Temples

This month the Ensign is a special issue, Temples of The Church Of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. So, this month our FHE's are going to focus on the temple.

Each week we are going to answer a few simple questions, on the level of a 5 and 3 year old! There is a great section at the end of the Ensign just for children.

week 1: What is a temple? What do they look like?

Sing, "I Love to See the Temple" What does it say the temple is? a house of God

Look through the Ensign and at pictures of temples and the rooms inside.

Ensign, pg. 73, "The temple is the house of the Lord. It is a place where we learn about Heavenly Father, make covenants (or promises) with Him, and receive great blessings. In the temple, we do important work for ourselves and for family members who have died."

week 2: What happens in the temple? Baptisms, the Endowment, Sealings

Sing, "Families Can Be Together Forever"

week 3: When can I go to the temple? How can I prepare myself?

Sing, "I Love to See the Temple," focus on 2nd verse

week 4: Go to the temple grounds. Walk around and take a picture in front of the temple.

The Life of Christ

I chose to focus this lesson on the life of Jesus Christ. The Gospel Principles lesson covers much more, too much for one FHE. The next lesson is on the Atonement, and we will have a lesson on the birth of Christ in December.

Song: “Jesus Once Was a Little Child,” Children’s Songbook #55

Scripture: Mosiah 3:5-8 (below)

King Benjamin, a Nephite prophet, told his people of someone important who would come to the earth.

Ask your children to listen as you read this passage:

“For behold, the time cometh, and is not far distant, that with power, the Lord Omnipotent who reigneth, who was, and is from all eternity to all eternity, shall come down from heaven among the children of men, and shall dwell in a tabernacle of clay, and shall go forth amongst men, working mighty miracles, such as healing the sick, raising the dead, causing the lame to walk, the blind to receive their sight, and the deaf to hear, and curing all manner of diseases.

“And he shall cast out devils, or the evils spirits which dwell in the hearts of the children of men.

“And lo, he shall suffer temptations, and pain of body, hunger, thirst, and fatigue, even more than man can suffer, except it be unto death; for behold, blood cometh from every pore, so great shall be his anguish for the wickedness and the abominations of his people.”

Who do you think King Benjamin is talking about?

“And he shall be called Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Father of heaven and earth, the Creator of all things from the beginning; and his mother shall be called Mary.”

In that scripture, we are taught Jesus went about doing good things while he was on the earth.

This lesson is from the 2010 Outline for Sharing Time, July.

Show the children a pair of leather sandals (or a picture in which Jesus is wearing sandals). Explain that Jesus, wearing shoes like these, went about doing good.

Say the following scripture together: “He went about doing good, for God was with him” (see Acts 10:38).

Display pictures depicting the following events around the room:

(or choose some of your own favorite pictures/stories) Gospel Art Kit

Jesus blessing the children (see 3 Nephi 17:21–24)

Jesus

healing the blind man (see John 9:1–17)

Jesus raising Jairus’s daughter from the dead (see Matthew 9:18–19, 23–25)

Jesus feeding the 5,000 (see John 6:5–14)

Pretend to put on sandals, and take turns walking to a picture. Ask your children to describe what Jesus is doing in the picture. Then read or tell the story of the picture. Before going on to the next picture repeat the phrase: “He went about doing good, for God was with him.”

Quick FHE idea

We just recently found that there is a Friend website. We like to get on and play games, listen to scripture stories, and color. Visit the site as a family for a quick and easy FHE!

Scriptures

Opening Song: Scripture Power

Scripture: 2 Nephi 29:11 “I command all men, both in the east and in the west, and in the north, and in the south, and in the islands of the sea, that they shall write the words which I speak unto them; for out of the books which shall be written I will judge the world, every man according to their works, according to that which is written.”

Attention activity (from Primary manual 3, lesson #17)

Place various types of books out and tell a little about each (cookbook, story book, scriptures, etc.). Then ask the following questions or other questions pertaining to the books that you have displayed.

• Which of these books explains how to make a cake?
• Which of these books has pretend stories?
• Which of these books has teachings of the prophets that will help us keep the
commandments?

Explain that Heavenly Father wants us to obey the commandments. He told the prophets to write his words so that we could know his teachings and commandments.

• What do we call the sacred books in which the prophets have written? (The scriptures.)

Explain that many prophets recorded the gospel and how people lived it so we would know what the commandments are. These commandments are recorded in our four books of scripture. We sometimes call them the standard works.

Explain each book of Scripture:

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints accepts four books as scripture: the Bible, the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants, and the Pearl of Great Price.

The Bible covers the time of Adam through the time when the Apostles of Jesus Christ lived.

The Book of Mormon is a record of some of the people who lived on the American continents. Joseph Smith translated the Book of Mormon into English through the gift and power of God. He said that it is, “the most correct of any book on earth, and the keystone of our religion, and a man would get nearer to God by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book.”

The Doctrine and Covenants is a collection of modern revelations, since the church was restored.

The Pearl of Great Price contains the book of Moses, the book of Abraham, and some inspired writings of Joseph Smith.

Words of our living prophets are also scripture for us. Their words come to us through general conference, church magazines, like the Friend, and instructions to local priesthood leaders.

We should study the scriptures every day. The scriptures teach us what we must to do return to live with Heavenly Father.


Additional Activity (probably for older children)

Nephi Obtained the Scriptures

Explain that the Book of Mormon contains a story that shows how important the scriptures were to Nephi and his family.

Tell the children that Lehi told his sons—Laman, Lemuel, Sam, and Nephi—that the Lord wanted them to go back to Jerusalem and get some brass plates from a man named Laban. The brass plates were a book of scripture made from metal (brass) pages. Laman and Lemuel did not want to go back to Jerusalem and were very angry, but Nephi and Sam were willing to go.

Laman was the first to go to Laban’s house. He asked Laban for the brass plates. Laban would not give Laman the plates and threatened to kill him. Laman was afraid and ran back to his brothers. He wanted to go back to their father in the wilderness.

Nephi said they must obey the commandment to get the brass plates. Nephi and his brothers went back to their former home in Jerusalem and got their gold and silver. They planned to trade their riches for the brass plates.

Laban took their gold and silver but would not give Nephi and his brothers the brass plates. He ordered his men to kill them. Nephi and his brothers ran away and hid.

Laman and Lemuel were angry. They beat Nephi and Sam with a stick. An angel appeared and commanded them to stop. The angel said that the Lord would help them get the brass plates and told them to obey Nephi.

This time Nephi went to get the plates. His brothers waited outside the city wall as he crept up to Laban’s house. Nephi saw Laban lying drunk on the ground. The Holy Ghost told Nephi to kill Laban. Nephi hesitated because he did not want to kill anyone.

Nephi remembered the great importance of the scriptures, and he knew that he could not obtain the brass plates unless he killed Laban. So he did what the Holy Ghost told him to do. He killed Laban and dressed in Laban’s clothes. He then pretended to be Laban.

Nephi told Laban’s servant Zoram to bring the brass plates to him and to follow him. Zoram obeyed, thinking Nephi was Laban. Later, Nephi explained to Zoram that the Lord had commanded him and his brothers to get the brass plates. Zoram believed him. He also wanted to obey. He went with Nephi and his brothers back to Lehi in the wilderness.

Lehi read the brass plates. The plates contained the commandments and some stories about Moses and other prophets. They also contained the genealogy of Lehi’s family. Lehi was commanded to take the brass plates with him to the promised land.

Activity

Play the following game to help the children understand why it was important for Lehi’s family to take the brass plates, which contained a written record of the commandments, with them to the promised land. The object of the game is to show how the words of the scriptures can be confused if they are not written down.

Have the children sit in a circle. Whisper to the child on your right, “I will obey Heavenly Father’s commandments.” Then have that child whisper what he or she heard to the person on his or her right. Continue passing the message on until everyone in the circle has heard it. Have the last child stand up and repeat the words he or she heard. The child probably will not repeat the original message correctly. (If the message is the same, you might compliment the children on how well they did. Then try another message of two or three sentences.) Tell the children the message you began with.

Explain that it is easy to forget or confuse stories or messages that are not written down. The prophets wrote down Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ’s teachings so they would not be forgotten. These teachings are in our scriptures.

Lehi’s family needed the brass plates so they would remember the commandments and obey them.

Easter

There are 2 different ideas here, I have used both of them.

Activity #1

Fill 12 easter eggs with the items listed below (number them, you will open them in order). Each item represents part of the Easter story. Hide the eggs and let your children find them. Then open them in order and read the scripture and talk about each one.

1. (Bread) Matthew 26:26
While they were eating Jesus took a piece of bread,gave a prayer of thanks, broke it, and gave it to His disciples."Take and eat it," He said, "This is My body."
2. (Coins) Matthew 26: 14-15
Then one of the twelve disciples, named Judas Iscariot, went tothe chief priests and asked, "What will you give me if I betrayJesus to you?" They counted out thirty silver coins and gave them to him.
3. (Purple cloth, representing a purple robe) Mark 15:17
They put a purple robe on Jesus. . .
4. (Thorns) Matthew 27:29
Then they made a crown out of thorny branches and placed it onHis head, and put a stick on His right hand; then they kneltbefore Him and made fun of Him. "Long live the King, of the Jews!" they said.
5. (Scourge-a small piece of rope or thick string) Mark 15:15
Pilate wanted to please the crowd, so he set Barabbas free forthem. Then he had Jesus whipped and handed Him over to becrucified.
6. (Cross) John 19: 17-18
He went out, carrying His cross, and came to "The Place of theSkull," as it is called. (In Hebrew it is called "Galgotha.") There they crucified Him.
7. (Nails) John 20:25
Thomas said to them, "Unless I see the scars of the nails in Hishands and put my finger on those scars and my hand in Hisside, I will not believe."
8. (Sign) Luke 23:38
Above Him were written these words: THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS.
9. (Sponge) Matthew 27:48
One of them ran up at once, took a sponge, soaked it in cheapwine, put it on the end of a stick, and tried to make Him drink it.
10. (Spear) John 19:34
One of the soldiers plunged his spear into Jesus' side, and atonce blood and water poured out.
11. (Rock) Matthew 27:59-60
Joseph took the body, wrapped it in a new linen sheet, andplaced it in his own new tomb, which he had just recently dugout of solid rock. Then he rolled a large stone across theentrance to the tomb and went away.
12. (Empty) Matthew 28:6
He is not here He has risen just as He said.

Activity #2 (I can't remember where I found this idea, but I used it for sharing time and it was great!)

Gather pictures of Jesus Christ, the tomb, and a stone to cover the tomb. I just made my stone and tomb out of colored paper. There are some pictures here you could use.

Also, with the picture of Christ, cover it with wax paper and cut out the same shape. This will be Christ's Spirit.

Tell the story below using your cutouts:

"When Jesus was on Earth he taught that he would one day die but that he would overcome death. Many people didn't quite understand what he meant. Those who didn't believe His teachings wanted to kill him and finally they did. Jesus died on the cross. His spirit left to be with Heavenly Father. His friends took his body and laid it in the tomb (separate the spirit and body and place the body in the tomb and place the stone over it). Jesus' disciples and friends were so sad to think that He was gone forever. After three days Mary Magdalene went to the tomb but the stone was rolled away and His body was not there. She was afraid someone had stolen Him. Then she saw him. He was not dead but was alive again, resurrected. His spirit and body were reunited. Jesus then showed Himself to the disciples so they could testify that he lives. Jesus also showed himself to the Nephite people ion the American continent so they could also see that he was alive and loved them too. Because Jesus did this for us, all of us will one day be resurrected too. Someday our bodies and our spirits will be reunited and they will be perfect. We will not get sick or die again. "

You can then use the Christ and spirit cutout to explain more about what resurrection means. I then used this activity to review what we had talked about:

Cut a sheet of paper the same size as picture: The Resurrected Jesus Christ (Gospel Art Picture Kit 239; 62187), into eight pieces. Number the pieces from 1 to 8. Cover the picture by carefully fastening the pieces to the picture with paper clips or small pieces of tape.

Show the picture covered with the eight pieces of paper. Explain that hidden behind the papers is a special picture. Have the children take turns choosing a number from 1 to 8. After the question is answered, have a child remove the appropriate piece of paper, revealing part of the picture.

Use the following questions for the activity (or create some of your own):

1. Who will be resurrected? (Everyone.)
2. What does it mean to be resurrected? (To live again; to have our body and spirit joined again after death.)
3. What did the angel mean when he said, “He is risen”? (Jesus Christ had been resurrected.)
4. What are some of the things Jesus Christ did after he was resurrected? (He walked, talked, ate food, appeared to Mary Magdalene and to his disciples, let the disciples feel his hands and feet.)
5. Who is our Savior? (Jesus Christ.)
6. To whom did Jesus Christ appear after he was resurrected? (To Mary Magdalene and many of his disciples.)
7. Is Jesus Christ living now? (Yes, in heaven with Heavenly Father.)
8. Why was Jesus willing to die and be resurrected for us? (Because he loves us and wants us to be able to live again with him and Heavenly Father.)

When the entire picture is uncovered, explain that this is a painting of the resurrected Jesus Christ. When we see this picture, we can remember that because Jesus was resurrected everyone will be resurrected.

First Presidency & Apostles Matching Game

I always like to talk about the First Presidency and members of the Quorum of the Twelve just before we have General Conference. I think learning about our leaders helps us and our children make a connection with them and find it more interesting to listen to them speak.

So, this week we are having a lesson to prepare for General Conference and then next week we will have an Easter lesson.

My kids love matching games! This one has pictures of the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve. When you get a match, read a little bit about them.

Click here for pictures.

Below is a copy of the info I am using with each picture. I found the info from their biographies on the church's website found here. You could read the entire biography if you wanted (they are short, but still too long for 4 year olds!)

President Thomas S. Monson has served as the 16th President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints since February 3, 2008. His testimony from General Conference October 2008: “I bear my testimony to you that this work is true, that our Savior lives, and that He guides and directs His Church here upon the earth. I leave with you my witness and my testimony that God our Eternal Father lives and loves us. He is indeed our Father, and He is personal and real.

President Henry B. Eyring is currently the First Counselor in the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He has a degree in Physics, as well as a doctorate degree in business from Harvard. He has 4 sons and 2 daughters.

President Dieter F. Uchtdorf was born on November 6, 1940 Czechoslovakia. He was raised in Germany, where his family joined the Church in 1947. He is a trained fighter pilot. He is now the Second Counselor in the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Boyd K. Packer is the President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. He taught seminary and was also a bomber pilot during World War II. He is also an artist and loves to paint birds.

L. Tom Perry was born in 1922 in Logan Utah. He is 6-foot-3 inches tall.

Russell M. Nelson is an internationally renowned heart surgeon and medical researcher. He has earned many awards and honors. He has also written chapters for medical textbooks.

Dallin H. Oaks was called to be an apostle in 1984. He practiced and taught law in Chicago. He also served as a member of the Utah Supreme Court.

M. Russell Ballard sold cars and real estate. He served a mission for the Church to England. He was also a mission president in the Canada Toronto Mission. Much of his ministry has been focused on missionary work.

Richard G. Scott has a degree in mechanical and nuclear engineering. He worked for the Navy making nuclear fuel that made submarines go.

Robert D. Hales was born in New York City. He served in the U.S. Air Force as a jet fighter pilot. He was also a business man who held positions with three major national companies.

Jeffrey R. Holland served as the ninth president of Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah. He is the author of eight books. He was called to be an apostle in 1994.

David A. Bednar was president of BYU-Idaho. Prior to his call to the Quorum of the Twelve, Elder Bednar served as an Area Seventy, Area Authority Seventy, Regional Representative, twice as a stake president, and as a bishop.

Quentin L. Cook served as a missionary in the British Mission. He also served as an area Seventy in the Philippines and also the Pacific Islands.

D. Todd Christofferson was an attorney in Washington DC. He was also the senior vice president of a bank in Tennessee. He served a mission in Argentina.

Neil L. Andersen was called to be an apostle in April 2009. He was raised on a dairy farm in Idaho. He was involved in the production of The Testaments: Of One Fold and One Shepherd. He speaks French, Portuguese and Spanish in addition to his native English.

Prophets of God

Opening Song: "We Thank Thee, O God, For a Prophet," Hymns #19
Scripture: Luke 1:70 “He spake by the mouth of his holy prophets, which have been since the world began.”

Prophets are God’s Representatives on the Earth

As Latter-day Saints, we know the God communicates to the Church through His prophet. A prophet is a man called by God to be his representative on earth. When a prophet speaks for God, it is as if God were speaking. A true prophet is always chosen by God and called through proper priesthood authority.

Through the Ages God Has Called Prophets to Lead Mankind

There have been prophets on the earth since the days of Adam.

Activity (idea from Sugardoodle here)
Gather pictures of Prophets, ancient and modern. (GAK pics here)
Match the word bubble clues to the picture of the prophet.

We Have a Living Prophet on the Earth Today

We have a prophet living on the earth today. This prophet is President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. No person except the chosen prophet can receive God’s will for the entire membership of the Church. The prophet is assisted by his counselors in the First Presidency and the members of the Quorum of the Twelve.

We should do those things the prophets tell us to do. Pres. Wilford Woodruff said, “The Lord will never permit me or any other man who stands as President of this Church to lead you astray. It is not in the programme. It is not in the mind of God. If I were to attempt that, the Lord would remove me out of my place.” (Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Wilford Woodruff [2004], 199).

Activity
Who is our prophet today? Thomas S. Monson
Play the matching game found here to learn more about our prophet.

(I originally found this on Sugardoodle back when Pres. Monson was called, but I can't seem to find it now, the site is having problems. It was a much bigger version of the matching game. You could try looking for it if you want a larger game with more stories.)

We Should Sustain the Lord’s Prophet

How can we sustain the prophet?
We should pray for him. He will be strengthened by our prayers.
We should study his words. We can listen to his conference talks and read other messages that he gives in the Ensign or Friend.
We should follow his inspired teachings completely, not just the parts we like.

Great Blessings Follow Obedience to the Prophet

When we do as our prophet directs, blessings pour down from heaven. We are blessed in this insecure world to have a prophet through whom the Lord reveals His will.