Pastoral formation Personal & Identity

AWKWARDLY ANXIOUS OBJECTIVE: Help students better understand what anxiety really is, share the areas of their life where they experience the most anxiety, and dive into Christ’s words about being anxious and trusting in the will of God through prayer.

SCRIPTURE REFERENCE: “Have no anxiety about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which passses all understanding, will keep your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” —Philippians 4:6-7

CATECHISM REFERENCE: “The Lord grieves over the rich, because they find their consolation in the abundance of goods. ‘Let the proud seek and love earthly kingdoms, but blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.’ Abandonment to the providence of the Father in heaven frees us from anxiety about tomorrow. Trust in God is a preparation for the blessedness of the poor. They shall see God.” —CCC 2547



© 2013 Augustine Institute. All rights reserved.

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SESSION SNAPSHOT Review the entire lesson plan in advance so you are prepared to lead and discuss comfortably. Gather necessary supplies and review any songs or video clips prior to your gathering. Adjust the suggested time allotments as necessary. Time

Session

Session Overview

30 minutes

Dig In

Open your time with prayer. Talk about awkwardness and share times you felt anxious or awkward.

5 minutes

Plant Seeds

Read and discuss Philippians 4:6-7.

30 minutes

Sink Roots

Guide teens in a discussion about anxiety, and discuss what anxiety is and where they experience the most anxiety in their lives. Read Matthew 6:25-34 aloud and discuss what Jesus says about anxiety, and how we can overcome it.

20 minutes

Live It

Lead teens through an exercise that will help them give their anxieties to God.

5 minutes

Closing Prayer

Close with a prayer from St. Augustine.

© 2013 Augustine Institute. All rights reserved.

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SUPPLIES NEEDED: ➜➜ Bibles ➜➜ Paper ➜➜ Pens or pencils

PREPARE IN ADVANCE: ➜➜ Read through the discussion questions, and imagine how the teens may answer. You want to encourage your teens to share, but also be aware of the time restraints for each section. ➜➜

Bring a referral list of Catholic counselors or medical professionals that your parish recommends. Anxiety can be a serious medical problem (in addition to a spiritual and emotional problem). Be sensitive to teens who may be experiencing chronic anxiety, but do not try to handle a situtation that you may not be equipped to deal with on your own. This session may reveal that some teens have anxiety teens have that is associated with a deeper issue. If a teen reveals anxiety that appears to be extreme, outof-the-ordinary, or could pose a danger to the teen or others, do not attempt to diagnose or “fix” the issue. Instead, be prepared with a referral list of counselors or medical professionals that your parish recommends and suggest (in private) that the teen seek professional help for his or her issues. If appropriate, check in with the teen’s parents to let them know you gave their child some resources to help them with the topic discussed during this session. Be sure to document your recommendation for help, keep one copy for yourself, and turn one in to your youth director or a parish leader.

Text, tweet, and/or update your group’s Facebook page to remind the teens about the gathering. Use a message like this: • I’m getting anxious just thinking about the next session…. C U @ [time]. • Next session we are talking about anxiety: what it is, how to deal, and Jesus’ solution. C U @ [day, time]

As teens arrive, offer snacks and drinks—people tend to talk more freely and mingle more when they have some food in their hands or are gathered around a common table.

© 2013 Augustine Institute. All rights reserved.

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DIG IN

SAY: Before we get started today, I have a HUGE favor to ask all of you. The pastor wants some testimonies from teens about youth ministry and he wants all of the teens participating in a discipleship group to write a story about their faith. He is going to read all of the stories and then he will invite the teen who wrote his favorite stories to come and present their story at Mass – in front of the whole congregation – this Sunday. I know this is short notice, but if you could spend the next few minutes looking up some Scripture verses and writing out your faith story, I’ll send them to the pastor this week. Teens will likely panic or express disbelief; just go along with the scene for a few short moments. Then reveal the truth and your topic for the day. SAY: Okay—everyone stop writing! I may have told a bit of a fib; there are no guests waiting here to hear you speak (there may be someone somewhere, though!). I wanted you to experience a bit of anxiety to introduce our topic for today. Sorry if I made you panic! But let’s debrief that experience for a moment: ASK: ➜➜ How did it feel to be put on-the-spot? ➜➜ How do you react to anxiety? Physically, mentally, or both?

© 2013 Augustine Institute. All rights reserved.

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PLANT SEEDS

SAY: Today we are going to be talking about something we all experience at one point or another: anxiety. But before we go any further, let’s begin in prayer. Open with a prayer. PRAY: Lord, help us to be free of anxiety, and to trust in Your love and care for us every single moment of our lives. Help us to know that You are our loving Father, and we are Your children, as we pray together, Our Father… PRAY: Deliver us Lord, we pray, from every evil, graciously grant peace in our days, that, by the help of your mercy, we may be free from sin, and safe from all distress, as we await the blessed hope and the coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ. For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours, now and forever. Amen. SAY: I want to share a Bible verse that is going to be the basis for our entire conversation tonight. READ: Philippians 4:6-7: “Have no anxiety about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, will keep your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

© 2013 Augustine Institute. All rights reserved.

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SINK ROOTS SAY: Does anyone remember a situation in their lives that made them really anxious, and could you share with us what happened and what it felt like? Maybe when you asked someone out on a date, or had a job interview, or studied for a really important test? Give several teens an opportunity to share their experiences. SAY: How would you define anxiety? As in, what is anxiety and why do we experience it? SAY: The Merriam Webster dictionary defines “anxiety” like this: “a painful or apprehensive uneasiness of mind usually over an impending or anticipated event.” Do you agree that anxiety happens over future events? Why or why not? What areas of your life give you the most anxiety right now? SAY: Let’s open our Bibles up to Matthew 6:25-34. Pass out Bibles and give the teens time to find the passage. Ask one of the teens to read the passage aloud. SAY: What is Jesus trying to get across to us in this passage? Your teens might have a hard time at first, and may need to hear the passage again. It is also important that everyone have a Bible so they can re-read sections on their own and as you discuss. SAY: Earlier we read Philippians 4:6-7. Let’s read it again: “Have no anxiety about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, will keep your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

© 2013 Augustine Institute. All rights reserved.

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SAY: We all struggle with anxiety, and it only seems to get harder as we get older. Thankfully, we have a God who knows us perfectly; He actually talks to us about our anxieties and tells us how to deal with them. He tells us to “not be anxious” about our own lives. Jesus says that we are far more valuable than the birds and the flowers, and they are always taken care of; therefore, we should have no doubt that we will be taken care of, even far better than these. Our heavenly Father knows what we need. One of the hardest things to do in our faith is to hand over our will and our worry to God. We want to be in charge, but faith requires that we trust in Someone who loves us more than anyone ever could. Ask three of your teens to stand up, and have one stand in front of the other two. SAY: Have you ever done a trust fall? Do you trust the people standing behind you? Make sure you give room for the person in front to fall backwards and be caught by the other teens. SAY: Cross your arms and without looking backwards, fall straight back, without bending your knees. Encourage the “catchers” to cheer on the person they are catching. Afterward, thank them for participating and have everyone clap. SAY: Trusting that someone else has your best interest in mind is very difficult for us to do. But Jesus says that is exactly how we can defeat anxiety; by seeking first “his kingdom and his righteousness,” and living in Jesus. When we do this, we can be confident that God will take care of our future—everything in our future, from what we are to eat, drink, and do with our lives, to whom we are to marry, how we do on our tests, and all of the other things that could make us anxious. SAY: St. Paul tells us: “Have no anxiety about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, will keep your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” SAY: Putting our trust in God, turning to Him in prayer, does not always make things easier right away. St. Paul says that we will have the peace of God, and we will keep our hearts and minds in Christ, but that doesn’t mean it won’t be hard. Many saints had great peace during great persecution and trials, because they trusted in God’s will so much that even in the midst of enormous difficulties, they were full of the peace of God instead of worry or anxiety. © 2013 Augustine Institute. All rights reserved.

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SAY: St. Thomas More was imprisoned by King Henry VIII for refusing to act contrary to his faith. While he was in prison he wrote to his daughter these words, while he was facing a death sentence: “I will not mistrust Him, Meg, although I shall feel myself weakening and on the verge of being overcome with fear. I shall remember how St. Peter at a blast of wind began to sink because of his lack of faith, and I shall do as he did: call upon Christ and pray to Him for help. And then I trust He shall place His holy hand on me and in the stormy seas hold me up from drowning.” SAY: When we focus on Christ instead of ourselves, we are able to rise above our situation, worry less, and trust more in Christ. Just before His Ascension, Christ Himself tells us: “And behold, I am with you always, to the close of the age.”—Matthew 28:20 SAY: It has also been said that “Courage is fear that has said its prayers.”

© 2013 Augustine Institute. All rights reserved.

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LIVE IT! SAY: When we release our anxieties and give them to God, we experience a freedom from worry and fear. The best way we can release our anxieties is by talking to God. We’re going to practice doing that today. I’d like each of you to take a moment and write down something that gives you anxiety—maybe it’s something you’re experiencing today, or it could be something that happens regularly, such as anxiety before a test. When you’re finished, I’d like you to fold your paper up and place it in the hat at the center of the room. Give teen two minutes to write down their anxiety. SAY: When we give our anxieties to God, we can be assured that He is there to walk with us and give us the courage we need to face any fears or worries that we have. I’m going to lead us in prayer. With your heads bowed, I’m going to pull each of these anxieties out of the hat and read them aloud. Then I’m going to ask God to free us from these worries and give us the courage to face the things that fill us with anxiety. Pull the anxieties out randomly and read them while the teens have their eyes closed. Then offer them to God, asking Him to release the teens of their anxieties and to give them courage to battle any anxiety that binds their lives. SAY: I’d like to encourage you to do something similar to this exercise at home whenever you feel anxiety creeping into your life. Write down your anxiety and place it somewhere such as at the foot of a cross you have in your room, in your Bible, or in a special box. Pray about whatever is causing you to worry and ask God to give you courage every day to face your anxieties. Then, once you’ve triumphed over it, you can throw it away to symbolize your freedom from it.

© 2013 Augustine Institute. All rights reserved.

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CLOSING PRAYER SAY: Let’s all end by praying the prayer from St. Augustine, found on your Teen Sheet: Almighty God, who knows our necessities before we ask, and our ignorance in asking: Set free Your servants from all anxious thoughts for the morrow; give us contentment with Your good gifts; and confirm our faith so that, according as we seek Your kingdom, You will not suffer us to lack any good thing, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

© 2013 Augustine Institute. All rights reserved.

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Teen SHeet AWKWARDLY ANXIOUS

This session is designed to help you talk about anxiety and how God can provide us with peace in Jesus Christ. As you participate in this study, use these points to guide you. Add your own notes, observations, or questions in the space below each point. If images or symbols come to mind, include them as a way to help you process and remember the key takeaways from this lesson. Answer the following questions in your small group: ➜➜ How would you define anxiety?

______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ➜➜ What areas in your life give you the most anxiety right now?

______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________

© 2013 Augustine Institute. All rights reserved.

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Q 2: Quotes and Questions

"Have no anxiety about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, will keep your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." —Philippians 4:6-7 "The Lord grieves over the rich, because they find their consolation in the abundance of goods. ‘Let the proud seek and love earthly kingdoms, but blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.’ Abandonment to the providence of the Father in heaven frees us from anxiety about tomorrow. Trust in God is a preparation for the blessedness of the poor. They shall see God." —CCC 2547

Almighty God, who knows our necessities before we ask, and our ignorance in asking: Set free Your servants from all anxious thoughts for the morrow; give us contentment with Your good gifts; and confirm our faith so that, according as we seek Your kingdom, You will not suffer us to lack any good thing, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

© 2013 Augustine Institute. All rights reserved.

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During the week, look for some tangible ways that you can manage your anxiety. Here are a few suggestions:

• Relax: Find an activity that helps you relax when you're feeling anxious.



Maybe it's going for a walk, reading, playing an instrument, or shooting



hoops. Make sure that you know what helps you release your anxiety and find



opportunities to indulge in that activity when you're feeling anxious.



• Talk: Talk to God about your struggles and anxieties. Ask Him to help you let



them go and, if it is His will for you to experience them now, ask for the grace



to be able to persevere and triumph over them in the future. Also, find a



trusted confidant with whom you can share how you're feeling when anxiety



strikes or becomes overwhelming. Talking over the phone about your anxiety



or meeting that person for a time of prayer will help you release your



emotions and work through the rough stuff.







• Courage: Sometimes it's good to face your anxieties head-on. If speaking in



front of a group gives you butterflies in your stomach, practice talking to a



group of trusted friends or your family to help ease your stress level. If



you get test anxiety, try having someone quiz you beforehand so you can



speak answers out loud to gain confidence. Or let your teacher know



you experience test anxiety and he or she may offer you extra time or let you



take the test in a place that's comfortable for you. If your heart rate skyrockets



when you think about jumping into a pool, take private swim lessons with



an instructor who can help you feel more comfortable in the water. Know



that God will give you the courage and strength to face anything, and that



there are times when all we need to do is take that first step of faith and face



our fears.



© 2013 Augustine Institute. All rights reserved.

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Parent SHeet AWKWARDLY ANXIOUS Parents, we invite you to use this overview to continue the conversation that we started this week with your teen. We encourage you to respond to the questions as well, so your teen can see that God is working through you also.

WHAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT Have you ever felt so anxious you thought your heart would explode out of your chest? All of us experience some form of anxiety in our lives. As parents, we may be anxious about having enough money to pay the bills, about our future if we lose our job, or about our children’s future when they struggle in life. In this study, teens talked about things that cause them anxiety and experienced what it’s like to give that anxiety to God. They discovered that Jesus may not take our fears and worries away, but He understands them because He Himself experienced great anxiety during His time on earth. Teens learned that in the midst of their anxieties, they can know that God will never leave them and that He is walking through the rough times with them. They also experienced that prayer is a wonderful way to relieve anxiety and release our stress to our Creator. Parents: Anxiety can be a serious medical problem, in addition to a spiritual or emotional struggle. If your teen experiences chronic episodes of anxiety that hinder him or her from experiencing normal teen life, there may be a deeper psychological or biological issue. If this sounds like something your teen is facing, talk to your family doctor and set up an evaluation for your child.

MAKE THE CONNECTION Here are some conversation starters for this week. Remember to share your perspectives as well. • What are things in your life that are currently making you feel anxious?

• Share about a time when you were anxious about something, and how you dealt with your feelings.



• As a family, how can you offer support to each other when anxious feelings arise? Q 2: Quotes and Questions "God commands you to pray, but He forbids you to worry."—St. John Vianney

© 2013 Augustine Institute. All rights reserved.