Going on a Journey

The journey of life

by Claire Law

Suitable for Key Stage 2

Aims

To reflect upon both physical and spiritual journeys.

Preparation and materials

• You will need the PowerPoint slides that accompany this assembly (Going on a Journey) and the means to display them.
• Have available the YouTube video ‘The Miracle Maker – Road to Emmaus’ and the means to show it during the assembly. It is 3.22 minutes long and is available at: https://youtu.be/tKmK9bMZfOk (show from 0.45 to 3.16 minutes).

Assembly

1. Show Slide 1.
   
   Welcome the children to the assembly.
   
   
2. Ask the children whether they’ve ever gone on a journey or taken part in an activity and been asked to be the map-reader.
   
   Point out that most of us rely on Google Maps or satnav to help us get from A to B. Even so, we still need to know how to interpret maps and directions to avoid getting lost.
   
   
3. Ask the children, ‘What are your map-reading skills like?’
   
   Tell them that you are going to give them a quick quiz to find out the answer.
   
   Explain that you are going to show some map symbols and you want the children to identify what each symbol represents.
   
   
4. Show Slide 2.
   
   Ask the children, ‘What does this symbol mean?’
   
   Show Slide 3.
   
   The correct answer is: parking.
   
   
5. Show Slide 4.
   
   Ask the children, ‘What does this symbol mean?’
   
   Show Slide 5.
   
   The correct answer is: a place of worship with a tower.
   
   
6. Show Slide 6.
   
   Ask the children, ‘What does this symbol mean?’
   
   Show Slide 7.
   
   The correct answer is: a railway station.
   
   
7. Show Slide 8.
   
   Tell the children that this is a harder one. Ask them, ‘What does this symbol mean?’
   
   Show Slide 9.
   
   The correct answer is: bike hire. Point out that this is a tricky one because there are similar symbols to indicate bike trails and even mountain bike trails. However, this circular symbol represents bike hire.
    
8. Show Slide 10.
   
   Tell the children that this is the final challenge.
   
   Ask them, ‘What does this symbol mean?’
   
   You may need to give them the clue that they might find this type of terrain at the beach.
   
   Show Slide 11.
   
   The correct answer is: shingle. It is a type of terrain that is made up of small, round stones that cover a beach, or the ground by the edge of a river.
    
9. Knowing how to read a map can help us to find our way on a physical journey. Sometimes, our lives are described as a kind of journey too: we start as a tiny baby and go on a journey that might have many twists and turns before we reach old age.
   
   For centuries, people have seen a connection between a physical journey and a spiritual journey, which is like a journey on the inside. Many people see this as a journey that involves God. There can be lots to learn about our inner world as we journey through life.
   
   
10. The Bible tells us how Jesus and his disciples moved from place to place and town to town. Along the way, they probably got lost a few times and needed to ask for directions or consult a map.  We also know that sometimes, the disciples felt confused about what their faith in Jesus really meant. Part of their spiritual journey was to ask questions.
    
    
11. On one occasion, after Jesus had saved the disciples’ lives by calming a storm, Matthew’s Gospel tells us that the disciples asked themselves, ‘“Who is this man? Even the winds and waves obey him!”’ (Matthew 8.27)
    
    
12. In John’s Gospel, we read, ‘At first, his disciples did not understand all this.’ (John 12.16) In other words, Jesus’ disciples were on a spiritual journey that involved asking questions and being curious about their faith. As they physically walked from town to town, there was movement in their spiritual life too.
     
13. This process didn’t end with Jesus’ death and resurrection. In Luke’s Gospel (Luke 24.13-35), we read about a physical journey that two of Jesus’ disciples took towards a town called Emmaus. It was the day when Jesus’ tomb had been found empty, and the disciples chatted as they walked, trying to make sense of their feelings of grief and confusion about Jesus’ death on the cross.
    
    Jesus had been crucified just days before. The disciples had heard people saying that they’d seen Jesus alive, and that he was risen from the dead. This had left them feeling confused about where they were heading spiritually, so as they walked, they talked. On the way, they met a man, who joined them and chatted with them. The disciples talked about Jesus and what he’d meant to them, and the conversation helped them to understand better the meaning of Jesus’ death. It was only later that the disciples realized that the person who had joined them on the road was, in fact, the risen Jesus.
    
    
14. This video shows us what happened.
    
    Show the YouTube video ‘The Miracle Maker – Road to Emmaus’ from 0.45 to 3.16 minutes.
    
    
    
    
15. For the disciples, moving from A to B resembled how their feelings and faith were shifting too. The physical journey is a symbol of their inner journey of faith.
    
    For centuries, many people of various faiths have gone on pilgrimages. A pilgrimage is a journey, often a long and difficult one, to a special place, usually for religious reasons. During a pilgrimage, pilgrims expect to journey spiritually as well as physically.
     
16. Show Slide 12.
    
    Every year, millions of Muslims go on Hajj, a pilgrimage to the holy city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia. Completing Hajj is one of the five pillars of Islam. This year, Hajj is due to take place in June, and many pilgrims will undertake it, intending to grow and deepen their faith.
     
17. Show Slide 13.
    
    Likewise, Christians from around the world visit Lourdes in France, or journey to Jerusalem. For these pilgrims, one reason to take such a journey is to understand better where they are heading in terms of their spiritual life.

Time for reflection

Ask the children how they feel about their journey through life at the moment. Are they feeling happy? Excited? Sad? Worried?

Remind them that there are people to walk with them along their journey. Encourage them to talk to someone if they are ever finding things difficult.

Remind the children that we are all a part of other people’s journeys. We all have the opportunity to help others in their path through life. Encourage the children to think about ways in which they can help those around them to walk their journey day by day.

Prayer
Dear God,
Please help us in our journey through life.
Please help us to look for ways to help other people.
Thank you that you promise always to be there with us in every situation.
Amen.

Song/music

‘Circle of life’ from the film The Lion King, available at: https://youtu.be/GibiNy4d4gc (4.06 minutes long)