Yesterday was the Feast of the Most Holy Rosary and October is the month of the Holy Rosary! So, I thought it fitting to do a little post on the prayers that I like to add to my daily rosary. It, of course, is not necessary to add any prayers to the rosary at all, but it has just sort of developed over time as the Holy Spirit has moved me.
I love the Holy Rosary! It has gotten me through a lot of struggles and trials. I remember when I was first getting consistent about praying it. I was praying for the healing of my marriage. The Holy Mother showed me in meditating on the Mysteries, that many of the issues I was facing were my own doing. She showed me through her own gentleness, that my heart needed to change and be softened.
As my prayer life deepened I discovered more and more prayers that I wanted to incorporate into my day. It was sometimes difficult to remember to pray them or find time to work them in. But the one devotion I was consistent about was praying the Rosary. It hit me one day that if I add the prayers I was learning to my Rosary, I would be less likely to forget about them.
Prayers I Like To Incorporate Into My Rosary
1. I Ask The Saints To Pray With Me
Before I start my rosary I ask several Saints to pray it with me for my needs or the needs of others. For example, my son’s confirmation Saint is Saint Michael the Archangel. So, I’ll pray:
St. Michael the Archangel, please pray the rosary with me for the needs, prayers, petitions, protection, conversion, sainthood, and happy death of Tyler.
I repeat this same prayer for each person close to me using their patron Saint, Confirmation Saint, or a Saint that is the patron for their current situation.
I will also ask specific Saints to pray for certain gifts or graces. For example because Saint Maximilian is the Patron Saint of Addicts I will pray:
Saint Maximilian, please pray the rosary with me for the end of the tobacco addiction of my husband.
*My husband as given up smoking! Praise the Lord!*
Do you ask the Saints to help pray with you? Do you know which Saints your friends and family are close too?
2. I Ask My Guardian Angel To Pray The Rosary With Me
My angel is always with me. He knows me better than any person on the earth, besides Our Lord, as he spends every second with me. So, my prayer is similar to the one I pray to the Saints:
My angel, please pray the rosary with me for my own needs, prayers, petitions, protection, conversion, sainthood, and happy death. And for an increase in my faith, hope, and charity. And especially for help with…..
I then will ask my angel to pray for anything that I may particularly struggle with. He sees my struggles so intimately as my constant companion and is able to bring them to the Lord much more worthily than me.
I also like to pray a consecration prayer to my Guardian Angel once a week, usually on Sunday.
Consecration to One’s Guardian Angel
O Holy Angel of God, here, in the presence of the Triune God and in the love of Jesus Christ, my Lord and Redeemer, I, N. N., a poor sinner, want to make a covenant with thee, his servant and my appointed Guardian, so that in union with thee, I might work with humility and fortitude for the glory of God and the coming of his Kingdom. Therefore, I implore thee to assist me, especially in the adoration of God and of the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar; in the contemplation of the word and the salvific works of God; in the imitation of Christ and in the love of His Cross in a spirit of expiation; in the faithful fulfillment of my mission within the Church, serving humbly after the example of Mary, my heavenly Mother, thy Queen. Thou, my good guardian Angel, who continually behold the face of our Father in Heaven, God entrusted me to thee from the very beginning of my life. I thank thee with all my heart for thy loving care. I commit myself to thee and promise thee my love and fidelity. I beg thee: protect me against my own weakness and against the attacks of the wicked spirits; enlighten my mind and my heart so that I may always know and accomplish the will of God; and lead me to union with God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Do you have a close relationship with your guardian angel? What are your favorite prayers to him? What do you ask him for help with?
3. Prayers To Our Lady
If there are really big things I need to request of the Lord, I go to Our Lady. I’ll pray:
Holy Mother, please take any merits that this rosary may obtain, from a miserable sinner, for the good of the Kingdom of the Lord, according to your wisdom, and His love and will. I ask that you please beg Him for…..”
Then, she can offer these requests to the Lord on my behalf. I see her goodness as much more worthy to ask Him than myself.
I like to add other devotional prayers to her as well. There are so many prayers to Our Lady out there. A few of my favorites are the Memorare, Seven Sorrows, The Magnificat, and The Angelus.
On the center medal I like to pray the prayer from the Miraculous Medal before I start the first mystery:
Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee.
I also like to add the consecration prayer below once a week, usually on Sunday, to the end of my rosary.
Consecration of Exterior Goods to The Blessed Virgin Mary
I; (Name), a faithless sinner, renew and ratify today in thy hands the vows of my Baptism; I renounce forever Satan, his pomps and works; and I give myself entirely to Jesus Christ, the Incarnate Wisdom, to carry my cross after Him all the days of my life, and to be more faithful to Him than I have ever been before. In the presence of all the heavenly court, I choose thee, O Mary, this day for my Mother and Mistress. Knowing that I have received rights over all my exterior goods by the promulgation of the Natural Law by the Divine Author, I deliver and consecrate to thee, as thy slave, all of my exterior goods, past, present and future; I relinquish into thy hands, my Heavenly Mother, all rights over my exterior goods, the fairness, honesty and accuracy of the outcome of the election, and our country and I retain for myself no right of disposing the goods that come to me but leave to thee the entire and full right of disposing of all that belongs to me, without exception, according to thy good pleasure, for the greater glory of God in time and in eternity. As I now interiorly relinquish what belongs to me exteriorly into thy hands, I entrust to thee the protection of those exterior goods against the evil one, so that, knowing that they now belong to thee, he cannot touch them. Receive, O good and pious Virgin, this little offering of what little is, in honor of, and in union with, that subjection which the Eternal Wisdom deigned to have to Thy maternity; in homage to the power which both of You have over this poor sinner, and in thanksgiving for the privileges with which the Holy Trinity has favored thee. Trusting in the providential care of God the Father and thy maternal care, I have full confidence that thou wilst take care of me as to the necessities of this life and will not leave me forsaken. God the Father, increase my trust in Thy Son’s Mother; Our Lady of Fair Love, give me perfect confidence in the providence of Thy Son. Amen.
What Marian prayers are your favorite? What do you especially entrust to Our Lady?
4. Prayers To The Saints You Have A Special Devotion Too
I am especially close to St. Raphael the Archangel, St. Gemma Galagani, and St. Ignatius of Loyola. I often add specific prayers to them at the end of my rosary asking for their intercession.
I am not particularly close to St. Dominic, but I do like to end my rosary with a prayer to him because Our Lady gave him the gift of the Rosary. I stumbled across it in a book somewhere and have prayed it for a few years now:
Glorious St. Dominic, intercede with Mary, Immaculate, to crush the serpent and let peace reign throughout the whole world. You are the founder of the most Holy Rosary, do not let the enemies enter into these places where the rosary is recited. Amen.
I also suggest adding prayers that your favorite Saints wrote:
Suscipe By St. Ignatius of Loyola
Take, O Lord, and receive my entire liberty, my memory, my understanding and my whole will. All that I am and all that I possess, Thou hast given me: I surrender it all to Thee to be disposed of according to Thy will. Give me only Thy love and Thy grace; with these I will be rich enough and will desire nothing more. Amen.
Which Saints are you close too? What are your favorite prayers to them?
5. Novena Prayers
How many times have you missed a day while praying a novena? I seem to always miss at least one day! No matter how good my intentions are. But adding the Novena prayer to my Rosary has definitely helped me increase my chances of actually completely a Novena.
Here is a good list of Novenas to pray!
What are your favorite Novenas? What are your tips for completing them?
6. Devotional Prayers To Our Lord
There are many prayers and devotions out there devoted to Our Lord as God the Father, Son, and/or Holy Spirit. My favorites are the Holy Face, Precious Blood, Sacred Heart, and I have a deep devotion to Him in the Crown of Thorns. I like to add specific prayers for these devotions to the end of my Rosary. By doing so I keep the devotion alive in my heart and at the forefront of my mind.
Dear Lord, I am grieved when I consider Thy sad condition when Thou wore the Crown of Thorns upon Thy hold Head. I desire to withdraw the thorns by offering to the Eternal Father the merits of Thy Wounds for the salvation of sinners. I wish to unite my actions to the merits of Thy Most Holy Crown, so that they may gain many merits, as Thou hast promised. Amen.
7. Prayers of Gratitude
The Lord is ever faithful to my needs. Prayers of thankfulness and gratitude is a beautiful way for me to praise and glorify the many blessings He grants me every day!
Prayer by Saint Richard of Chichester
Thanks be to Thee, my Lord Jesus Christ,
for all the benefits which Thou hast given me, for me,
O most merciful friend, redeemer and brother.
May I see Thee more clearly,
love Thee more dearly
and follow Thee more nearly.
The Rosary is a beautiful devotion that teaches me so much about my Lord, His teachings, His Mother, and also myself. Meditation on the Divine Mysteries brings me closer to Our Lord, allows me to honor His Saints, thank Him for His graces, and show devotion to my Savior.
Thrive in Jesus, my Friends!
What are your favorite prayers? Are there prayers you add to your Rosary? What are your favorite devotions to our Lady and our Savior? Who are your favorite Saints? Leave me a comment and let me know!