The Chaplet with Stations

I thought I would pass on a Lenten practice that we have done in our house for the past few years. I'm not sure where this originated or who the person(s) was who put these two prayers together, so I apologize for not being able to give them due credit. The prayer I am referring to is a beautiful combination of the Divine Mercy Chaplet and the Stations of the Cross. We try to pray this together every day at 3:00 (with a big emphasis on try!) It is a nice way to bring the Stations into every day of Lent and I have found it a very good way to actually learn and remember the Stations. The first year we did this I didn't even know all of them. It took a couple of years for me to actually memorize the order. Practice does make perfect, I guess!

Here is how it is done: You pray the Our Father, Hail Mary and the Creed.
You then pray the Divine Mercy chaplet as follows:

On the Our Father bead pray "Eternal Father, I offer you the body and blood, soul and divinity of Your dearly beloved Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, in atonement for our sins and those of the whole world"

Announce the 1st Station - Jesus is condemned to death
On the next three beads pray "For the sake of His sorrowful Passion, have mercy on us and on the whole world."
The 2nd Station - Jesus Carries His cross - Pray four "For the sake..."
The 3rd Station - Jesus falls for the first time - Pray three "For the sake..."

"Eternal Father..."
The 4th Station - Jesus meets His mother - Pray three "For the sake..."
The 5th Station - Simon of Cyrene takes up the cross - Pray four "For the sake..."
The 6th Station - Veronica wipes the face of Jesus - Pray three "For the sake..."

"Eternal Father..."
The 7th Station - Jesus Falls the second time - Pray three "For the sake..."
The 8th Station - Jesus consoles the weeping women - Pray four "For the sake..."
The 9th Station - Jesus falls the third time - Pray three "For the sake..."

"Eternal Father..."
The 10th Station - Jesus is stripped of His garments - Pray three "For the sake..."
The 11th Station - Jesus is nailed to the cross - Pray four "For the sake..."
The 12th Station - Jesus dies on the cross - Pray three "For the sake..."

"Eternal Father..."
The 13 the Station - Jesus is taken down from the cross - Pray five "For the sake..."
The 14th Station - Jesus is laid in the tomb - Pray five "For the sake..."

Finish the chaplet by saying "Holy God, Holy Mighty One, Holy Immortal One, have mercy on us and on the whole world" three times. You can then add "Jesus, I trust in You, Jesus, I trust in You, Jesus I trust in You, may I live in You, may I die in You, may I trust in You forever. Amen."

It might take a few tries to get the rhythm of this down, but once you do, you'll enjoy the beauty of these two prayers. Announcing a new station every couple of beads really helps to keep your mind focused. If this is new to you, I hope you get a chance to give it a try. And if anyone knows where it first originated, please let us all know!