Tag Archives: Book of Mormon

Sep 7 2016

Lesson 35: Jesus Christ Heals the Sick and Blesses the Children

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Lesson 35

Jesus Christ Heals the Sick and Blesses the Children

Preparation

  • Items needed: a marker or pen for each child, tape, magnets, a highlighter marker, thread or string, and several pieces of red or pink paper.
  • Print and cut out the visual aids pdf or word.
  • Directions for making the envelope and heart visual aid: Cut the thread into two, 20 inch lengths. Place the first page of cut out hearts face down in two rows in the same order as they were laid out on the page. The hearts should be about 1 ½ inches apart. Place one string on row one with the end of the string in the middle of the bottom heart. Put a piece of tape over the string on each heart so each heart is attached to the string. Do the same thing with the other row of hearts and string. Add the heart labeled “listens” to the top of row one. You should end up with a piece of string at the top that is four inches long on row one and five and half inches on row two. Using an x-acto knife, cut along the dotted line on the envelope. Tape the top of each string to the back of the envelope, each about two inches from a side. Put the string of hearts through the envelope opening you cut. Glue or tape the back edges of the envelope to a piece of heavy paper, leaving the top of the x-acto cut edge open. You should now have an envelope pocket. Stack the rows of hearts in order, and put the two stacks into the envelope.
  • Mobile Handout: Print (or copy) and cut out an envelope for each child. Cut two pieces of string, 13 inches long, per child. Cut out eight hearts per child by folding several pieces of pink or red paper into thirds lengthwise, then placing half of a blank heart along the folded edge, and finally cutting out the hearts using the half a heart as a pattern (or you can purchase precut packages of hearts).
  • Print the word search onto colored paper.
  • Optional: prepare the salt attention activity found here.

Attention Activity

  • In what ways do your mother and father show they love you? (They make rules to keep you safe. They help you and teach you. They give you hugs and kisses. Some parents may even write notes telling you how much they love you.)

Point out that people show love through their actions. Show the children the word search and have them find the words that are actions of love. (All the words are horizontal.) When a child finds a word, have that child come up and mark it with a highlighter or circle it with a pencil.

Word Search Answers: ATTENTIVE, TEACHES, CONSIDERATE, CONCERNED, PRAYS, SACRIFICES, PATIENT, LISTENS, HELPS, SUPPORTS, COMFORTS, FORGIVING

Put the envelope on the board with the opening facing downward. Explain that in today’s lesson they will learn about the love the Savior has for them. Point out that each of the action words in the crossword puzzle has been demonstrated by the Savior in our behalf. Jesus’s loving actions are like messages that remind us that he loves us.

Scripture Account

Put the flannel board image of Jesus on the board, and remind the children that in last week’s lesson they learned that Jesus taught the Nephites the beatitudes. As he prepared to leave at the end of the day, he perceived that the people did not fully understand what he had taught. Have a child read 3 Nephi 17:1–3 as the other children follow along. Have the children look for what the Savior told the Nephites they should do in order to gain more understanding.

  • What does it mean to ponder? (It means to thoughtfully consider something and deeply think about it.)

Point out the Savior’s instruction found in 3 Nephi 17:3 that the Nephites should “prepare [their] minds for the morrow,” for when Jesus would return to teach them again.

  • How do you prepare your mind for an important lesson such as a school assignment? You read and learn about the subject, you ponder on (or think about) what you have been taught in order to understand it more thoroughly, and you may even ask for help from a parent to help you understand it further.
  • What happens if you don’t prepare for an assignment by doing these things? (You may not properly understand the material.)

It is the same with the gospel; in order to understand the gospel we need to think about what we have been taught, study it thoroughly, and ask our Heavenly Father for help in understanding it. Through the Holy Ghost our minds can be enlightened and we can receive understanding. When we understand a concept better then we are ready to learn more and add to our understanding and knowledge.

  • In the scripture that was just read, what did the Savior do to show his love for the people? (He wanted the people to understand the things he had taught so they could progress spiritually.)

The Savior has taught us many things. These teachings can be found in the scriptures. Someone who loves us teaches us the things that will help us in life. (Take the heart out of the envelope that says “teaches.” It will be the first one in the pile on the left.)

  • Have a child read 3 Nephi 17:4-5, and then ask the children how the Nephites responded when the Savior expressed his intention to depart. (They wept and were sad. They wanted him to stay longer.)
  • Have a child read 3 Nephi 17:6-8. Ask the children how the Savior responded when he saw the Nephite’s sorrow. (He had compassion upon them and asked if they had any sick or afflicted among them. He explained that he would heal them because he had perceived their desire to have the miracles shown to them that he had performed in Jerusalem. He also perceived that they had the faith to be healed. )
  • How did the Savior demonstrate his love for the people? (He was filled with compassion for them. Compassion means he cared about their feelings. He was filled with sympathy and understanding.)

A person who loves us is considerate of our feelings. (Have a child take the heart out of the envelope that says “considerate.” It will be the first heart in the pile on the right.) (Alternate drawing from the left and right when the remaining hearts are mentioned.)

Have a child read 3 Nephi 17:9. Afterwards, put the picture of the sick and afflicted Nephites on the board.

  • What types of ailments did Jesus heal? (The lame (those unable to walk), the blind (those unable to see), the dumb (those unable to speak–which was most likely due to deafness))
  • What types of ailments might be included in afflictions of “any manner”? (All other types of physical illnesses and disorders, but also mental and emotional difficulties and disorders.)

Ask students to ponder ways in which they may be “afflicted” and what they would ask the Savior to heal if he were to bless them personally. Remind them that even though the Savior is not here to minister to them in person, his power to bless and heal is available through the priesthood. If it is his will that they be healed, and if they have faith, then they can be healed. If it is not his will, then we need to trust in the Lord and his purposes, but we also need to remember that the Lord will help us deal with the affliction if we ask for his help.

Point out that someone who loves us will be there for us when we have problems and difficulties. That person would offer comfort, support, and help. (Have children take the hearts out of the envelope that say “comforts”, “supports”, and “helps.”  Remember that they alternate from left to right and then back to left again.)

After Jesus Christ healed the sick, he had the children brought to him. He had the people gather around them and kneel.  He then said a prayer that was so wonderful and marvelous that the people could not even describe it. (Read 3 Nephi 17:14-17) (Optional: Do the salt object lesson.)

The hearts of the people were filled with joy when they heard the words that Jesus prayed to the Father in their behalf.

Point out that someone who loves us will pray for us. They will appeal to Heavenly Father for His help in watching over us, protecting us, and guiding us. (Have a child take the heart out of the envelope that says “prays.”)

After Jesus arose from his prayer, he noticed that the people were overcome with joy. The great faith of the multitude filled him with such joy that he wept.

A person who loves us is filled with joy when we make good choices; but they can also be filled with sadness when we make bad choices. Remind them that Jesus groaned inside himself because of the wickedness of the people of Israel. Explain that those who love us are concerned about us. They want us to make good choices. (Have a child take the heart out of the envelope that says “concerned.”)

After Jesus wept, he took the children one by one and lovingly blessed them and prayed to the Father for them. He tenderly took time for each individual child because of his great love for children.

  • Someone who loves us will share their time with us. They will pay attention to us and listen to us. (Have children take the hearts out of the envelope that say “attentive” and “listens.”)
  • How would you feel if Jesus Christ held you in his arms, blessed you, and prayed to Heavenly Father for you?

After blessing the children, the Savior told the people to look upon their little ones. The heavens opened and angels descended out of heaven and encircled the children. It appeared as if they were in a midst of fire. (Put the picture of the children on the board.) The angels ministered unto the children. The heavenly attention bestowed upon the children of the Nephites is further evidence of the special love Jesus has for children.

Ask the children if they can think of any other things Jesus has done that shows his great love for us. Have them look at the word search to get ideas, but they must explain how Jesus demonstrated that action. For example, Jesus demonstrated sacrifice by suffering and paying the price for our sins. Write on the blank hearts any other actions the children think of that are not included in the word search. Have the children then attach these hearts to the board with magnets or tape, making a pile underneath the other hearts.

Knowing that Jesus loves us helps us to have faith and trust in him. Because he loves us, we know that he wants what is best for us. He wants the things for us that will bring us eternal happiness and peace. If we have faith in Jesus and keep his commandments then we can someday live with him and Heavenly Father. again. One of the greatest joys is being able to be with the people we love and with those who love us.

Handout

Have the children make their own mobile with the blank hearts you have prepared. Hand out an envelope, a set of eight hearts, and a marker or pen to each child. Have them write eight of the ways Jesus has shown love for them on their hearts, and then have them tape the hearts to the string and tape the top of the string to the envelope opening. Remind the children that each heart is like a message from Jesus that reminds them that he loves them.

Weekly Reading Assignment

Remind the children to do their scripture reading assignment for this week: 3 Nephi 17:1-25

Aug 28 2016

Lesson 34: Jesus Teaches the Beatitudes

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Lesson 34

Jesus Christ Teaches the Nephites the Beatitudes

Preparation

  • Items needed: a pencil for each child, five pieces of cardstock and several pieces of white paper, scriptures for each child, strong magnets or tape, scissors, sticky tack, small ziplock baggies or envelopes, a small container of salt mixed with dirt, and a small container of regular salt. Optional: cooked pasta
  • Print the visual aids. Fold each of the first six pages in half along the fold line. Tape together the folded pages along the edges (in the order printed) so they make one long line of figures with the picture of Jesus at the beginning.
  • Cut apart the pattern labels. Using sticky tack, attach the head labels to a piece of cardstock in random order. Do the same thing with the body labels. Cut out the jewels and attach them to another piece of cardstock using sticky tack.
  •  Cut apart the Law of Moses/Law of the Gospel strips on the lines. Attach the title strips to the top of a piece of cardstock. Using sticky tack, attach the rest of the strips to another piece of cardstock in random order.
  • Fold a white piece of paper into three even sections. Place the small paper doll pattern on top of the folded paper; then using it as a pattern, cut out a chain of three paper dolls. Cut out four pages of paper doll chains per child. The pages can be stacked to make the cuts. Tape the figures together so you have 12 dolls in a row. Fold each of the doll chains and place them into a baggie or envelope.
  • Print or copy one page of the black and white jewels and labels handout for each child.
  • Print the lesson pictures, or use a computer laptop or tablet to show the images to the children.

Attention Activity

Give a volunteer the scissors and a piece of paper. Ask him or her to cut out a perfectly shaped paper doll (without making any folds in the paper). Once the child is done, ask if it was hard to make a perfectly shaped doll that was equal in shape and size on both sides. Show the child the paper doll pattern. Ask if it would have been easier to make a perfectly shaped paper doll if the child had been given a pattern to follow.

(Read 3 Nephi 12:48) Explain that we are to strive to become like our Father in Heaven who is perfect, and we have been given a pattern to follow and instructions on how to work towards that goal.

  • What is the pattern we have been given? Our Savior, Jesus Christ. Jesus set an example for us to follow, and because the Father and the Son are one in purpose and characteristics, if we become like the Son we also become like the Father.

We have also been given instructions to follow. When the Savior lived on the earth, he taught the Sermon on the Mount (show picture). When he appeared to the Nephites after his death and resurrection, he taught them a similar sermon (show picture). This sermon gives us directions to follow towards the formation of the kind of person each of of us needs to become.

Show the children the folded up papers with the picture of Jesus on the outside. Spread out the folded papers and attach it to the chalkboard with the magnets under the words “Blessed are the…” Explain that each scripture reference comes from the sermon the Savior taught the Nephites, and each tells us a characteristic we need to develop in order to become like Jesus.

Point out the sign “Blessed are the…” on the chalkboard and explain that the beginning of Jesus’s sermon includes what is known as the “Beatitudes.” Beatitude means to be blessed or happy. Show the children the jewels, and explain that they are labeled with the promised blessings we will receive if we develop the characteristics mentioned in the sermon. Have the children read 3 Nephi 13:19-20. Explain that the temporary worldly things we might treasure on earth do not even compare to the wonderful eternal blessings our Heavenly Father has in store for us if we live righteous lives

Display the three cardstock pages that contain the head labels, the body labels, and the jewels. Explain to the children that they are going to do an activity where they will find the instructions the Savior gave, and then they will label the fold-out figures on the board with those instructions.

Activity Instructions:

  1. Have a volunteer read the first scripture reference (with class members following along in their scriptures). Then have the child find the label that matches it and put the label on the head of the first figure. (Note: The last doll pattern on the board is an activity. When the final label is left, put it on the doll head and then explain the activity.)
  2. Next, have the children find the label to what they think the beatitude means. If they are correct, have a child attach the piece to the body of the figure.
  3.  Then ask the children what things they can do to become that kind of person. Write on the arms and legs of the figure the things the children mention.
  4.  Next, have the children find the jewel that has the promised blessing on it that goes with the beatitude, and have a child put it in the doll’s hand.

Before starting the activity, give each child one of the fold-up paper doll figures and a pencil, and explain that they are going to copy down each trait onto their figures to help them remember the type of person they need to become. (The children may need to sit on the floor and turn their chair to use it as a table.) Have them first draw a picture of themselves on the top figure, so when the dolls are folded, that is the image they see. Then have the children write the traits on the head and the ways to become that kind of person on the arms and legs of each figure as it is discussed. Explain that at the end of the lesson they will get their own copy of the body labels and jewels.

  1. Poor in Spirit (3 Nephi 12:3)
  2. A person who realizes they need spiritual assistance. To be poor in spirit means that a person realizes they are spiritually in need (they need help strengthening their spirit and making the things of God a priority in their life), and they are humble enough to turn to Heavenly Father for help.
  3. How can we show Heavenly Father that we realize we are in need of his help to develop spiritually? Pray, study his words in the scriptures, go to church.
  4. Theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.
  1. They that Mourn (3 Nephi 12:4)
  2. Feelings of deep sorrow and regret for the sins they have committed. Blessed are they that mourn for the sins they have committed because godly sorrow worketh repentance. (2 Cor. 7:10)
  3. How do we show that we feel sorry for the sins we have committed? Pray and ask for forgiveness, right the wrong, do not do it again.
  4. They shall be comforted. Repentance brings comforting forgiveness.
  1. Meek (3 Nephi 12:5)
  2. Someone who is gentle, kind, and patient. To be meek is to be gentle and kind. It is also someone who has self-control and is not quick to become provoked or angry.
  3. In what ways can we demonstrate meekness? We can be patient with family members and friends. We can be kind to those who wrong us.
  4. They shall inherit the earth. The earth will someday be sanctified and celestialized (D&C 88:18), so those who inherit the earth will be those who are worthy to inherit the celestial kingdom.
  1. [They who do] Hunger and Thirst after Righteousness (3 Nephi 12:6)
  2. A person who desires to fill their life with goodness. We should have a desire to fill our lives with the things of God like we desire to fill our bodies with food and water.
  3. In what ways can we fill our lives with righteousness? Learn gospel principles by studying the scriptures and by listening to our teachers and leaders. Keep the commandments. Avoid evil and temptation.
  4. They shall be filled with the Holy Ghost. When we do good and righteous things, the Holy Ghost can be our constant companion
  1. Merciful (3 Nephi 12:7)
  2. Someone who is compassionate and forgiving.
  3. In what situations can we show mercy?
  4. They shall obtain mercy. They shall receive mercy in the Day of Judgment (when we are judged according to the deeds we did on earth). (3 Nephi 13:14-15)
  1. Pure in Heart (3 Nephi 12:8)
  2. Someone who is genuinely clean and good in thought and action.
  3. What are some examples of good thoughts and actions?
  4. They shall see God. In order to be with our Heavenly Father we must be pure of heart, for no unclean can enter into the kingdom of heaven.
  1. Peacemakers (3 Nephi 12:9)
  2. Those who encourage harmony and peace. Peacemakers look for ways to help solve problems peacefully. (Show the children the picture of the boy being a peacemaker.)
  3. What are some other situations that you can be a peacemaker?
  4. They shall be called the children of God. Those who are troublemakers, quarrelsome, or contentious, and those who go against law and order are following paths opposite those who choose to be obedient to their covenants to take upon themselves the name of Christ.
  1. Persecuted for My Name’s Sake (3 Nephi 12:10)
  2. Someone who stands up for the right despite opposition. Explain that the message in 3 Nephi 12:10 continues in verse 11 and 12 and says, “Blessed are ye when men shall revile you and persecute (tease, make fun of, or torment), and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake (because of the  desire to follow Jesus and obey the commandments,); For ye shall have great joy and be exceedingly glad, for great shall be your reward in heaven; for so persecuted they the prophets who were before you.”
  3. In what ways can we stand up for our beliefs in Jesus Christ and his gospel? Be obedient to the commandments even when others are not choosing the right. Let others know what your beliefs are.
  4. Theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.
  1. Salt of the Earth (3 Nephi 12:13) What does salt do? It enhances flavor. (Optional: Show an example of this with some cooked pasta.)
  2. Someone who influences and enhances people’s lives for good. Just as salt enhances food and makes it taste better, we should influence people for good. Why wouldn’t you want to use the contaminated salt? (The dirt would give the food a bad flavor, and it could be unsafe to ingest.)  Explain that through contamination, salt loses its desirable taste and flavor. If we contaminate our lives with the dirt and evil of the world, then we could become a negative influence on others, and we could cause great spiritual harm.
  3. How can we be a good influence and example to others?
  4. Glorify your Father in Heaven. This blessing actually goes with the scripture about being a light, which also means to be a good example. (3 Nephi 12:16) “Therefore let your light so shine before this people, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven.” Glorify means to worship and praise. People seeing your good works will have a desire to worship God and follow his commandments.
  1. Has Sincere Intents and Actions (3 Nephi 13:1-4)
  2. A person who has proper motives and intentions when doing good works such as the following:  Service:  Read 3 Nephi 13:1-4. (Explain that giving alms means to give money or food to the poor.) In this scripture, the Savior tells us we need to serve the needy, but we must do it with pure intentions and motives. We must not do it for personal, selfish motives such as to look good or to get praise. Prayer: Read 3 Nephi 13: 5-7. The Savior tells us we also need to pray with pure intent and not use vain repetition (fancy words used without thought or feeling to try and look good and get praise). The prophet Mormon warned that if anyone shall pray and not with real intent of heart … it profiteth him nothing, for God receiveth none such. (Moroni 7:9) Fasting: Read 3 Nephi 13:16-18.           Point out that each of the scriptures that were read indicate that we are not to be hypocrites. A hypocrite is a person who says one thing and does another. An example of a hypocrite is a person who pretends to be good and spiritual by doing public service, fancy public prayers, or public fasting but really has little desire to help others or serve God.
  3. What are some ways we can avoid being hypocrites? If we say we believe in something such as honesty, kindness, forgiveness, that is the way we should be.
  4. [The Father shall] Reward thee openly. When we do good works in secret and not to get gain the Father will reward us openly.
  1. Obeys the Law of the Gospel
  2. Someone who abides by the fullness of the gospel. During the sermon to the Nephites, the Lord talked about the Law of Moses. The Law of Moses had been established with the Israelites, but it did not contain the fullness of the gospel. It was a strict preparatory gospel of ordinances and performances. The Israelites had been rebellious, and the Law of Moses was meant to keep them in remembrance of God and their duty towards him. (Mosiah 13:27-32) It was also meant to help the people look forward to the coming atoning sacrifice of Christ. When the Savior’s mortal mission was completed, the law was fulfilled—the atonemeant had occurred. (Read 3 Nephi 12:46-47) Old things had passed away and the Law of the Gospel of Jesus Christ was now in place, which is the fullness of the gospel.
  3. Activity: Show the cardstock labeled with the “Law of Moses” and “Law of the Gospel” strips. Show the children the other strips and tell them to find two laws that seem to match and put the higher law under the “Law of the Gospel” sign. Explain why it is a higher law. For example, it is easy to love your neighbor, but it is harder to love your enemy; it’s easy not to kill, but it’s hard not to get angry; it is easy to have the desire to make someone to pay for hurting you, but it is harder to have mercy and forgive. Have the children read the scripture references to check the answers. Also have them write the Law of the Gospel items on the arms and legs of their paper doll.
  4. Have the children read 3 Nephi 12:20 and look for the blessing we gain when we follow the Law of the Gospel. Saved and enter into the Kingdom of Heaven.

Conclusion

If we follow the pattern and instructions Christ has set for us (point to the fold out), we can become like the Savior and live in a “blessed and happy” state now and throughout eternity.

Encourage each child to go home and choose one of the items to work on this week. Tell them to fold open their paper doll figures to that item and post it somewhere in their room to remind them of their goal. Give each child a copy of the body labels and small jewels. Explain that they can cut out the body label and attach it to their doll figure before starting the goal to remind them of what it means. At the end of the week they can color and cut out the jewel that matches their goal and put it on the doll to remind them of the blessing they can obtain from obtaining that characteristic. Encourage the children to continue to work on a different characteristic each week.

Weekly Reading Assignment

Remind the children to do their scripture reading assignment for this week: 3 Nephi 12:1-48 and 3 Nephi 13:1-24.

(The new reading chart can be found here.)

May 20 2016

Lesson 19: The Anti-Nephi-Lehi’s Covenant

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Lesson 19
The Anti-Nephi-Lehi’s Covenant

Preparation
• Print the story visuals and cut each page in half, except for the last page. Number the back of the scripture story pages to help keep them in order.  (Note: The scripture story visual aids are from chapter twenty-six of Book of Mormon Stories, and the picture of the dog is from Microsoft word clipart.)
• Print and cut out the commandment/situation word strips. Fold the strips and put them into a small container.
• Items needed: chalk and eraser, a shallow dish such as a cake pan, two disposable plastic or styrofoam cups (fill one cup with water and put it in the freezer), a small Tupperware container of water, tongs, one plastic spoon per child, enough ice cubes to half fill a gallon sized Ziploc bag, a small ice chest, 1/3 cup of rock salt, a gallon sized Ziploc bag, and a sandwich sized Ziploc bag filled with the following ice-cream ingredients: 1 cup half-and-half, 2 tablespoons sugar, ½ teaspoon vanilla. (Squeeze the air out of the bag before sealing it.) Put the ice cubes, frozen water, and ice cream ingredients into the ice chest to keep them cold.

Attention Story
There were once two girls who promised their mother they would wash the family dog. Their mother promised that if they would do that chore she would take them swimming. (Show the picture of the dog.) Washing the dog was a harder task than either of the children expected.  It was a messy, dirty job, and the dog did not want to be washed. The dog would squirm away as they were trying to wash it, and then it would roll in the dirt and get dirty again. In frustration, one of the children stopped working and would not help anymore. The other child continued to try and finish the task. She eventually figured out a way to keep the dog contained so it could not get away. She was able to finish washing and drying the dog even though it was a difficult job.

• When the task of washing the dog got difficult how did each child respond? One child gave up and did not finish the task, and the other kept her promise and finished the task.

Activity
Pour water into the empty plastic cup, and put the cup in the shallow dish. Explain to the children that the cup of water represents someone who is not firm in keeping their promises. When pressure or difficulty arises, their resolve to keep their commitment breaks. (Demonstrate this by applying pressure to the container with your hand. The container will crush and water will spill out.)

Show the children the cup of ice. Tell them it represents someone who is firm in keeping their commitments regardless of difficulty or pressure. Squeeze the cup. It should be firm and unyielding.

• Remind the children that promises should not be made lightly. What happens if we don’t keep our word and are not dependable? We may lose the trust of others. The girl who did not help wash the dog was not trusted to complete certain future tasks without supervision, but the girl who kept her promise was allowed more freedom and trust.

If we do not keep our promises we also do not get the promised benefits agreed upon in two-way promises. The girl that didn’t help wash the dog was not able to go swimming that day.

A two-way promise between two people is when both people promise something. When one person breaks their side of the promise the other person is not responsible to fulfill their side of the agreement.

• What is a two-way promise called that is made between us and Heavenly Father? A covenant.

We make covenants with Heavenly Father when we are baptized. If we keep our covenants we can gain the promised rewards, including the greatest reward of all, the gift of eternal life. Those who are given eternal life have great freedom and power. Only those who can be trusted to do the right thing are given that freedom and power.

In today’s lesson we learn about a group of people who were firm in keeping their covenants even in the face of great difficulty and adversity.

Scripture Story
Teach the following scripture story using pictures from chapter twenty-six of Book of Mormon Stories as visual aids.

Because of the efforts of the sons of Mosiah many Lamanites had been converted to the gospel. The king of the Lamanites and all those who were converted had changed their natures. They were a new people and did not want to be called Lamanites anymore. They wanted to be called by a new name. The king consulted with Aaron and many of their priests, and they chose a new name to call themselves.

They decided to be called Anti-Nephi-Lehies. (Write the name on the board.) Tell the children that the word “anti” does not have the modern day meaning of being opposed to something. In some languages the word “anti” has a meaning similar to the word “imitation.” The people who had been converted desired to become like Lehi and Nephi. They chose a name to reflect that righteous desire.

The Lamanites who had not been converted were very angry at all those who were converted to the teachings of the Nephites. They began to rebel against the king. They took up arms to destroy the king and the Anti-Nephi-Lehies. The king died in the same year that the Lamanites began to make preparations for war against the people of God. Before he died he conferred the kingdom upon one of his sons.

• Why did the unconverted Lamanites want to destroy the Anti-Nephi-Lehies? It was a Lamanite tradition to believe that the Nephite way was wrong. The unconverted Lamanites may have felt anger towards the Ant-Nephi-Lehies for following the Nephite way. Another reason may have been that the changes in those who had become converted made the other Lamanites feel anger at the reminders of the evil things they were doing. They may have wanted to destroy that goodness and not feel the guilt.

When Ammon and his brethren saw the preparations of the Lamanites to destroy the Anti- Nephi-Lehies, they came to the land of Ishmael to talk to the new Lamanite king and to Lamoni, his brother, concerning what the Anti-Nephi-Lehies should do to defend themselves against the Lamanites.

The king, and none of the people who had been converted to the Lord, would take up arms to fight against their brethren the Lamanites. They would not even make preparations for war. They had repented of the murders they had committed in unrighteous wars. They were afraid that if they took up arms to fight and kill again, they would again be stained with sin, and they might not be forgiven this time. They decided to bury their weapons deep in the earth as a covenant to God that they would not kill again.

• Have the children look at the pictures of the Anti-Nephi-Lehies collecting and burying their weapons, and ask the children what kinds of weapons the picture suggests were buried. Have them look closely at the picture to identify the different types of weapons.

• What could happen to the Anti-Nephi-Lehies if they didn’t have weapons to defend themselves against attack? They could die.

• Why did the Anti-Nephi-Lehies value their covenants more than their lives? They were overwhelmingly grateful to the Lord for forgiving them of their sins. They understood the eternal value of what they had gained and did not want to lose it.

• When someone makes a covenant or promise, an action is usually performed as a token or sign of the covenant such as shaking hands, signing a document, etc. What was the token or sign of the Anti-Nephi-Lehi’s covenant to never kill again? Burial of their weapons

• When you made your first covenants with Heavenly Father at age eight what action did you perform as a sign of your commitment? Baptism

When the Lamanites came into the land to destroy the king and his people, the Anti-Nephi-Lehies went out to meet them. The Anti-Nephi-Lehies prostrated themselves on the earth, which meant they bowed themselves very low, or they laid on the ground with their faces down. They then began to call on the name of the Lord praising him. They were in this attitude when the Lamanites began to fall upon them and slay them with the sword. Without meeting any resistance the Lamanites killed 1,005 of the Anti-Nephi-Lehies.

• Why were the Anti-Nephi-Lehies praising God and not afraid to die? (See Alma 27:28) They were grateful for and had faith in Jesus Christ. They knew that because of Jesus Christ they could be resurrected.

When the Lamanites saw that their brethren would not flee from the sword, but they would lie down and perish as they were praising God, they stopped slaying them. Many of the Lamanites felt sorrow and remorse for killing their brethren the Anti-Nephi-Lehies. They threw down their weapons of war, and they would not take them up again. They repented and joined with the people of God. The amount of people that joined the people of God was more than the number who had been slain.

Those Lamanites who did not join the Anti-Nephi-Lehies became even angrier because they had slain their brethren. They put the blame on the Nephites and swore vengeance upon them. The Lamanites took their armies and went to the Nephite lands.

The Lamanites had many battles with the Nephites. When the Lamanites saw that could not overpower the Nephites, they returned again to their own land. After suffering much loss and affliction, many of them joined the Anti-Nephi-Lehies because they began to believe in the Lord. They believed that he gave great power to the Nephites.

But a hard hearted group of people that lived among the Lamanites began to stir up the other Lamanites again in anger against the Anti-Nephi-Lehies. These hard hearted people were apostate Nephites. The Anti-Nephi-Lehies again refused to take up arms, and they once again suffered themselves to be slain.

• Apostates are people who have turned away from the truth. Why are apostates often hard hearted? (Read Alma 24:30)

When Ammon and his brethren saw the work of destruction among those whom they loved, they asked the king to gather the people and flee to the Nephites. The king was afraid the Nephites would destroy them because of the many murders and sins they had committed against them. Ammon told the king he would ask the Lord what they should do. The king said that if the Lord gave direction that they should go, then they would go. Ammon went and inquired of the Lord. The Lord told him to get the people out of the land because Satan had a great hold on the hearts of the Amalekites (the apostate Nephites).

So the Anti-Nephi-Lehies gathered their possessions and went to the borders of the Nephite land. Ammon and his brothers went to Zarahemla to talk to the Nephites. They talked to the chief judge and told him all the things that had happened. The chief judge sent a proclamation throughout all the land desiring the voice of the people concerning admitting the Anti-Nephi-Lehies. The Nephite people said they would give the land of Jershon to the Anti-Nephi-Lehies. They also said they would set their armies between the land of Jershon and the Lamanites to protect them so the Anti-Nephi-Lehies would not have to take up arms against their brethren the Lamanites. The Anti-Nephi-Lehies would merely have to provide food and substance for the army. When Ammon returned and told them the news, they were filled with joy.

• Why were the Nephites willing to help the Anti-Nephi-Lehies? Because of the preaching of Alma, the Nephite people had become righteous. They were trying to do what the Lord would have them do.

The Anti-Nephi-Lehies took possession of the land of Jershon and became known as the people of Ammon. They were distinguished for their zeal towards God, and they were perfectly honest and upright in their treatment towards others.

Activity

Remind the children that the Anti-Nephi-Lehies stayed firm in keeping their covenants. Show the children the cup of ice again, and explain that just as we would have to put water in a freezer to keep it firm, we also need to do certain things in order to stay firm in keeping our covenants. The Anti-Nephi-Lehies kept firm in keeping their covenants by deciding ahead of time what they would do if they were attacked, and they also figured out a solution to their difficult situation. In order to stay firm in keeping our covenants we need to decide ahead of time how we will react to temptation, and we need to figure out solutions to our challenging problems and situations.

Show the children the small sealed Ziploc bag filled with the liquid ingredients. Explain to the children that the bag represents keeping covenants, and its contents represent the covenants. Put the small bag into the big Ziploc bag.

Remind the children that when they made covenants at baptism, one of the covenants they promised to keep was to obey the commandments. Have a child choose a commandment/situation from the container and read it out loud. Ask the children how they could respond to that situation so they can keep firm in keeping their covenants.

For every answer the children give, have them use the tongs and get a piece of ice from the ice chest and put it into the large Ziploc bag. Explain that the ice represents staying firm in keeping our covenants by finding solutions and preparing ahead. Ideas for possible solutions to each of the situations could include:

Keep the Sabbath Day Holy – Take a gift over and do something fun with that friend on another day.
Be Honest – Explain to the neighbor and your parents what happened, and offer to do work to pay for the damage.
Do Not Cheat – Offer to teach them how to do the problems you understood, and then ask for their help figuring out how to do  the problems you didn’t understand.
Obey Your Parents – Put some music on and make a game out of the cleaning, or divide the room into sections so it isn’t so overwhelming.
Dress Modestly- Put a shirt with sleeves under the immodest shirt, or wear a shrug over the shirt.
Tithing – Ask your mom if there is a job you can do for her to earn some money.
Do Not Use Profanity – Ask your friends to not use profanity around you, or find new friends who don’t use profanity,
Pray – Get up a little bit earlier to make time to pray.
Read the Scriptures – Use a study guide to help you understand the scriptures.
Be Kind to Others – Include the child and place him in a position that isn’t too difficult, and practice with the child later to help him become better.
Be Chaste – Ask your parents to help put controls on the computer so those kinds of sites can’t be accessed, or make it a goal to use the computer only when others are around.
Keep the Word of Wisdom – Explain to your friend that you don’t drink alcohol or take drugs because it can be dangerous and harmful to your body, and then suggest something fun they can do instead.

After each commandment situation has been discussed, or when the bag is half full of ice, pour the rock salt onto the ice and seal the bag. Shake or squeeze the bag for a minute, and explain that the action represents problems and temptations that are thrown at them. Give each of the children a turn shaking the bag.

After about five minutes of shaking the bag, check the ice cream. It should be the consistency of frozen yogurt. Give each child one large plastic spoonful of ice cream.

  • Ask the children what happened to the liquid because they added ice to the bag. (It became a delicious frozen treat.)
  • Ask what the wonderful results would be of staying firm in keeping our covenants. We could gain eternal life, which is the greatest of all God’s gifts.

Weekly Reading Assignment

Remind the children to do their scripture reading assignment for this week: Alma 23:16-17, Alma 24:1-30, Alma 25:1-6, Alma 25:13-14, and Alma 27:1-30

May 1 2016

Lesson 16 – Anguish in Ammonihah

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Lesson 16
Anguish in Ammonihah

Preparation
• Items needed: a piece of rope, a basket, string, and a blindfold.
•Print the visual aids and make scrolls out of them by doing the following: Cut off the word strips at the bottom of each numbered scroll section. If there is more than one page to a scroll section, glue the pages together to form a vertical line of pictures. (Thick, tacky glue works best.) Glue each  word strip to the back of the scroll on the bottom of the section it goes with (see picture). Wait until the glue is completely dry, then roll each scroll into a tube.  Roll from the bottom up so the headline will be the the first thing showing when it is unrolled. Tie each scroll with a piece of string. Number the outside of each scroll so they will be read in the correct order. Put the rolled up scrolls into a basket. (Note: The visual aids are from chapter twenty-two of Book of Mormon Stories.)

Attention Activity
Blindfold a volunteer and place the child in the center of the room. Ask the child how they would feel if you asked them to fall backward and trust that one of the other children would catch them. The child will probably respond with trepidation. They will probably also feel relief when you explain that it won’t be required of them. Have the child take off the blindfold and sit down.

Ask the children who they would pick from among their friends and family to catch them if they had do the activity. Ask them why they would pick that person. Most likely it will be because they know that person cares about what happens to them and is strong enough to catch them.

Explain to the children that having faith and trust in someone is very important, and that today’s lesson is about having faith in Jesus Christ. To have faith in Jesus Christ means that we know he loves us and that he knows what is best for us. Because we know these things, we follow what he asks us to do. We also know that he has the strength and power to help us to rise above the challenges and difficulties we face each day.

Remind the children of last week’s lesson about Alma and Amulek teaching the people of Ammonihah. Alma and Amulek had faith and trust in Jesus Christ. They did as he asked even though it was a difficult. In today’s lesson we learn the results of those teachings. Many good and miraculous things occurred, but also many terrible and tragic things.

Scripture Story
Tell the children they are going to hear the news of what happened to Alma and Amulek in a way that people in that day may have learned news.

Show the children the scrolls. Tell the children that each scroll has a headline, such as a newspaper from our day would have. Newspaper headlines tell the most important news of the day.

Have the children take turns reading the scrolls in numerical order. Direct them to unroll the scroll and first show and read the headline to the class. Then unroll to the first picture and read the word strip on the back. Continue in this manner until each picture is shown and each wordstrip has been read. After a child reads a scroll, ask any bulleted questions found under that scrolls headlines below.

1) ALMA THE HIGH PRIEST ACCUSED UNJUSTLY OF CRIMES

2) CITIZENS THROWN OUT OF AMMONIHAH

3) PEOPLE BURNED ALIVE IN AMMONIHAH

• Amulek had prophesied earlier that the only thing protecting the people of Ammonihah from being destroyed was the righteous people in the city. What would happen to the wicked people of Ammonihah if they cast out and killed all those who believed in the word of God? They would be destroyed.

4) HIGH PRIEST FORCED TO WATCH PEOPLE BURN

• Why didn’t the Lord allow Alma to exercise the power of the priesthood and deliver the faithful women and children? (See Alma 60:13) The Lord allows people to do wicked things so that the judgments he will exercise upon them will be just. The blood of their victims would stand as a witness against them.

• What happens to righteous people who die in defense of the truth? (See Alma 14:11) The Lord receives them to himself in glory.

5) HIGH PRIEST THROWN INTO PRISON AND TORTURED

• Is it necessary to answer every person who mocks you and your beliefs? Why not? Some people’s hearts are so hard it would not make a difference what you said in reponse; they would continue to belittle and mock those things which are sacred.

• What helped Alma and Amulek have the courage to endure the threats and suffering perpetrated by those who sought to destroy them? They trusted the Lord. They had faith in him and in his plans and purposes.

6) LEADERS IN AMMONIHAH FLEE IN FEAR AFTER PRISONERS BREAK THEIR BONDS

• Have two children try to break the rope you brought. It should not be possible. Ask why Alma and Amulek could break the cords that bound them.

• Why did the chief priest and other leaders flee in fear when Alma and Amulek broke their bindings? They knew in their hearts that what they were doing was wrong. They were probably afraid, and rightfully so, that the power and judgments of God were about to come upon them.

7) PRISON IN AMMONIHAH COLLAPSES – KILLS ALL EXCEPT HIGH PRIEST AND COMPANION

• Why were the people of Ammonihah afraid? They may have been afraid that the power and judgments of God were about to come upon them.

• Why were Alma and Amulek’s lives preserved? (See Alma 14:13) They still had a work to do.

8) MIRACULOUS HEALING IN SIDOM

• What could Alma and Amulek have told the people to comfort them in this time of sorrow? They could have told them about the revelation: that the Lord had received their wives and children to himself in glory.

• Have you ever known someone who was so worried about something that they became physically ill? Our emotional state can affect our health.

  • What made it possible for Zeezrom to be healed? His faith in Jesus Christ.

9) AMMONIHAH DESTROYED BY LAMANITES – ALL DEAD

• What did Alma prophesy would happen to the people of Ammonihah if they did not repent? (See Alma 9:18) That they would be destroyed by the Lamanites.

10) NEW CONVERTS FORSAKE RICHES, FRIENDS, AND FAMILY

• Many times new converts have to endure numerous difficulties. Friends and family may not agree with the person’s choice and may disown and reject them. The converts usually also have to make many lifestyle changes. How do new converts have the strength to sacrifice so much? Because they have faith and trust in the Lord.

Conclusion
• How can we strengthen our faith in Jesus Christ? To help answer this question remind the children of the blindfold object lesson that was done at the beginning of class. Also remind them of the person they would trust enough to catch them, and remind them of the reasons they trust that person – because that person cares about them, and that person is strong enough to catch them.

• Ask how they have come to know that the person they chose cares about them. Responses might include the following: the person helps them, the person shows love for them by doing caring things for them, and the person tells them that they love and care for them.

• How can we gain faith and trust in Jesus? Explain to the children that as we get to know Jesus through reading the scriptures, we will learn about all the things he has done for us and we will know that he loves and cares for us and wants what is best for us. We will also learn through the scriptures that Jesus is the son of God, and that He has the strength and power to lift us up when we fall.

Weekly Reading Assignment

Remind the children to do their scripture reading assignment for this week: Alma 14:1-29, Alma 15:1-12, Alma16:1-3 and Alma 16:9-11

Apr 12 2016

Lesson 14 – Alma the Younger Repents

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Lesson 14
Alma the Younger Repents

Preparation

  •  Items needed: two containers of playdough, a display board, tape, a small container of water, two small Ziplock baggies, three envelopes, several small rocks (wash the rocks carefully so no grit or dirt is left on them).
  • Print and cut out the scripture story visual aids. Number the back of each story card to help keep them in the correct order.
  • Print and cut out the paper doll pattern, the steps of repentance, and the repentance story cards. Put each set of four story cards into an envelope.
  • Roll out the playdough until each is 1/4 inch thick. Put the cut out paper doll pattern on top of the play dough, and with a knife, cut out a figure from each rolled out piece of playdough. Put each playdough figure into a Ziploc bag to prevent it from drying out.

 

Attention Activity
Show the children one of the playdough figures. Point out how smooth and clean it looks. Show the children the small rocks and explain that each rock represents a sin.

Push the rocks one at a time into the figure as you tell of a sin the rock might represent such as lying, stealing, swearing, etc. Point out how the figure looks and explain that sin corrupts and pollutes our spirits so that we become distorted and unclean.

Show the other playdough figure. Explain that those who are close to us may also be affected by our sins and follow our example. (Push rocks into the other figure.) When we realize the damage we are doing to ourselves and others we may feel shame, regret, and sorrow.

Tell the children that in today’s lesson they will learn about the regret and misery that can come because of sin, and they will learn of the great joy that can come through repentance.

Scripture Story
Teach the following story using the scripture story visual aids.

Remind the children of last week’s lesson about the people of Limhi and the people of Alma escaping the bondage of the Lamanites and coming to Zarahemla. Tell the children that after Alma and his people arrived in Zarahemla, King Mosiah authorized Alma to lead and organize the church in the land of Zarahemla. The church had grown so large that it needed to be divided up into several congregations. Alma set up these congregations and ordained leaders for each of them.

Not all of the people in Zarahemla believed in the gospel. Some of these nonbelievers persecuted the believing church members. King Mosiah was made aware of the problem, and he made a law that there should be no persecutions among the people.

  • Why might a nonbeliever persecute church members? The reasons can be varied. One of the reasons may be that they feel offended or less valued because they live their life contrary to the morals and values that the church teaches. To help alleviate this problem a strict command was made throughout all the churches that there should be equality among men, and that there should be no pride or haughtiness.
  • How can we make sure that people who are not members of our church know they are valued regardless of differences in lifestyle? Answers might include: love them, emphasize the things we have in common, appreciate the good in them, invite and include them in our activities, etc.

The laws and commands helped establish peace in the land, but the sons of King Mosiah and one of the sons of Alma were among the unbelievers, and they caused many problems for the church.

  • Why might Alma and the sons of Mosiah, who had been brought up in the church, be among the unbelievers?  One reason may be that they chose to pursue other interests instead of taking the time to examine, understand, and do the things necessary to gain a testimony of the teachings of the gospel. Another reason may be that they chose to pursue sinful interests in preference to turning their lives and hearts toward God. Such was the case of Alma’s son, who was also named Alma after his father. Alma the younger chose a wicked and idolatrous lifestyle.

Alma the younger and the sons of Mosiah secretly went among the people trying to lead the people astray and destroy the church. Alma the younger was very good at speaking, and he influenced and persuaded many to commit the same sins he was committing.  (Remind the children of the lesson about King Noah and his desire to get people to commit the same sins he was committing.)

Because Alma the younger was the son of the religious leader, and the sons of Mosiah were the sons of the king, their example and influence caused a lot of people to fall away from the church.

One day as Alma the younger and the sons of Mosiah were going about trying to destroy the church, an angel of the Lord appeared to them. The angel descended in a cloud. His voice was like thunder, and it caused the earth to shake. So great was their astonishment and fear that Alma the younger and the sons of Mosiah fell to the earth. The angel asked Alma the younger why he persecuted the church of God.

  • The Lord usually does not send angels to the wicked. Why did God send an angel to speak to Alma the younger and the sons of Mosiah? (See Mosiah 27:14) Because of the prayers of the people of God, and because of the prayers of Alma’s father’s who prayed with faith that his son might be brought to a knowledge of the truth.

When Alma the younger saw the angel, he was struck with fear and amazement. The fear and astonishment of Alma was so great that he could not speak, and he became weak and could not move. The sons of Mosiah carried Alma to his father. They told his father what had happened to them. Alma’s father rejoiced.

  •  Why did Alma’s father rejoice when he saw his son in such a weak and helpless state? Alma’s father had been concerned about the spiritual welfare of his son. He rejoiced because he knew that the power of God was at work.

Alma the elder called a multitude together so they could witness what the Lord had done. He also called the priests, and they began to fast and pray for Alma the younger.

After they had fasted and prayed for two days and two nights, Alma the younger’s limbs regained strength. He stood up and began to speak to them. He said, “I have repented of my sins, and have been redeemed of the Lord.”

Alma’s repentance wasn’t easy. He had to go through the same steps of repentance we do in order to repent and be forgiven of our sins. When Alma saw the angel, he was afraid. He thought he would be destroyed because of his wickedness. For three days and three nights he could not move or speak. He was racked with torment for the memory of his many sins. He suffered greatly. Alma experienced the first step of repentance.

  •  What is the first step of repentance? Step One – Recognize that a wrong has been committed and feel sorrowful remorse. (Put this sign on the display board.)

As Alma was suffering, he remembered his father’s prophesies about the coming of Jesus Christ, the son of God, to atone for the sins of the world. His mind caught hold upon this thought, and he cried in his heart, “O Jesus, thou Son of God, have mercy on me.” After having this thought he was no longer tortured by the memory of his sins, and his soul was filled with great joy and light. He had begun the second step of repentance.

  • What is the second step of repentance? Step Two – Confess the sin and ask for forgiveness from God and from those we have hurt. (Put this sign on the display board.) Alma confessed his sinful state to God and asked for forgiveness. He now needed to confess his sins to the people he had affected and influenced.

Alma the younger and the sons of Mosiah began from that time forward to travel throughout all the land confessing their sins. They also told the people about the angel’s appearance to them and the things which they had heard and seen, and they preached the word of God. Alma the younger and the sons of Mosiah attempted to repair the damage they had done to the church. It wasn’t easy because they were persecuted by many of the unbelievers, but they did their best to carry out the third step of repentance

  • What is the third step of repentance? Step Three – Do our best to make up for the wrong. (Put this sign on the display board.)
  • What is the fourth step of repentance? Step Four – Forsake the sin. Do not commit the sin again. (Put this sign on the display board) True repentance includes a desire to change one’s life and actions.

Alma the younger and the sons of Mosiah changed their lives. They served in the church and taught others the gospel. Alma the younger eventually became the leader of the church after his father died. The sons of Mosiah served a mission to the Lamanites to teach them the gospel. Alma the younger and the sons of Mosiah wanted to help bring others to a knowledge of God. They did not want anyone to suffer because of sin. They wanted others to feel the joy they had experienced through repentance.

Object Lesson

Show the children the two playdough figures again. Explain to the children that if we will follow the steps of repentance, we can be healed and become clean of sin through the atonement of Jesus Christ. (Remove the rocks and press together the damaged areas. Smooth out the creases with water on your finger tips.)

Activity
Tell the children they are going to do an activity to help them remember the steps of repentance. Put one set of the repentance story cards face down on the table. Have a volunteer pick up one of cards, read it out loud, and then put it on the display board next to the step of repentance it goes with. Have the children each take a turn doing this. If one of the children thinks their card should go somewhere that someone else has placed a card, they can put their card in that spot, but they have to put the other card where they think it goes. After all the cards have been placed, read the story out loud to the class. If all the cards are in the right place, it will tell the story in order. Do another set after completing a story.

Conclusion
Heavenly Father loves us. He wants us to be happy. He sent His Son Jesus Christ to make it possible for us to repent. Through his Atonement, Jesus Christ paid the price for our sins so that we can repent, be forgiven, and gain eternal life. It isn’t always easy to fix our mistakes, but the wonderful results and benefits are always worth the effort.

Weekly Reading Assignment

Remind the children to do their scripture reading assignment for this week – Mosiah 27:1-37 and Alma 36:6-21

Mar 15 2016

Lesson 12 – Alma Baptizes at Waters of Mormon

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Lesson 12
Alma Baptizes at Waters of Mormon

Preparation

  • Print and cut out the visual aids, and the word strips and situation cards.
  • Items needed: medium size rocks (or cans of food with the labels removed), a backpack or heavy duty bag, chalk, some little pieces of wrapped candy and a candy bar for each child. Tape the burden situations to the rocks (or cans of food).
  • Print a new Scripture Reading Chart for each child.

Attention Activity
Explain that you are going to start off the lesson by giving each of them a small piece of candy. Point out that the piece of candy is small, but if they promise not to eat or open it, you promise to give them something bigger and better at the end of class. Emphasize the fact that you are both making promises.

Point out that eating candy is not a sin, but there are many things in life that give pleasure that are against the commandments of God because they are spiritually harmful. If we obey God’s commandments and avoid partaking in these spiritually harmful things, we can eventually receive the greatest gift of all, which is eternal life. Tell the children that in today’s lesson they will learn how the Lord tries to help us avoid these harmful things so that we can gain this eternal reward.

Scripture Story
Using the visual aids, tell the following story. As the story is told, background scenery such as a waterfall, a pool of water, and a grove of trees can be drawn on the chalkboard.

Remind the children that in last week’s lesson they learned about the prophet Abinadi being condemned to death by the wicked King Noah. They also learned about the repentant priest Alma who pleaded for Abinadi’s life. King Noah was angry with Alma and tried to have Alma killed, but Alma fled and hid. Alma hid in the wilderness at a place called Mormon.

  • Why was Mormon a good place to hide? (Have the children look up and read Mosiah 18:4-5 to find the answer.) It had a fountain of pure water, it was near the border of the land, it was supposed to be infested at times with wild animals, and it had a thicket of small trees that Alma hid in during the day to avoid the searches of the king–so Alma had water, food, and seclusion and cover while hiding.

At times, Alma secretly went among the people and taught the words of Abinadi to all who would listen. Many believed Alma’s words. Those who believed his words went to the place called Mormon to hear him preach.

One day Alma was teaching a large group of believers near the waters of Mormon. He taught them faith in Jesus Christ and repentance. He asked if they desired to take the next step toward becoming God’s people.

  •  What is the next step after faith and repentance? Tell the children to think of the fourth Article of Faith. (Baptism)

In order for the believers to be called God’s people they needed to covenant (promise) to serve God and keep his commandments. Sometimes when people make promises they shake hands or sign something as a symbol of their agreement. Baptism served as a witness or sign that they were willing to serve God and keep his commandments because baptism symbolizes the death of the old sinful person and the rebirth of the new spiritual person.

When the people heard they could be God’s people they clapped their hands for joy and exclaimed that it was the desire of their heart.

  • In order to be called God’s people they needed to covenant to serve God and keep His commandments. What is a covenant? A covenant is a two-way promise made between us and the Lord; both sides make promises.
  • Why does the Lord want us to make covenants? The Lord loves us and wants us to gain the blessings of eternal life, and in order to do this we must become like our Savior Jesus Christ and do the things he would do. The Lord knows that when we make bonding promises and commitments to do those things, we are more likely to do them.

Activity
Put the “Baptismal Covenants” word strip on a wall or display board. Put the word strip “We Promise” and the word strip “The Lord Promises” on each side underneath it.

We Promise
Have the children look up and read Mosiah 18:8-10 to find the covenants we make at baptism. As they find each one have them put the corresponding word strips under the “We Promise” word strip.

To come into the fold of God and be called his people.
We promise to join his church and take upon us the name of Christ. As members of his church we represent Christ and are to be examples of his teachings. (See the lesson on King Benjamin to further review this principle.)

To stand as a witness of God at all times and all places.
A witness is someone who tells others what they know and have seen; so a witness of God tells others what they know about God and His church. They state their beliefs in His commandments and try to be an example of them.

To serve God and keep his commandments.
We become more like our Savior as we obey the commandments.

To serve and help others.
We become more like our Savior as we serve and help others, which includes:

o Mourning with those that mourn.
o Comforting those that stand in need of comfort.
o Bearing one another’s burdens.

  • How do we mourn with those that are mourning? Answers might include: grieving and feeling sadness for the person’s loss and sorrow.
  • How do we bear one another’s burdens that they may be light? (Discuss this by doing the following activity.)

Activity
Show the children the rocks, and explain that you are using the rocks to represent the burdens that some people carry. Read the situation title as you put each rock into a bag.  Tell the children that life’s burdens can become heavy and difficult to carry. Let each child come up and lift the bag. Ask if they would want to carry that weight for very long. Remind the children that we covenant at baptism to help each other with our burdens. Have the children take turns reaching into the bag and taking out a rock. Have them read the situation and tell how they can help someone with that burden to make it lighter and easier to bear.

The Lord Promises
• What does the Lord promise if we keep the covenants we make? (Have the children look up and read Mosiah 18:9-10 to find the things the Lord promises. As they find each one, have them put the corresponding word strips under the “The Lord Promises” word strip.

We can be redeemed of God.
This means we can be forgiven of our sins when we repent.

We can come forth in the first resurrection.
We will be ready and spiritually prepared to come forth out of the spirit world during the first resurrection.

We can have eternal life.
Eternal life is the kind of life Heavenly Father has, which includes having a fullness of joy, love, peace, knowledge, and power.

He will pour out his Spirit more abundantly upon us.
As we keep our covenants, the Lord will bless us with his spirit more abundantly. The companionship of the Holy Ghost is a wonderful blessing because the Holy Ghost guides, teaches, protects, and comforts us.

The Lord promises to pour out wonderful blessings upon us if we keep our covenants (promises) to do the things he asks us to do.

Have the children trade their small piece of candy for a full size candy bar. Ask the children what would have happened if they hadn’t kept their promise and had instead opened and eaten the small piece of candy. They wouldn’t have received the bigger, better prize. Point out that it is the same with covenants. If we partake of unfulfilling sinful pleasures while on the earth instead of keeping our covenants (promises), we may not receive the wonderful blessing of eternal life which brings true happiness and joy. (Note: If a child has opened or eaten his or her candy, tell them they can still have another chance. Give them another piece of candy, and tell them to bring it back the following week. If they bring it back uneaten and unopened, they can still earn their reward. The Lord also gives us the opportunities in life to fix our mistakes and repent.)

Scripture Story Continued
After the people told Alma they wished to become God’s people and be baptized, Alma began to baptize them in the waters of Mormon. The first one he baptized was a man named Helam. As Alma baptized Helam, Alma submerged himself also.

  •  Why did Alma immerse himself also when he baptized Helam? In Mosiah 18:13 it says that Alma had the priesthood authority to baptize. This is evidence that he had already been baptized. Therefore when Alma immersed himself with Helam it was merely as a token to the Lord of his humility and full repentance. Alma did not immerse himself again while baptizing the others. (Joseph Fielding Smith: Answers to Gospel Questions)

Alma baptized about two hundred and four souls that day at the waters of Mormon, and anyone who was baptized from that time forward was also added to the church of Christ.

King Noah eventually discovered there was a movement among the people. He sent his servants to watch the group. When the king’s servants reported what was happening, Noah said that Alma was stirring up the people to rebellion against him. Noah ordered his army to destroy them. Alma was warned of the Lord that the king’s army was coming, so he and his people took their tents and their families and departed into the wilderness. They were in number about 450 souls.

Conclusion
As we keep our baptismal covenants, we learn to become more like our Savior Jesus Christ, and we become worthy to receive the greatest gift and reward we could ever receive, which is eternal life.

Weekly Reading Assignment

Give each child a new scripture reading chart, and remind the children to do their scripture reading assignment for this week: Mosiah 18:1-17, 30-35

Mar 9 2016

Lesson 11 – Abinadi and King Noah

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Lesson 11
Abinadi and King Noah

Preparation
• Print the visual aids. Number the visual aids on the back in the order printed.
• Items needed: tape, an envelope or small paper bag, a clear jar full of nine opened rolls of pennies (or 450 of some other item), small pieces of paper, pencils, a Book of Mormon for each child.
• Print and cut out the situation cards. Put them in an envelope or small bag.

Attention Activity
Show the children the jar of pennies. Have them each write on a piece of paper how many pennies they think are in the jar. After they have guessed, instruct them to put their papers under their chairs. Explain that in today’s lesson they will learn how one person, who stood up for the right, influenced the lives of as many people as there are pennies in the jar.

Scripture Story Activity
Attach the visual aid pictures to a wall or chalkboard in random order. Tell the following story, stopping whenever you see the initials WHN. Have the children guess “What Happens Next” by picking out a picture on the wall. After you continue, have them decide if the picture they picked goes with that part of the story. If it doesn’t, have them choose the correct picture.

Many years before King Benjamin’s address to his people, a group of people led by a man named Zeniff left Zarahemla and went back to the land of Nephi. Zeniff and his people wanted to return to the land of Nephi because they considered it to be the land of their inheritance.

• What was the problem with their plan to return to the land of Nephi? The Lord had commanded the people to leave the land of Nephi because of the danger from the Lamanites.

• Were Zeniff and his people being obedient to the Lord’s commands when they went back to the land of Nephi? What usually happens when people don’t listen to the Lord? (They have to suffer the resulting consequences and sorrows.) We need to trust in the Lord, that he knows what is best for us.

WHN – When Zeniff and his people arrived at their destination, Zeniff took four men and went to talk to the king of the Lamanites about allowing them to possess the land of Nephi.

• The Lamanite King allowed them to possess the land, but he had a reason for allowing it. What might that reason have been? (See Mosiah 9:10) The Lamanite king was cunning and devious, and he allowed them to possess the land so that the Lamanites could bring Zeniff’s people into bondage. The Lamanites were a lazy people, and they hated the Nephites. They wanted to glut themselves on the Nephite’s labor.

WHN – The king of the Lamanites allowed Zeniff and his people to live in peace for several years to give the Nephites time to establish their crops and flocks.

WHN – The king of the Lamanites then incited his people to attack Zeniff’s people.

WHN – Zeniff and his people fought against the Lamanites, and eventually they were able to drive them off because Zeniff and his people turned to the Lord for help.

They set guards around the land to keep watch so the Lamanites could not come upon them and destroy them. Zeniff eventually became old. Before he died, Zeniff conferred his kingdom upon his son Noah.

WHN – Unlike his father, Noah was not a good king, and he did not keep the commandments of God.

• What were some of the things King Noah did that were against the commandments? (See Mosiah 11:2, 5 and 14 to find the answers.)
o He had many wives and concubines, which was not lawful.
o He placed his heart upon riches. He taxed the people to support himself in luxury. He had a palace and many elegant and spacious buildings built. He used gold and other precious items to ornate them.
o He spent his time in partying, wild living, and excessive wine drinking.
o He got rid of all the consecrated priests. He appointed his own priests–men who would sustain him and his wicked life style.
o He caused and encouraged his people to commit sin.

• Why would King Noah want his people to commit sin?  Through getting others to sin, Noah may have hoped to justify his sins and make sin seem acceptable and normal. (Encourage the children to remember the story of wicked King Noah when someone tries to get them to do something wrong.)

After many years the Lamanites began to attack the people again. King Noah’s armies drove them back, but King Noah’s people had become wicked and prideful. They boasted of their strength because of their victory. They also delighted in the killing and the bloodshed of their enemies.

WHN – A prophet named Abinadi was commanded by the Lord to go among the people to preach and prophesy.

• Ask the children what they think Abinadi told the people. (See Mosiah 11:21) He warned them that unless they repented they would be delivered into the hands of their enemies and be brought into bondage.

• How did the people respond to Abinadi’s words? (See Mosiah 11:26) The people were angry with him and they wanted to kill him, but the Lord delivered him out of their hands.

• Why do you think some people get angry with those who call them to repentance? Answers may include the following: It reveals their evil actions and guilt. They desire to continue doing the evil things. Their pride is offended because they don’t want to acknowledge they have weaknesses.

Because of their anger, those who are sinning may try to make it appear as if the person who is calling them to repentance is in the wrong or at fault. King Noah became angry and tried to make Abinadi seem like a self-righteous person trying to cause contention.

• When we are told to repent and improve some area of our life, how does the Lord want us to respond? He wants us to be humble and teachable.

.Why does the Lord want us to repent? Because he loves us and does not want us to suffer the temporal and eternal consequences that result from sin.

King Noah sent his men to get Abinadi so he could kill him, but they could not find him. After two years Abinadi came back among the people.

• Why did the Lord wait two years before sending Abinadi back? To give the people time to repent.

But the people had not repented. Because they did not repent, Abinadi told them they would be smitten with bondage, afflictions, famine, and pestilence. He also said they would be utterly destroyed if they did not then change their ways.

WHN – The people were angry with Abinadi. They bound him and took him before King Noah.

WHN – The priests questioned Abinadi, trying to cross him so they would have something to accuse him of. Abinadi answered them boldly and withstood all their questions. He confounded them to their astonishment. He accused them of altering and misrepresenting the ways of the Lord for their own purposes, and he accused them of not keeping the laws that they were supposed to be teaching.

• How did King Noah respond to Abinadi’s words? (See Mosiah 13:1) King Noah wanted to kill Abinadi, and he tried to make it seem as if Abinadi was crazy. Why would King Noah try to make it seem as if something was wrong with Abinadi?

WHN – They attempted to take Abinadi, but he withstood them. He told them not to touch him because he had not finished delivering his message. The people didn’t dare lay their hands upon Abinadi because the spirit was with him, and his face shone with exceeding luster. He also spoke as with power and authority from God. Abinadi preached to them many things about the commandments and about the Savior Jesus Christ.

• When Abinadi was done with his message how did King Noah respond this time? Did King Noah repent after witnessing that the power of God was with Abinadi? (See Mosiah 17:1) King Noah commanded that Abinadi should be put to death.

• Why did King Noah want to slay Abinadi? (See Mosiah 13:7) Because it cut him to the heart that Abinadi was speaking the truth about his iniquities.

• Did anyone repent and believe Abinadi’s words? (See beginning of Mosiah 17:2) There was a priest named Alma that believed the words of Abinadi.

WHN –  Alma pleaded with the king for Abinadi’s life.

WHN – The king cast Alma out and sent his servants to kill him. Alma hid and could not be found. While he was hiding he wrote down all the words Abinadi had spoken.

King Noah and the priests told Abinadi they would kill him unless he denied the things he had said.

• How did Abinadi respond? (See Mosiah 17:9-10) Abinadi told King Noah he would not recall the words he had spoken, and if King Noah killed him, then his innocent blood would stand as a witness against the king at the last day.

To take innocent life is murder and merits eternal punishment. This made Noah fearful and he was about to release Abinadi, but the priests stirred Noah back into anger.

WHN – They whipped Abinadi, and then they burned him to death. As Abinadi was burning he cried out that even as they had done to him so would they endure the same.

• Why did the Lord allow Abinadi to be killed? Sometimes the Lord’s servants are called to seal their testimony with their blood. Their death stands as a witness of the truth of their words and also stands as a witness against the wicked.

• Why was Abinadi not afraid to die? Abinadi knew that he would receive eternal life and salvation because of his faithfulness.

WHN – After Abinadi’s death, his prophecies that God would deliver the people into the hands of their enemies began to come true when the Lamanites attacked the city.

WHN – The king commanded the people to flee, but the Lamanites pursued them and overtook them and began to slay them. The king commanded that the men should leave their wives and children.

• Why would King Noah command his men to leave their wives and children? He was concerned about his own safety, and the women and children were slowing them down.

Some of the men stayed with their families and were able to convince the Lamanites to spare them and their loved ones. They were taken captive.

WHN – The men that had left with the king wanted to return for their wives and children, but the king commanded them not to. They became angry and caused him to be burned to death.

Point out that Abinadi had prophesied that King Noah would suffer the same manner of death that he had inflicted upon Abinadi.

Discussion
Abinadi stood as a witness for God. A witness for God is someone who states his or her beliefs in God and in his commandments. Ordinarily they do not have to sacrifice their lives to do this.

• How can we stand as witnesses for God?

Activity
Tell the children they are going to do an activity to help them see how they can stand for the right and be a witness for God. Divide the children into sets of two. Have each set of children choose a situation card from the envelope. Have the children act out the scenario found on the card. Have them demonstrate how they can be a witness for God in each situation by sharing their beliefs and standing for the right.  Give the children a couple of minutes beforehand to talk about and prepare their scenes with their partners.

Conclusion
When we are valiant in standing as a witness for God we can be an influence for good in others’ lives.

• Who did Abinadi influence? Abinadi influenced Alma, the former priest of King Noah, and Alma shared Abinadi’s message with many others.

Get out the jar of pennies, and have the children get their papers from under their chairs. Tell the children that 450 souls listened to and believed Alma’s message, and there are 450 pennies in the jar. Later, Alma influenced even more people because he became the high priest in Zarahemla.

Ask the children if any of them came close to guessing how many pennies were in the jar. Praise everyone for their guesses.

Encourage the children to be witnesses of God and to be good influences upon those who are around them. Explain that even though some people may appear not be interested in listening, we may have more of an influence than we realize.

Weekly Reading Assignment  

Remind the children to do their scripture reading assignment for this week – Mosiah 11-13, Mosiah 17 and Mosiah 19:4–20.

Note: It is important to complete the lesson and do the activity to help the children see how to apply what has been learned. If there is not enough time, it may be necessary to discard the WHN activity and just show the pictures and tell the story.

Feb 24 2016

Lesson 9: Enos Prays

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Lesson 9
Enos Prays

Preparation

• Items needed: removable double-sided tape, two cell phones (or two pretend phones), several sheets of paper, pencils, and an eight inch piece of ribbon and a small Ziploc baggie for each child.
• Print and cut out the Scripture Story pdf Visual Aids or word. Also print and cut out the game items pdf or word; print one copy of the game questions and large phone and one copy per every two children of the small cell phone and game answers.  Put a piece of removable double-sided tape on the screen area of each cell phone. Put a small phone and one set of answers in each Ziploc baggie.

Attention Activity

Ask for a volunteer. Hand the volunteer one of the cell phones. Tell them to answer the phone when it rings. Call them using your cell phone. Greet them by name and then say, “I have a problem with my sister. She uses my stuff and doesn’t return it. It makes me very upset. What should I do about it?” Hang up before they can answer, or say, “Oh, I got to go, bye.”

• Did it do any good to ask the person for help and advice? Why not? Because time was not taken to listen for an answer. Do we sometimes do that: ask Heavenly Father for help with a problem but then don’t listen for the answer?

In today’s lesson we are going to learn about someone who prayed fervently and then took the time to listen for answers.

Ask the children if they remember which prophet they learned about in last week’s lesson. Give hints if needed. After they have recalled Jacob’s name, tell them that the prophet Jacob had a son named Enos. Jacob grew old and saw he would soon die, so he passed the spiritual and historical records of the people to his son Enos.

Have the children turn to the “Book of Enos.” Tell the children that the “Book of Enos” is only one chapter long, but it teaches important lessons about prayer.

Using the scripture story visual aids, tell the following story. Direct the children to listen for three things that Enos prayed for.

Scripture Story
One day as Enos was hunting in the forest, he recalled the words his father had spoken about the joy of eternal life. Enos wanted to be forgiven of his sins so he could be worthy to receive the blessings of eternal life, so he knelt down, prayed, and asked for forgiveness. He prayed all day, and he was still praying when it became night.

• How long did Enos pray? Ask the children what things they do in a normal day. Explain that Enos would have been praying during the time they normally spend going to school, attending classes, and eating lunch. He still would have been praying during the time they come home from school, eat dinner, and get ready for bed.

After praying all day and into the night, a voice came to Enos saying, “Enos, thy sins are forgiven thee, and thou shalt be blessed.” Enos knew God could not lie, so his guilt was washed away. He asked the Lord how it was done. The Lord told him it was because of his faith in Christ.

• Why is faith in Jesus Christ necessary for forgiveness of sins? Jesus suffered and paid the price for our sins to make it possible for us to be forgiven. If we have faith in Christ and his atonement, we will believe we can be forgiven, and then we will do the things that are necessary to be forgiven, such as repent.

After Enos’s sins were forgiven, he was concerned for the welfare of the other Nephites, and he prayed for them. (Post picture of the Nephites.) The Lord told Enos they would be blessed if they kept the commandments, but if they disobeyed, their sins would bring sorrow upon them.

• Why did Enos pray for the Nephites? He was concerned about them and their eternal spiritual welfare. The Nephites constantly had to be reminded to keep the commandments. Enos preached the word of God to them throughout his whole life.

After Enos prayed for the Nephites, he began to pray diligently for the Lamanites. (Post picture of the Lamanites.) The Lamanites had become a wild, ferocious, bloodthirsty people full of idolatry and filthiness. They lived in tents and fed on wild beasts, and many ate nothing but raw meat. They wandered around the wilderness with their heads shaven, wearing nothing but a short girdle made out of skins. They would not listen when the Nephites tried to teach them the gospel.

The Lamanites were constantly seeking to destroy the Nephites, and they swore to destroy the Nephite records and traditions. Enos prayed that if the Nephites were someday destroyed, the Lord would preserve a record of the Nephites and at some future date bring forth the record so the Lamanites might perhaps be brought to salvation.

• Why do you think Enos prayed for the Lamanites when they were the Nephites’ enemies? He had a great love for all of Heavenly Father’s children. He was sad about the choices the Lamanites were making and the consequences they would suffer. He wanted to help them change their ways, if not now then someday.

• What could we pray for in behalf of someone who has not been kind to us?

The Lord told Enos he would grant his desire; a record would be preserved. The Lord also said that other ancestors of Enos had prayed for the same thing.

• What is the Nephite record called that was preserved and brought forth in the latter days to help bring the Lamanites to God? The Book of Mormon

Discussion
• When Enos prayed, how do we know he took the time to listen for answers? He prayed all day and into the night asking the Lord to forgive him of his sins.

We don’t have to pray all day like Enos, but we should take the time in each prayer to ponder and think about our problems and to listen for help and counsel.

President Gordon B. Hinckley said, “The trouble with most prayers is that we give them as if we were picking up the phone and ordering something. We place our order and then hang up.”

• What happens when we ask for guidance and help concerning a problem but then don’t take time to listen for the answer? We might miss out on the help and guidance Heavenly Father would like to share with us.

Ask the children to name some difficulties kids their age have to face. Possible answers might include problems with family, friends, schoolwork, health, etc. Explain that the Lord wants to help them with these challenges, but they need to ask for His help and then listen for His response.

• In what ways might answers come? Ideas and solutions might come into their mind as they think about the problem. Or if they have asked a specific yes or no question about their problem, they might have a peaceful or an uneasy feeling according to what the answer is.

• Enos said he cried in mighty prayer and supplication to the Lord. How can we make our prayers more sincere and deeply felt so we are not just repetitiously repeating the same words? One possible answer might be to think about our specific problems and blessings before saying our prayers.

Activity
Give each child a piece of paper and a pencil. Instruct them to fold the piece of paper like a fan and then fold the fan in half. On the inside of the folds on the left side of the paper, have the children write specific things that Heavenly Father has blessed them with. On the inside folds on the right side of the paper, direct them to write specific things they might need help with. After they are done, instruct them fold it into a fan again. Have them tie a ribbon around the middle part of the fan. (If they desire to keep their lists private, they can fold the fan down into thirds until it is a small block of paper. They can use the ribbon that is in the middle of the fan to tie up the block.) Tell the children to put the fan on their pillow and open it when they say their prayers. Explain that it will help remind them of the things they need to thank Heavenly Father for, and it will also remind them of the problems and concerns they need help with.

Explain to the children that their blessings and needs will change as their life changes, but if they will always take a few moments to think of specific things that are going on in their life before they pray, their prayers will be more sincere and heartfelt.

Review Game

Pass out the baggies you have prepared (one per every two children). Explain that the class is going to play a review game. Show the children the large cell phone. Tell the children that you are going to place a question on the large cell phone screen. They can find the answer to the question in their baggie and then place the answer on their small cell phone screen. After everyone shows you their response, you will let them know how many phones have the correct answer on them. If they don’t all have the correct answer, they can look at each other’s phone and decide which ones are correct and then try again. When everyone has the correct answer, replace the question on the large cell phone with another question. Continue in this manner until all the questions have been answered.

Weekly Reading Assignment

Remind the children to do their scripture reading assignment for this week: The Book of Enos

Feb 17 2016

Lesson 8 – Jacob’s Encounter with Sherem

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Lesson 8
Jacob’s Encounter with Sherem

Preparation
• Print the scripture story visual aids. (The visual aids are from Book of Mormon Stories chapters nine and ten.)
• Items needed: one package of toothpicks, masking tape or stickers, fine tip markers, several pieces of string or ribbon cut into three inch lengths, and packages of stick gum (stick gum can be found at Dollar Tree). (The amounts needed for each item will be based on how many children are in the class.)
• Carefully remove the gum from the wrappers in one of the packages of gum. Replace the empty wrappers back into the package, making it appear as if the gum is still in the wrappers.
• Fold two inch pieces of masking tape or stickers in half over the end of the toothpicks. Each should look like a small flag when done. Cut off the other pointy end of the toothpick with scissors. Make five toothpick flags per child. Save the remaining flag free toothpicks for the object lesson.

Attention Activity

Tell the children you brought some gum to share with them, and show them the empty gum package. Offer it to the children. After they take a piece, ask them how they felt when the discovered the wrappers were empty. Explain to the children that during their life people will try to convince them to accept beliefs that are empty and have no value. In today’s lesson they will learn how to discern divine truth so as to help them avoid the disappointment and sorrow that comes from accepting empty, false beliefs. (Tell the children that at the end of class you will give each of them a piece of real gum to take home.)

Scripture Story Introduction
Tell the following scripture story and show the numbered visual aid pictures where indicated.

Remind the children that in last week’s lesson they learned about Nephi and his family crossing the sea and arriving at the promised land. In the promised land, Lehi eventually grew old and died.

(1) After Lehi died, Laman and Lemuel once again became angry with Nephi for urging them to keep the commandments. (1) They complained, saying their younger brother wanted to rule over them. They became so angry they sought to kill him.

(2) The Lord warned Nephi that he should flee into the wilderness and take all those who would go with him. All those who believed in the warnings and revelations of God followed Nephi. They traveled into the wilderness for several days. They settled in a land and prospered there. They constructed buildings and a temple. They called themselves the people of Nephi.

(3) The people who followed Laman and Lemuel were called Lamanites. A curse was put upon the Lamanites; they were cut off from the Lord’s help and guidance because they chose to do wicked things. The Lord also caused their skins to darken so the Nephites would be reminded not to mix or intermarry with them and bring the curse upon themselves. The Lamanites became an idle people, full of mischief and trickery. They hated the Nephites and wanted to destroy them. The Lord told Nephi that the Lamanites would be a scourge to his people to help turn the Nephite’s hearts back to the Lord when they faltered.

Nephi led his people in righteousness and helped protect them against the Lamanites, but eventually he grew old. (4) He gave the historical and spiritual records to his younger brother Jacob. Jacob had been consecrated a priest and teacher by the hand of Nephi. (5) He was ordained of God to lead and teach the people.

(Direct the children to turn to the “Book of Jacob” in their Book of Mormons.) Some of Jacob’s words are recorded in the “Book of Jacob.” In the seventh chapter of the “Book of Jacob” Jacob tells about a man named Sherem who came among the Nephites preaching and trying to convince the people to accept his teachings.

Scripture Story
(6) The man named Sherem tried to convince the people to accept false things that were not true. One of the main things he tried to convince the people was that there would be no Christ. He taught that it was not necessary for an atonement to be made for the sins of mankind. He said that the people only had to follow the basic laws and rituals of the Law of Moses in order to gain salvation.

• Is it possible to gain salvation without Christ’s atonement? We cannot undo the sins we have committed, and no unclean thing can enter into the kingdom of God. Christ suffered and paid the price for our sins. Only through Christ’s Atonement can we become clean again.

• Why would Sherem try to convince the people there would be no Christ? Sherem was under Satan’s influence. Satan did not want people to believe in Christ and be saved.

(7) Sherem was a learned man, and he was very good at speaking to people and flattering them. Many people believed his words.

• Why did people find his words to be so appealing? Possibly because they wanted to follow the easier path of just performing the basic rituals and performances of the Law of Moses instead of following the more difficult path of sincere repentance and of living righteous lives in order to qualify for forgiveness of their sins when Jesus Christ performed the Atonement.

Sherem knew that Jacob had faith in Christ, so he sought to speak to Jacob. He hoped to shake Jacob’s faith.

• Why would Sherem want to shake Jacob’s faith? Perhaps he hoped to shake Jacob’s faith so that all the people who listened to Jacob would also falter, and then Sherem could try to influence them to believe his teachings and follow him. But Jacob’s faith could not be shaken. Jacob had received many revelations, he had seen angels, and he had heard the voice of the Lord. His faith was firm.

(8) Sherem eventually got the opportunity to speak to Jacob. He accused Jacob of leading the people into changing the right ways of worshiping God by preaching of a being named Christ. Sherem said that no man could know of such things or of what was to come in the future.

(9) The Lord blessed Jacob with the spirit, and he was able to confound and thwart everything Sherem said. Jacob asked Sherem if he believed in the scriptures. Sherem said he did believe in the scriptures. Jacob said he must not understand them because all the prophets in the scriptures had testified of Christ. Jacob also testified that he personally knew that Christ would come because it had been revealed to him by the power of the Holy Ghost.

(10) Sherem said he wanted to see a sign by that power. Jacob said he would not ask God for a sign to show Sherem something that he already knew was true. (Sherem must have had a belief in Christ, but his personal notions and desires became so powerful that he tried to ignore that knowledge.)

(11) Jacob said if it was the will of the Lord to smite Sherem, then that would be his sign that God has power and that Christ will come.

(12) The power of the Lord came upon Sherem, and he fell to the earth. He was so stricken and incapacitated that others had to feed him and take care of him for many days.

• Did Sherem ask for a sign so he could believe in Christ? No. He did not expect a sign to be produced, and if none was produced he could accuse Jacob of being false. Sherem had not planned on being struck down by God.

• If we want to gain a testimony of Christ, would seeking for signs be a good way to do it? Have the children look up and read D&C 63:9 & 11-12. Explain that signs and miracles come because of faith. Signs do not give a person faith. Faith in Christ comes through the witness of the Holy Ghost. Remind the children of Laman and Lemuel. They did not have faith even though they had seen an angel, heard the voice of the Lord, and had seen many mighty miracles. They did not have faith because they would not open their hearts to the Holy Ghost. If we seek for signs it will be to our condemnation.

(13) Sherem suffered for many days after being struck down by the power of God. He asked that the people be gathered. He knew he was dying, and he wanted to speak to them before he died. When the people were gathered, he denied the things he had taught them and confessed that Christ was true. He said he had been deceived by the devil and now feared for his soul. He knew he was about to die and face God. He was afraid of the eternal judgements he would face for his sins.

• How did Sherem feel when he realized he would have to suffer the consequences of preaching false doctrines? (Fear and sorrow) How would someone feel if they had accepted false doctrine and then realized they would have to suffer the consequences of that choice?

(14) After confessing, Sherem died. The power of God came upon the people. They felt the Spirit’s witness of the truth of the matter. They fell to the earth in awe. The people once again turned their hearts to God.

Discussion
There are many people in today’s world that are influenced by Satan. They try to lead people away from Christ. Some try to convince us that Jesus is not the Son of God, that He didn’t suffer and die for our sins. They say we do not have to believe in Christ and follow the commandments to receive salvation.

• How can we find out for ourselves that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, that he atoned for our sins, and that only through Him can we be saved? Jacob had faith in Christ because the Holy Ghost had revealed the truth of it to him. We can receive that same witness of Christ if we will pray and seek for the Holy Ghost to reveal the truth to us. We also learn from Jacob that we can gain a testimony of Christ through reading the scriptures. The scriptures testify of Christ.

Object Lesson
Ask for a volunteer. Instruct the volunteer to break one of the toothpicks. Point out how easy it was. Tell the children that the broken toothpick represents someone who does not have a strong testimony. That person’s resolves to follow Christ is easily broken when temptation comes along.

Someone who has built up their testimony of Jesus Christ through study, prayer, and obedience to the commandments can gain spiritual strength like Jacob’s. Jacob’s testimony was strong and firm.

Add toothpicks to a pile as you mention (or as the children mention) things that will strengthen a testimony such as: studying the scriptures every day, praying every morning and night, listening to General Conference, listening carefully to teachers and speakers at church, listening and participating in Family Home Evening and family scripture study, reading stories from the Friend magazine, studying for and giving talks in Primary, and obeying the words of Christ.

After you have at least 10-12 toothpicks in the pile, have a volunteer try to break the pile. They must keep them bundled close together. If they do this, it should not be possible to break them. Explain that our testimony can start out weak and small, but it can be reinforced and built up until it is strong and firm.

Activity
Hand out five labeled toothpicks to each child. Direct the children to write on each side of the labels things they can do to strengthen their testimony. Tie each person’s toothpicks together in a bundle with string or ribbon. Instruct the children to put their bundle somewhere where they will see it daily to help remind them of the things  they need to do to strengthen and build up their testimonies.

Weekly Reading Assignment

Remind the children to do their scripture reading assignment for this week –  2 Nephi 5:1-25 and Jacob 7:1–23.

Feb 8 2016

Lesson 7 – Crossing the Sea

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Lesson 7 – Crossing the Sea

Preparation
• Items needed: a large rectangular pan, a large container filled with water, a paper boat made from the instructions found in Lesson 6, a small paper bag, and a Book of Mormon for each child.
• Print the visual aids. Cut out the scripture references. Tape or paste each scripture reference to the back of its matching numbered scripture story picture. (There will be some pictures with the same number on them. Keep the sets together when handing them out to the children.) Cut out the game pieces. Put the sun and lightning pieces in the paper bag. (Note: I printed the game board onto blue paper and cut out the game path, waves, and fish and pasted them onto yellow cardstock. I also colored the fish and star yellow with a colored pencil.)

Attention Activity

Ask the class if they think crossing the sea in a ship is easy.

Pour the container of water into the rectangular pan. Have a volunteer try to blow the paper boat from one long side of the pan to the other. Have two other volunteers try to make the task difficult by blowing the boat in the opposite direction and by blowing on the water to make waves. (Have the volunteers stay about a foot away from the boat as they do their individual tasks.) When the boat reaches the other side of the pan, or when it sinks, point out the difficulties that occurred during the activity: the boat tumbling over, the boat filling with water, the boat going in the wrong direction, etc.

Remind the children of the ship that Nephi built. Nephi was blessed with Heavenly Father’s guidance in building the ship, so it was a well built ship, but crossing a sea in any ship can be dangerous. Storms can occur, causing heavy winds that could blow the ship off course. Large waves can form that could flood or capsize a ship. Navigating a ship can also be a problem. In the vast, wide open, empty sea it is difficult to know where you are and what direction you are going. People could starve to death or die of thirst if they can not find their way to land.

Nephi and his family needed the help of the Lord to carry out the difficult and perilous journey of crossing the sea.

Scripture Story

Give each child one of the scripture story pictures. Children can share pictures, or they can be given more than one picture if needed. Make sure each child has a Book of Mormon. Give the children a few minutes to look up and read the scripture reference found on the back of their individual pictures. Going in order, have the children stand up one at a time and describe what is happening in their picture according to the scripture reference they read. Add any details they leave out. Ask any questions that go with that part of the story.

#1) 1 Nephi 18:5-6 The voice of the Lord came to Lehi. Lehi was told that it was time for his family to begin their journey across the sea. They loaded provisions onto the ship such as fruit, meat, honey, and all other items they would need according to what the Lord had commanded.

#2) 1 Nephi 18:8 After Nephi, his family, and all their provisions were on board, they put out to sea. Strong winds blew the ship toward the promised land.

#3) 1 Nephi 18:9 After many days of traveling on the sea, Nephi’s brothers, the sons of Ishmael and their wives began to make themselves merry. They began to dance and sing. Then they began to speak rudely to others. They forgot about the Lord and his commandments, and they forgot that it was by His power they had come to enjoy safety, guidance, and assistance on their journey.

#4) 1 Nephi 18:10-11 Nephi began to fear that the Lord would be angry with them and smite them because of their iniquity. He understood the precarious and dangerous situation they were in. They were dependent upon the Lord’s mercy and assistance to help them safely cross the sea.

Nephi talked to his brothers and the others about what they were doing, but they became angry with him. They were prideful and did not want anyone, especially their younger brother, telling them what they should do. Laman and Lemuel took Nephi and tied him up with cords. They treated him cruelly and harshly. The Lord allowed it so He could teach them a lesson and demonstrate to them His great power.

• Is it wrong to be happy and celebrate? The Lord approves of proper dancing, singing, and celebrating, but some music and dancing can encourage inappropriate behavior and a loss of self-control. The dancing and singing on the ship led them to abandon their self-restraint which led them to speaking with much rudeness. To be rude means to be unkind or vulgar. Rude behavior makes the spirit withdraw, and it is only natural to expect the protective blessings of heaven to withdraw also.

#5) 1 Nephi 18:12-13 After Laman and Lemuel tied up Nephi, the Liahona stopped working. They didn’t know what direction they should steer the ship. Then a great storm arose. Terrible and fierce winds drove them backwards for three days. Laman and Lemuel began to be frightened they would drown in the sea, but they still did not free Nephi from his bonds.

• In what ways did the Lord demonstrate his great power?

#6 ) 1 Nephi 18:17-19 Lehi tried to talk to Laman and Lemuel about what they were doing, but they would not listen. They threatened anyone who spoke for Nephi. Lehi and Sariah were old, and the grief they suffered because of their children caused them to become ill and lay sick in bed. They became so ill they came close to dying. Jacob and Joseph, who were their young sons that had been born in the wilderness, needed care and nourishment from their parents. These young sons also suffered and were full of sorrow. Not even Nephi’s wife and his children’s tears and prayers softened Laman and Lemuel’s hearts.

#7) 1 Nephi 18:14-16 On the fourth day the winds and storm became even more severe. They were about to be swallowed up by the huge waves. Laman and Lemuel realized that the judgments of God were upon them, and that they would not survive if they didn’t repent, so they loosened the bands from Nephi. Nephi’s ankles and wrists were terribly swollen and sore from being constrained for so long, but Nephi never murmured or complained. Instead he praised the Lord.

• Why do you think Nephi was grateful and praised the Lord instead of complaining after suffering so much?

• Was Laman and Lemuel’s repentance sincere? They did not feel sorrow for what they had done. They had only released Nephi because of personal, selfish concern for their own lives. Not even the suffering and near death of their parents, or the suffering of their younger brothers, turned their hearts.

#8) 1 Nephi 18:21–22 After Laman and Lemuel let Nephi loose, Nephi picked up the Liahona and it began to work again. Then Nephi prayed, and the winds and the storm ceased. There was a great calm. Nephi guided the ship, and they once again sailed towards the promised land.

• Why did the Liahona work for Nephi but not for Laman and Lemuel? The Liahona only worked according to faith and diligence. Laman and Lemuel were not faithful and diligent in obeying the Lord or his commandments.

#9) 1 Nephi 18:23-25 After many days of traveling on the sea, Nephi and his family arrived at the promised land. The land was fertile, and their seeds grew abundantly. They also found many kinds of animals there such as cows, ox, horses, goats, and all kinds of wild animals in the forests. They also found all kinds of ores such as gold, silver, and copper.

Discussion
• How did Laman and Lemuel’s disobedience affect their parents and the rest of the family? It made their parents sick, and it caused everyone to suffer fear and distress.

• How does our disobedience affect our parents and family members? Sin causes a lot of pain, sorrow, and suffering for everyone. The person sinning suffers the consequences of their sins, and the people that are near to them are hurt and affected by the wicked things the sinner does.

Game
Show the game board and explain to the children that the object of the game is to get the ship from the start to the promised land.

• Ask the children if they remember what the promised land is a representation of. (Eternal Life) Explain that as we travel through our mortal lives, we need to strive to do the things necessary to attain eternal life. There are things that help us move toward that goal, and there are things that impede our progress. In this game we talk about both.

Have the children take turns drawing papers out of the bag and moving the ship on the game board. If they draw the sun, they move the ship forward two spaces. They must then tell of something that helps keep the guidance of the Lord in their lives. They must also explain how doing that thing helps them in life. Answers might include: prayer, scripture reading, keeping the commandments, being honest, being kind to others, etc.

If they draw the lightning they move the ship back one space. They then tell of something that drives the Spirit away and causes suffering in people’s lives. They must also explain how it causes suffering. Answers might include: swearing, lying, cheating, complaining, arguing, stealing, using drugs or alcohol, etc. Note: If they draw a lightning piece at the start, they stay at the start position.

Continue in this manner, with the children taking turns drawing papers from the bag and moving the ship, until they have reached the space marked “Promised Land.”

Conclusion
Remind the children that sin and disobedience will always cause misery and suffering for themselves and others. Alma 41:10 says, “Wickedness never was happiness.” Encourage the children to do the things that will help them have the divine guidance of the Spirit in their lives so they can be guided toward eternal life and happiness.

Weekly Reading Assignment

Remind the children to do their scripture reading assignment for this week – 1 Nephi 18:5-25