust, and courage, and ask that you would pray that we may attain the same virtues and become greater followers of your Son, Jesus. Amen. OR Ask a participant to close the evening in prayer. 6
ROSARY HIKE PARTICIPANT SHEET And Mary said, Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be done to me according to your word. Luke 1:38 Say Yes to Christ Practical Possibility 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 1
Lay It Down by Matt Maher Chorus: Everything that I am Everything I long to be I lay it down at your feet I lay it down I lay it down I lay it down At your feet Describe what it was like to ask for Mary s intercession and pray with her. When do you think are good times to pray the Rosary? How can you pray the Rosary more in the upcoming week? What were some of the ways you need to say yes to Jesus in your life? (See the ideas you wrote on the chart earlier.) How can praying the Rosary help you to follow through with those commitments? 2
For the next week, think of family, friends, teachers, and others that need Christ s presence in their life in a special way. Each day, pray the Rosary and ask for Mary s intercession specifically for a different person. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. Say yes to a difficult situation: Oftentimes we shy away from a difficult situation that we know we should help out with or impact for a good purpose. Use this week to have lunch with someone who is usually alone, or offer forgiveness to someone who has wronged you. Ask for Mary s help: Living your faith can be difficult at times, for a variety of reasons. Many saints have talked about Mary s aid in their spiritual journey through life. Take time to sincerely ask for Mary s help in furthering your prayer life. Journal about when you ask for help so you can look back and see how Mary s intercession has worked in and through your prayers. Talk a rosary walk: Consider our Rosary Hike as more than a once-in-a-lifetime experience! Take a Rosary walk at least once a week to give yourself a different perspective as you pray. Mark it on your calendar when you will do the walk to keep yourself accountable, and write in your journal how the walk helped you see and hear things differently. We never give more honor to Jesus than when we honor His Mother, and we honor her simply and solely to honor him all the more perfectly. We go to her only as a way leading to the goal we seek Jesus, her Son. St. Louis Marie de Montfort 3
ROSARY HIKE PARENT SHEET Every YDisciple session has three parts: CONNECT, DISCUSS, and COMMIT. The CONNECT section is designed to build trust, transparency, and community in the group. The DISCUSS section introduces topics of the faith, engages critical thinking, and facilitates valuable conversation. And the COMMIT section helps students take ownership of their faith and put it into practice. Use this Parent Sheet to take a glimpse at our most recent session so you can have a follow-up conversation with your teenager about his/her experience in the small group and encourage spiritual growth. This formation session challenged teens to say yes to Christ in their lives. Teens participated in a Rosary Hike that provided them with a specific way to say yes to Christ while praying a decade of the Rosary. Then they engaged in discussion on how to apply the session to their life and the importance of Mary s role in their spiritual journey. How often do you say yes to things that don t really matter? Sometimes it feels like our culture would like us to say yes to everything! But by doing that, we end up saying no by default to many of the things that God wants for us. For example, if we choose to chase material wealth or fame, we may sacrifice time spent worshipping God. If being the most popular is a priority, we might not see one of God s children who has been pushed to the shadows. We simply have to be intentional about saying yes. Our Lady is the perfect example. Here are some conversation starters for this week. Remember to share your perspectives as well. What would you say are the most important things in your life today? What are some of the ways that you need to say yes to Christ? How can we as a family grow in our relationship with Mary? 1
Early in the session, the teens had an opportunity to brainstorm seven ways that they need to say yes to Christ in their lives; then they considered the next practical step to follow through with each. After our Rosary Hike, they then went back to their lists and considered how praying the Rosary could strengthen their resolve and help them overcome any fears keeping them from saying yes to Christ in that area. And Mary said, Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be done to me according to your word. Blessed Teresa of Calcutta Ask for Mary s help: Living your faith can be difficult at times, for a variety of reasons. Many saints have talked about Mary s aid in their spiritual journey through life. Take time to sincerely ask for Mary s help in furthering your prayer life. Talk a Rosary walk: Take a Rosary walk with your teen at least once a month to give yourself a different perspective as you pray. Mark it on your calendar when you will do the walk to keep yourself accountable. 2