Praying the Rosary for Loved Ones with Addictions

Amanda Woodiel offers meditations on each Mystery of the Rosary for the intentions of loved ones struggling with addiction.

A friend came to me recently and shared the load she has been carrying: her husband’s drinking is affecting their marriage and family life. Sadly, she is one of several friends who have shared with me similar stories. 

I promised to pray every day for my friend, and the way I have found to be most faithful to that promise is by including her in the intentions of the Rosary. Here I share some Rosary reflections for anyone else who feels called to pray for our brothers and sisters who are crushed by the heavy yoke of addiction, whether that be in themselves or their family members.

The Joyful Mysteries

The Annunciation

Oh God, we proclaim the Good News that we are not forgotten, that the long-awaited Messiah is coming to be born into our lives. I ask especially that You give hope to my friend, that she may have the courage to believe in Your ability and desire to live among her and her household.

The Visitation

Oh God, please send someone into my friend’s life who will bring Your hope, love, and guidance in the way that Your Mother brought the same to Your cousin. And do not neglect, my dear Mother Mary, to go to my friend’s household yourself to bring to her the consolation of your gentle, loving presence.

The Nativity of Our Lord

We ask, dear Jesus, that You be born in a special and holy way into the household of my friend. We trust that You, who chose to be born in a dirty, smelly cave, will not despise the dark, messy areas of our souls and lives. We need You and give You refuge.

The Presentation

Dear God, give us the grace to offer to You what is most precious in our lives. Let my friend have the courage to entrust to You what is closest to her heart as an act of faith in Your goodness and faithfulness.

The Finding of Jesus in the Temple

Oh Jesus, may my friend go find You in the Blessed Sacrament. Inspire her to run to the safe harbor of Your Presence. And also, I pray, let her find You in the most unexpected places in her life as well, that she may have the joy of knowing that You are always near.

The Sorrowful Mysteries

The Agony in the Garden

Oh Jesus, my friend is Your companion in Your agony. She also is in great pain. By the merits of Your agony, give her the grace to also say, “Your will be done.”

The Scourging at the Pillar

Dear Jesus, may Your scourging reveal to my friend the depths of Your love for her. By the merits of Your stripes, heal my friend and her household.

The Crowning with Thorns

Oh our mocked and wounded Lord, please take the crown of shame off of my friend and her family. Give them the grace to know their identity as sons and daughters of the true King.

The Carrying of the Cross

Jesus, what a heavy cross my friend and her family carry. They need You to shape their cross into the means of their salvation and to win graces for many. Send angels to help them, we pray, and by a miracle of Your grace, lighten their burden.

The Crucifixion

Dear crucified Lord, what was intended to be an instrument of shame is instead a symbol of love and glory. Give my friend and her family the grace to allow You to crucify the darkness in their lives and to transform it into a symbol of love and redemption.

The Luminous Mysteries

The Baptism of Our Lord

By the graces of Baptism, give my friend the ability to rest in her identity as Your beloved daughter. Let her know profoundly that nothing can separate her from Your love or care.

The Wedding at Cana

Oh Jesus, Your dear mother interceded for that family at Cana, and we ask her to intercede again. Let my friend and her household “do whatever He tells you,” and I pray that the graces of their marriage will sustain them in their present difficulties.

The Proclamation of the Kingdom of God

Oh Jesus, proclaim to my friend and her family the Good News of the Kingdom of God. Reveal to them the ways in which God is presently working in their lives and teach them what they need to hear.

The Transfiguration

Oh transfigured Jesus, show my friend how the things in her life that seem most ordinary—the forgiving, the praying, the caretaking—are actually the most glorious. Give her the hope of heaven—and even a taste of heaven—through the labors of today.

The Institution of the Eucharist

Oh Eucharistic Lord, how very close You desire to be to us that You humble Yourself to be in us through the Blessed Sacrament. Give my friend a love to be with You in the Eucharist and transform us into who You have called us to be through this Holy Food.

The Glorious Mysteries

The Resurrection

Oh Resurrected Lord, bring back to life all that is dead in our lives. I ask especially for You to bring to my friend hope where there is no hope, trust where there is no trust, and joy where there is no joy.

The Ascension

Oh ascended Lord, our eyes strain toward heaven to seek You. Give us a hunger for Your Presence and an awareness that this world is not our true home. I ask especially that You give my friend an eternal perspective and an increased desire for You and the things of heaven.

The Descent of the Holy Spirit

Oh Jesus, may Your Holy Spirit be mighty in the household of my friend. Grant to them all of the gifts and fruits of Your Spirit, and may Your Spirit drive out any unholy spirits among them. I ask especially that you guide her in any steps she needs to take.

The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin

Oh Jesus, we contemplate the hope of our Mother Mary in heaven as a sign of the hope of our own eternal destiny. May Your mother intercede for my friend and her household in the way only she can, and may she point them to You whenever there is need.

The Coronation of Mary as Queen of Heaven and Earth

Oh Jesus, as You desired to honor Your mother, so we too honor her. We ask that she teach us how to be holy wives and mothers so that one day we may share with her the glory of heaven.

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Rosary reflections for anyone who feels called to pray for our brothers and sisters who are crushed by the heavy yoke of addiction. #catholicmom

Copyright 2022 Amanda Woodiel
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