Heavenly Father wants all of His children to return to Him.

Luke 15

The Lost Sheep

The Lost Coin

The Lost Son

Friend May 2017 “Jesus Taught About Heavenly Father’s Love” Jesus teaches about the lost coin, the lost sheep, and the prodigal son.

Come, Follow Me—For Primary: New Testament 2023 “Luke 12–17; John 11” Think about the children in your class, including those who may not attend regularly. How can you help them feel Heavenly Father’s love? How can you inspire the other children to help you reach out to them in love?

• Give one child a coin, another child a picture of a sheep, and another child a picture of the prodigal son (see ChurchofJesusChrist.org or this week’s activity page). Tell the three parables found in Luke 15 and invite the children to hold up their coin or picture when you mention it. You could invite the children to retell the parables to each other in their own words.

• Ask the children to share a time when they lost something. How did they find it? Explain that people can become lost spiritually when they don’t follow Heavenly Father. Testify that God wants people who are lost to come to Him, and we can help them.

Latter Day Kids “I Have Found That Which Was Lost” Lesson ideas

Friend March 2001 “The Good Shepherd Game” Play the game in family home evening by hiding a lamb and letting a member of the family find it. If you wish, you can bleat “baa” louder or softer as he or she gets closer to or farther from the lost lamb. If a lamb is lost, a good shepherd finds it and brings it back to the fold.

• Invite the children to think of other children who don’t come to Primary. Help them color or write notes inviting these children to attend Primary or a Primary activity. How else can we help these children feel Heavenly Father’s love for them?

Friend July 2021 “Dear Friends” I enjoyed the activity to blow the sheep to Jesus from the Come, Follow Me ideas (Sept. 2020). Ari S., age 4, Texas, USA

New Testament Coloring Book “The Prodigal Son”

For additional teaching resources and stories see Fellowshipping.

I can help Jesus find His lost sheep.

Luke 15

Come, Follow Me—For Primary: New Testament 2023 “Luke 12–17; John 11” We all know someone who is in some ways like the lost sheep, the lost coin, or the prodigal son in the Savior’s parables. Consider how you can inspire the children to reach out to these people with love.

• Help the children read the parable of the lost sheep or the parable of the lost coin, found in Luke 15:1–10, and share what they learned.

The Lost Sheep

The Lost Coin

The Lost Son

• Write these names on the board: father, older son, and younger son. Show the video “The Prodigal Son” (ChurchofJesusChrist.org) and pause it occasionally so the children can write on the board some of the feelings of the people listed. How do Heavenly Father and Jesus feel about those who have sinned?

New Testament Student Manual  According to the customs of the Savior’s time, a son received his inheritance only after his father died. For a son to demand his inheritance before his father’s death (see Luke 15:12–13) would have been an enormous offense. The son’s request would have been seen as a rejection of his father, his home, his upbringing, and even his entire community.

New Testament Seminary Student Manual (2023) “Luke 15”

The Pharisees criticized the Savior for receiving and eating with sinners.

• What do you think the Savior hoped the Pharisees would learn from this parable?

One truth we learn from this parable is that Heavenly Father values and loves all His children and is waiting with open arms to welcome all who will turn to Him.

• Ask a child to leave the room while the other children hide a coin or paper sheep. Have the child return and look for the coin or sheep. What are some ways people can feel “lost” like the coin or the sheep? Invite the children to suggest ways they can reach out to them. Sing with the children a related song, such as “Dear to the Heart of the Shepherd” (Hymns, no. 221), and testify of the joy that comes when people return to God.

Friend March 2001 “The Good Shepherd Game” Play the game in family home evening by hiding a lamb and letting a member of the family find it. If you wish, you can bleat “baa” louder or softer as he or she gets closer to or farther from the lost lamb. If a lamb is lost, a good shepherd finds it and brings it back to the fold.

Come, Follow Me—For Individuals and Families: New Testament 2023 “Luke 12–17; John 11” Do your family members understand what it feels like to lose something—or to be lost? Talking about their experiences could start a discussion about the parables of the lost sheep and lost coin. Or you could play a game in which someone hides and other family members try to find him or her. How does this activity help us understand these parables?

• Explain that Jesus used the lost sheep, the lost coin, and the prodigal son to represent people who are “lost” because they do not have the blessings of the gospel. Invite the children to think of people they know who don’t have these blessings in their lives. What can they do to help these people feel Heavenly Father’s love for them?

Friend May 2015 “The Prodigal Son” Lesson and story ideas and crossword puzzle

Lesson 19: The Lost Sheep, the Lost Coin, and the Prodigal Son,” Primary 7: New Testament 

Play Search and Find. Ask a child to think of a place where he or she could get lost and write it on a piece of paper or whisper it to the teacher. Have the other children ask “yes” or “no” questions to determine where the child is located (Is it in a crowded place? Is it in the mountains? Is it under something?). Help the children understand that it takes time and effort to find someone who is lost, especially someone who is spiritually lost.

Fellowshipping Lonely Members

Fellowshipping Inactive Members

Friend November 2018 “Sharing Friendship” Elenoa’s parents buy extra copies of the Friend when they go to the temple. Elenoa and her siblings think of friends who haven’t been coming to Primary, and then they visit them and take them a Friend magazine and a treat. (Photos included in article.)

Friend August 2018 “Show and Tell”

My friends and I went to see our friend Ruth from church. We brought carrot cake and flowers and sang Primary songs to her. It made us all happy!

Friend October 2017 “Helping Gilly” Brenda calls Gilly to tell her that she and the other girls in Primary miss her.

Friend August 2017 “Reaching Out to New Friends” Elder Anderson shares a story of a boy in Uganda fellowshipping another boy and a story about children behind a fence being invited into a meeting. Sometimes people at church feel like they are behind a fence looking in and need a friend and an invitation to join in.

Friend February 2017 “The Best Part of the Week” Jenny’s family doesn’t go to church very often, but Jenny decides to go by herself after her friend invites her to sit with her family.

Friend February 2017 “Friendship Brownies” Grace’s Primary class makes brownies and a huge card to take to a classmate who hasn’t been coming.

Friend September 2016 “Musical Chairs” A new boy starts attending Elizabeth’s Primary class and he isn’t like the other children, so they start avoiding sitting near him. He stops coming for a while.

 Friend September 2022 “Camping Friends” Edison’s family was inactive but some boys from the ward invited him to a camping trip. They also included him at the campground. He had fun and became friends with some boys. They had a testimony meeting and Edison wanted to know what his friends knew about God and Jesus. He decided to go to church even if his family didn’t.

Fellowshipping New Members

Friend April 2018 “Book of Mormon Buddies” Tory is a new member of the church and has a hard time reading the Book of Mormon because of all the unfamiliar words in it. Her friend, Erica, invites Tory to join her family in the mornings for scripture study. This helps Tory until she hurts her ankle and can’t walk to Erica’s. Erica sets up a video call for Tory so she can still read with them.

Friend April 2018

My family picks up new members of our ward to give them rides to church. We invite them to our home for family home evening, dinners, and holidays. We want the new members to feel welcome.

Friend June 2016 Matt and Mandy

Friend July 2017 Matt and Mandy

Friend November 2016 “Question Corner” Children’s responses about how to help Mandy’s friend who is getting baptized.

Friend November 2016 “Matt and Mandy” Responses to the question about helping their friend after baptism.

Members of the Church should be friends and “fellowcitizens.” (Jr)

Ephesians 2:19

Place a picture of the Savior in the center of the room. Invite the children to stand in different parts of the room to represent “strangers” or “foreigners.” Help them understand that these words mean people we don’t know yet. As you read Ephesians 2:19, invite them to move toward the picture of Christ until they are standing close together. Tell them that as we come closer to the Savior, we can become united with others as “fellowcitizens,” or friends. (Come, Follow Me—For Primary: New Testament 2023 “Ephesians” )

Find pictures of children from different parts of the world, and hide them around the room. Place a picture of the Savior in the front of the room. Invite your class to pair up like missionaries and take turns finding a picture of a “stranger” to place near the picture of the Savior. Help them understand that when people are baptized, they become part of our Church family, or the “household of God.” How can we help someone who is new feel welcome? (Come, Follow Me—For Primary: New Testament 2023 “Ephesians” )‘

Clipart Library

Come, Follow Me—For Individuals and Families: New Testament 2023 “Ephesians” Your family might enjoy building walls out of pillows or other objects you have at home and then knocking them down. While Paul referred to the “wall” between Gentiles and Jews, what kinds of walls separate people today? How has Jesus Christ “broken down” these walls? How does He “reconcile [us] unto God”? (verse 16).

We are “fellowcitizens” in the household of God. (Sr)

Ephesians 2:13–19

Read Ephesians 2:19 together, and discuss what it means to be a stranger or foreigner. Share an experience in which you felt like a stranger or foreigner and someone helped you feel welcome and accepted. Invite the children to share similar experiences. What can we do to become “fellowcitizens” rather than strangers? Are there any children in your class who do not attend often, perhaps because they feel like strangers? Help the children come up with a plan to help those members feel welcomed and loved. (Come, Follow Me—For Primary: New Testament 2023 “Ephesians” )

To help the children strengthen their relationships with each other, write some questions on the board that prompt them to share something about themselves, such as When have you had a prayer answered? or What’s your favorite thing to do with your family? Divide the children into pairs, and invite them to ask each other the questions. What did we learn about each other? (Come, Follow Me—For Primary: New Testament 2023 “Ephesians” )

The Red Crystal