Table of Contents
- How to Gain Spiritual Strength
- Building Our Foundation on Jesus Christ
- Daily Spiritual Charge
- My Spiritual Light Can Grow Brighter and Brighter.
- Gaining more knowledge of the gospel and obeying its principles allows our spiritual light to grow brighter.
- Spiritual Strength comes from faithfulness to my covenants with God.
- Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ can help me know how to improve.
How to Gain Spiritual Strength
Friend August 2023 “Standing Strong” A tree’s roots are very important. They keep the tree standing strong, even through wind and storms. On the roots of this tree, write things you can do to invite the Holy Ghost into your life and stay close to Heavenly Father. Then you can stand strong too.
Building Our Foundation on Jesus Christ
Friend October 2021 “Our Strong Foundation” President Nelson talks about the Salt Lake Temple foundation needs strengthened to shore up weak areas. Then he says, “We must build the foundation of our lives on the rock of our Redeemer, Jesus Christ. Then when spiritual earthquakes happen, we will be able to stand strong.”
For the Strength of Youth March 2024
Daily Spiritual Charge
For the Strength of Youth August 2021 “Your Daily Spiritual Charge”
Friend September 2022 “Small Things Make a Difference!” Jed is the smallest in his class. Sometimes he wishes he could be taller, but regardless of his height he can do many good things. Values are more important than height.
My Spiritual Light Can Grow Brighter and Brighter.
Doctrine and Covenants 50:23–25
23 And that which doth not edifyis not of God, and is darkness.
24 That which is of God is light; and he that receiveth light, and continueth in God, receiveth more light; and that light groweth brighter and brighter until the perfect day.
25 And again, verily I say unto you, and I say it that you may know the truth, that you may chase darkness from among you;
Friend May 2021 “Scripture Time Fun” Follow the Light
- Sing “Teach Me to Walk in the Light” (Children’s Songbook,177).
- Jesus Christ taught, “That which is of God is light” (Doctrine and Covenants 50:24). The gospel is like a light that leads us out of darkness and confusion.
- Hide an item in a dark room and try to find it. Then look again with a flashlight or small lamp. How does the gospel help you find your way?
Gaining more knowledge of the gospel and obeying its principles allows our spiritual light to grow brighter.
You might gather in a dark room to read Doctrine and Covenants 50:23–25 and gradually add more light by lighting candles or turning on lights one by one. You could also read these verses while watching the sun rise in the morning. What can we do to make our gospel light continue to grow? When family members learn something new about the gospel during the week, encourage them to share it with the family by writing a note and attaching it to a lamp or other light in the house.
Come, Follow Me—For Primary: Doctrine and Covenants 2021 “Doctrine and Covenants 49-50”
Abstract concepts like truth and spirit can be hard for young children to understand, but comparing them to light, as the Lord does in Doctrine and Covenants 50:23–25, can help.
- Use an activity that illustrates how our spiritual light can grow brighter and brighter. You could show pictures of things that give light (such as a candle, a light bulb, and the sun) and let the children arrange them in increasing order of brightness. Or invite the children to pretend to be lights getting brighter by bending down and slowly standing and stretching up their arms. Help them think of good things they can do to make their spiritual light brighter.
- Sing with the children a song about their spiritual light, such as “Shine On” (Children’s Songbook, 144). Testify about how Heavenly Father has helped your light grow brighter. Tell the children about the light you see in them.
Friend November 2019 “For Parents of Little Ones” Parents share how they stay spiritually nourished while taking care of young children.
Ensign June 2017 “Family Home Evening Ideas” To illustrate the importance of gaining your own spiritual light, consider this activity. Turn off the lights and ask family members to draw a picture. Have someone with a flashlight or candle use it only for their own picture. After a few minutes, turn the lights back on. Talk about the difference in being able to complete the task and then discuss the principles found in the article.
Friend September 2015
Ensign January 2018 Like the children of Israel, we also need to gather “spiritual manna” every day–we pray, study scriptures, keep the commandments, and serve others in order to keep the Spirit with us. Find something that you can use as “manna” (buttons, toys, balls of paper, etc.) and spread them out on your floor. Have the children gather the manna and put it into a bowl. (To make the game a little harder, you might hide the manna.) Every time they place a piece of manna in the bowl, they can give an example of an action that provides spiritual nourishment. Consider reading Exodus 16:19–21 and having a discussion. Why was it important for the Israelites to gather manna every day? And why is it important for us?
Just like the car’s battery that needed to be periodically recharged in Elder Bassett’s story, we too need to be spiritually recharged. Find a windup toy or top–something that must be wound or spun in order to work. Spin or wind the toy a few times. How does this relate to how we power ourselves spiritually? What happens when we stop spinning the top? Similarly, what happens if we stop saying our prayers or going to church? You may want to reference the “Spiritual Manna” section of Elder Bassett’s article.
If our “spiritual batteries” are charged and strong, the Holy Ghost can be our constant companion. Before family home evening, make two lists of actions: (1) things that drain our spiritual batteries (such as lying, being mean to a brother/sister, skipping scripture study) and (2) things that charge them (such as paying tithing, visiting the sick, partaking of the sacrament). Read each item aloud. Ask the children to go to the left side of the room if the action drains our spiritual batteries and to the right if it charges them. Encourage them to choose the right
Always Remember Him
An angel rebukes Israel for not serving the Lord—As a pattern of future events, a new generation arises that forsakes the Lord and serves Baal and Ashtaroth—The Lord is angry with the children of Israel and ceases to preserve them—He raises up judges to guide and lead them—The Canaanites are left in the land to test Israel.
After Joshua died, the next generation of Israelites “knew not the Lord.” Talk with your family about how they know the Lord and “the works which he [has] done” for them. How will you ensure that this knowledge will be preserved for future generations? (Come, Follow Me—For Individuals and Families: Old Testament 2022 “Judges 2–4; 6–8; 13–16”)
How do we come to know the Lord? Through scripture study, prayer, sacrament, living the commandments. etc.
Friend June 2019 “The Sacrament Reminds Us of Jesus Christ” Ways to prepare for the sacrament before hand, what to do during the sacrament, and remembering Jesus and following him after the sacrament.
New Era March 2008 “How Can I Come to Know Christ?”
Friend November 2017 “Family Night Fun” Ways you can look for blessings every day.
Spiritual Strength comes from faithfulness to my covenants with God.
Samson lost both his physical strength and his spiritual strength because he violated his covenants with God,
Israel is in Philistine bondage for forty years—An angel comes to Manoah’s wife and promises a son who will begin to deliver Israel—The angel comes again; he ascends in a flame from the altar—Samson is born, and the Spirit of the Lord moves upon him.
Samson slays a young lion with his bare hands—He marries a Philistine wife, propounds a riddle, is deceived by his wife, and slays thirty Philistines.
Samson burns the grain of the Philistines—They burn his wife and father-in-law—Samson slays a thousand Philistines at Lehi with the jawbone of an ass.
Samson carries away the doors of the gate of Gaza—He loves Delilah, who delivers him to the Philistines—He destroys a building, killing himself and 3,000 others.
“Lesson 25: Samson,” Primary 6: Old Testament (1996), 110–13 Samson’s mission would require physical strength. The Lord made a covenant with Samson that as long as he obeyed the Lord, he would be physically strong. Samson’s long hair (see Judges 13:5) was a sign of this covenant. When Samson kept his covenants he was blessed with the ability to help his people, but when he broke his covenants he lost both his spiritual and physical strength.
What happens when people become spiritually weak? (They give in to temptations, they sin, they lose the guidance of the Holy Ghost, and they lose the ability to fulfill their callings and bless others.)
How are we blessed when we keep our covenants and are spiritually strong?
- Before class identify a strength you have observed in each child. Write a note to each one telling of this strength, such as, “Dear , you are strong in coming to Primary each week.” Some other ideas might include:
- Being kind to others
- Sharing your testimony
- Helping your parents
- Being a peacemaker
- Being a good friend
- Reading the scriptures
- Point out that we all have different kinds of strengths. Heavenly Father needs us to use these strengths to serve him and to serve others. Read aloud each note you have prepared, without reading the names, and then give them to the children. Help the children realize that these are only some of the many strengths Heavenly Father has blessed them with. Give the children an opportunity to mention other strengths they have observed in class members. Encourage them to develop these and other strengths during the coming week.
Come, Follow Me—For Individuals and Families: Old Testament 2022 “Judges 2–4; 6–8; 13–16” Samson’s covenants with the Lord gave him strength, just as our covenants give us strength. Your family might enjoy doing some physical exercises and discussing how those exercises can help make us strong. What can we do to help us become spiritually stronger? For some ideas, family members could read Mosiah 18:8–10; Doctrine and Covenants 20:77, 79. How does keeping our covenants give us spiritual strength?
“Lesson 25: Samson,” Primary 6: Old Testament (1996), 110–13 Ask for a volunteer to demonstrate how to flex his or her arm muscles. Let the whole class try it to see if they can feel their own muscles. You may want to let two children arm wrestle or pull sticks (a game Joseph Smith enjoyed). To pull sticks, have two boys sit on the floor facing each other, legs extended, knees bent, and the soles of their feet touching. Have each boy grasp the same large stick and try to pull the other up until he is standing on his feet.
- How do muscles help us? Discuss what happens when we exercise our muscles and what happens when we do not use them. Help the children realize that exercise helps us develop strong muscles.
- Explain that our spirits also need to grow stronger. How can we become stronger spiritually? (By keeping our baptismal covenants, obeying our parents, praying, attending church, reading the scriptures, and so on.)
- Why is it important to become spiritually strong? (So we can avoid temptation, be guided in our decisions by the Holy Ghost, and know good from evil.)
Help the children understand that we need to develop spiritual strength just as we need to develop physical strength.
Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ can help me know how to improve.
Come, Follow Me—For Primary: Old Testament 2022
Psalm 139 teaches that God knows everything about us, including our strengths and weaknesses. If we turn to Him, He can teach us what we need to do to become more like Him.
- Write the words of Psalm 139:23–24 on the board, and invite the children to underline words that describe things God can do for us. Why would we want God to do these things? How can we invite Him to “lead [us] in the way everlasting”?
Friend August 2020 “Let God Prevail!” President Russel M. Nelson tells what it means to let God prevail in our lives.
Friend January 2021 “The Party Problem” Luz felt uneasy about going to a graduation party. It didn’t sound like the kind of party where she’d be able to feel the Holy Ghost. She thought about it, made her choice not to go, and then asked Heavenly Father if that was the right choice. Afterwards she felt a wave of warmth and light and knew she had made the right choice.
- Encourage the children to “search” their own lives for ways they can improve in the four areas of focus in the Children and Youth program—spiritual, social, physical, and intellectual. Remind them that the Lord knows how they can improve in each of these areas, and encourage them to seek His guidance.
Friend June 2021 “Children and Youth Challenge” Do some activities from this board for the Children and Youth program! Can you cross off five in a row?
- Sing a song about how Heavenly Father can help us improve, such as the second verse of “Help Me, Dear Father” (Children’s Songbook, 99). Share how Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ have helped you improve.
