Welcome to this week’s Living Word! Our Word of the Week is Journey.

Welcome to the fifth week of Lent. As we draw closer to Holy Week, our own journey intensifies. A journey isn’t just about the miles we travel; it’s about the changes that happen within us along the way. This week, we walk with Jesus to the village of Bethany, where he meets his friends Martha and Mary in their deepest grief. This week, you are invited to look at the ‘dead ends’ in your own life and discover that with Christ, the journey never truly ends, it only transforms into new life!

Section 1: The Dead End.

We invite you to start with the Sign of the Cross.

Response: In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Amen

A reading from the Holy Gospel according to John.

R./ Glory to you O Lord. +

Now when Jesus came, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days… When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, while Mary sat in the house. Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. And even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.” Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” Martha said to him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.” Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and whoever lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” She said to him, “Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, he who is coming into the world.”

The Gospel of the Lord

R./ Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ.

Every journey has moments where we feel like we’ve hit a dead end. Maybe a relationship has broken down, a dream feels beyond our reach, or we feel trapped by a mistake we’ve made. Martha and Mary felt that their journey with Lazarus had finished at a tomb. In our lives, we can think of ‘tombs’ as the places where we feel hopeless. But in the Christian journey, a dead end is often the place where Jesus is just getting started. He doesn’t avoid our pain; he walks right into the middle of it!

Discussion Questions:

• Martha tells Jesus, “If you had been here, my brother would not have died.” Have you ever felt like God was running late or that a situation in your life had gone too far to be fixed?
• We often think of tombs as physical places, but they can be mental or social too. What are some ‘tombs’ that teenagers get stuck in today?
• Jesus waited four days before arriving at Lazarus’s tomb. Why do you think the journey to a solution or healing often takes longer than we want it to? What can we learn while we are in the waiting period?
  

Click below to “Add Comment” to capture some of what has been said in your form for others to see or add some to your form scrapbook.

Section 2: The Voice That Calls.

We invite you to start with the Sign of the Cross.

Response: In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.

The most important part of Lazarus’s journey wasn’t the four days in the dark; it was the moment he heard the voice of Jesus calling his name. We all carry ‘grave clothes’: bad habits, labels or fears that tie us up and stop us from moving forward. Jesus calls us by name to step out of the shadows. He wants us to walk in freedom, untangling us from the things that keep us stuck in the past.

Think: Think about a time you felt labelled by someone else, maybe as ‘the quiet one,’ ‘the failure,’ or “the troublemaker’. What would it feel like to leave those labels behind?

As this worship song plays, use this time to think about how Jesus ignores those labels and calls the real you to come forward. Catholic Social Teaching reminds us that we are all made in the image and likeness of God and therefore we are all worthy of Human Dignity. This includes not being labelled. We are all first and foremost human beings and every one of us is a part of God’s family.

As you listen, think about how:

• What kind of person is the real you? What are your qualities and priorities?
• Is there anything right now holding you back from being your true self and being fully alive? How can you overcome any challenges?

Prayer: Let us pause for a moment of silence.

Section 3: The Journey Towards Eternal Life

We invite you to start with the Sign of the Cross.

Response: In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Amen

As we approach the end of Lent, our journey takes us toward the heart of our faith. Jesus doesn’t just offer us a better life; he offers us eternal life. The journey of a Christian isn’t a walk toward a grave, but a walk through it and out the other side. Like Martha, we are asked: “Do you believe this?” This belief changes how we see everything. It means that no matter how difficult the journey gets, the final destination is always life, joy, and peace.

“I am the Resurrection and the Life.”

Jesus’ death on the cross on Good Friday and his resurrection on Easter Sunday give us all hope that one day we will share in eternal life with God in Heaven, that means that no matter how difficult our journey through life is, it will always end in hope.

Place your holding cross from your form time prayer box on a central table within your classroom.

Your mission:

Think about a part of your own journey that you are currently working on. It could be a personal goal, a friendship you want to improve, or a worry you want to move past.

Take a Post-it note and on it write one word that represents hope to you that situation. (For example: Patience, Strength, Forgiveness, Peace, Perseverance).

When you are ready, come and place your Post-it note around the cross, our ultimate symbol of hope.

Afterwards, add these to your class scrapbook.