March 16 Sharing Time 2008 Jesus Christ is my Savior.
Jesus Christ showed me how to do the will of
Heavenly Father.
Scripture: “And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world” (1 John 4:14).
Song: “If the Savior Stood Beside Me”
Opening Activity: Hide a small picture of the Savior. Using very specific instructions, the child will go and find the picture according to your directions. Explain that obedience is listening and following the right way, which leads to the Savior.
Sharing Time: Pass out happy face and frowny face popsicle sticks to all the children. (For Jr.Primary) Using a variety of different stories (all having to do with obedience or the lack of) present to the children with as many pictures as possible. As you go through the stories, ask children questions, they can respond using their sticks. (E.G. Do you think the dog was obedient? Is this dress modest? Is paying your tithing showing obedience?) With Sr. primary, try to ask questions that provide opportunities for them to think about their own obedience. (E.G. When do you feel the spirit most strongly? What have you done to show obedience to Heavenly Father? How can you be like the Savior?) Have a child help you with each story, putting up the flannel figures as you talk. Seperate each story, with flannet figures, into large plastic bags for easiest organization.
Closing Activity: Playing the song “He Sent His Son” (CS 34) on a CD, flip through pictures for the children to look at of the Savior showing His obedience.
Possible Songs to Incorporate:
Jesus Christ showed me how to do the will of
Heavenly Father.
Scripture: “And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world” (1 John 4:14).
Song: “If the Savior Stood Beside Me”
Opening Activity: Hide a small picture of the Savior. Using very specific instructions, the child will go and find the picture according to your directions. Explain that obedience is listening and following the right way, which leads to the Savior.
Sharing Time: Pass out happy face and frowny face popsicle sticks to all the children. (For Jr.Primary) Using a variety of different stories (all having to do with obedience or the lack of) present to the children with as many pictures as possible. As you go through the stories, ask children questions, they can respond using their sticks. (E.G. Do you think the dog was obedient? Is this dress modest? Is paying your tithing showing obedience?) With Sr. primary, try to ask questions that provide opportunities for them to think about their own obedience. (E.G. When do you feel the spirit most strongly? What have you done to show obedience to Heavenly Father? How can you be like the Savior?) Have a child help you with each story, putting up the flannel figures as you talk. Seperate each story, with flannet figures, into large plastic bags for easiest organization.
Closing Activity: Playing the song “He Sent His Son” (CS 34) on a CD, flip through pictures for the children to look at of the Savior showing His obedience.
Possible Songs to Incorporate:
Fun To Do p, 253 Using activities that encourage obedience or service to sing about
The Third Article of Faith p. 123
Do As I’m Doing p.276 Using actions that encourage obedience or service to sing about
Baptism p.100
If The Savior Stood Beside Me
Quickly I’ll Obey p. 197 (All 3 verses)
Stories to present to the Children:
1. Marvin J. Ashton, “Friend to Friend: On the Path,” Friend, Aug 1972, 10
Flannel Board Pictures Needed:
1. Marvin J. Ashton 2.Dog 3. Mountain Lion 4. Deer 5. Rabbit 6. Chipmunks 7.Bird and Nest
The Third Article of Faith p. 123
Do As I’m Doing p.276 Using actions that encourage obedience or service to sing about
Baptism p.100
If The Savior Stood Beside Me
Quickly I’ll Obey p. 197 (All 3 verses)
Stories to present to the Children:
1. Marvin J. Ashton, “Friend to Friend: On the Path,” Friend, Aug 1972, 10
Flannel Board Pictures Needed:
1. Marvin J. Ashton 2.Dog 3. Mountain Lion 4. Deer 5. Rabbit 6. Chipmunks 7.Bird and Nest
I once had a friend who was a mountain lion hunter. He loved to saddle up his favorite horse, tie on the saddle bags, and make sure his gun was cleaned and ready for instant firing. One day while I was visiting him, I noticed he had a full-grown hunting dog tied to one of the sheds. “Isn’t he a beauty!” I commented. “He’s got to go,” my friend replied. “I can’t be bothered with him.” “Why? What’s the problem?” I asked in surprise. My lion-tracking friend explained that ever since the dog was a pup it had been trained to track lions. “He knows what I expect,” the man continued, “but the last time we were on a three-day hunt he took off after a deer and then a coyote and finally some rabbits, and was gone the best part of a full day. He knows he must stay on the trail of the lion to be one of my helpers. Our business is mountain lions, and this dog is bad for business. Now he’s for sale pretty cheap.” I felt sorry for that beautiful, healthy, yet disobedient dog. He couldn’t stay on the path that would keep a place with his master for him.
When I look back over my life to when I was just a small boy, I remember how hard it sometimes was for me to do as my parents asked. Baseball and basketball were more fun than practicing the saxophone, and there were times when I didn’t see the value of going to every Church meeting. I am grateful my parents helped me stay on the path of the Master until I was mature enough to choose the right for myself. Our Heavenly Father has explained to us how important it is to be obedient. “And my people must needs be chastened until they learn obedience, if it must needs be, by the thing which they suffer” (D&C 105:6). Our mothers, fathers, teachers, and our friends often scold us. Or we may have to do something we really don’t like to do (suffer) in order that we might become the mature and obedient citizens the Lord wants us to be.
All around us nature shows the value of doing what is right. If chipmunks do not store food in the summer, they will starve in the winter. If birds do not build proper nests before eggs are laid, the baby birds will die. As children of a loving Heavenly Father, we know that if we keep His commandments, we will receive the rewards He has for us. If we obey our parents, we will be blessed with the power to make right decisions, and someday we too might become good and loving parents and teach our children the right. I am grateful that loved ones, good teachers, and friends did not allow me to stray from the path of truth and right, the path of obedience.
When I look back over my life to when I was just a small boy, I remember how hard it sometimes was for me to do as my parents asked. Baseball and basketball were more fun than practicing the saxophone, and there were times when I didn’t see the value of going to every Church meeting. I am grateful my parents helped me stay on the path of the Master until I was mature enough to choose the right for myself. Our Heavenly Father has explained to us how important it is to be obedient. “And my people must needs be chastened until they learn obedience, if it must needs be, by the thing which they suffer” (D&C 105:6). Our mothers, fathers, teachers, and our friends often scold us. Or we may have to do something we really don’t like to do (suffer) in order that we might become the mature and obedient citizens the Lord wants us to be.
All around us nature shows the value of doing what is right. If chipmunks do not store food in the summer, they will starve in the winter. If birds do not build proper nests before eggs are laid, the baby birds will die. As children of a loving Heavenly Father, we know that if we keep His commandments, we will receive the rewards He has for us. If we obey our parents, we will be blessed with the power to make right decisions, and someday we too might become good and loving parents and teach our children the right. I am grateful that loved ones, good teachers, and friends did not allow me to stray from the path of truth and right, the path of obedience.
2. Display Picture of Jesus Being Baptized
Jesus came to John the Baptist to be baptized in the Jordan River. John knew that Jesus was without sin, and so he thought Jesus did not need baptism. When Jesus explained that even the Savior must be baptized, John went down into the water and baptized Him. When Jesus came out of the water, John saw the Holy Ghost come to the Savior and heard Heavenly Father's voice bearing witness of His Beloved Son.
Jesus came to John the Baptist to be baptized in the Jordan River. John knew that Jesus was without sin, and so he thought Jesus did not need baptism. When Jesus explained that even the Savior must be baptized, John went down into the water and baptized Him. When Jesus came out of the water, John saw the Holy Ghost come to the Savior and heard Heavenly Father's voice bearing witness of His Beloved Son.
Nephi 31:7 “Know ye not that he was holy? But notwithstanding he being holy, he showeth unto the children of men that, according to the flesh he humbleth himself before the Father, and witnesseth unto the Father that he would be obedient unto him in keeping his commandments.”
3. Rex D. Pinegar, “Peace in Obedience,” Friend, Apr 1994, inside front cover
(Adapted from an October 1991 conference address. See Ensign, November 1991, page 41.)
3. Rex D. Pinegar, “Peace in Obedience,” Friend, Apr 1994, inside front cover
(Adapted from an October 1991 conference address. See Ensign, November 1991, page 41.)
Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy (Ex. 20:8).
Flannel Board Pictures Needed: 1.Sea World Picture 2. Beach 3.Church Meeting House
Flannel Board Pictures Needed: 1.Sea World Picture 2. Beach 3.Church Meeting House
4.Movie w/large R 5.Hymn Book 6.Immodest Dress2
One day I received a phone call from my grandson Joel. He had been invited to go with a group of schoolmates to Sea Camp in San Diego, California. There would be behind-the-scene experiences at Sea World—watching the trainers and helping to feed the sea animals. His dilemma was that the camp would be on a weekend, with scuba diving and beach exploring on Sunday. His parents had not wanted him to go but had allowed him to make his own choice. He had assured them that although he couldn’t attend church on Sunday, he would not swim. He said, “I can sit on the beach and be surrounded by God’s creations. Heavenly Father couldn’t feel bad about that, could He?” Joel wanted to know what I thought he should do. I answered with a question: “Joel, what do you think Jesus would want you to do?” His voice was a little choked up as he answered, “Grandpa, I don’t think He would be very happy with me if I do that on Sunday.” He decided not to go. It hadn’t been an easy decision to make, but it was the right one. We all have many difficult choices to make. There are many exciting things that, if we choose to do them, will lead us away from Christ. The movies and videos we choose to watch, the fun times we seek, the music we listen to, the clothes we wear, and the things we say are all influenced by the strength of our desire to follow Christ. In making our decisions, we may feel it is too hard to be left out or to miss out on what the world thinks is OK. When we do follow Christ, however, we will feel the peace and assurance that comes from making right choices. He will provide the courage necessary for those times when we have to stand alone.
4. Athos M. Amorim, “Obedience and Service,” Friend, Jun 1999, inside front cover
(Adapted from an October 1998 general conference address. See Ensign, November 1998, page 30.)
(Adapted from an October 1998 general conference address. See Ensign, November 1998, page 30.)
Flannel Board: 1.Soldier 2.Brazil Flag 3.Tithing Slip 4.Scriptures 5.Flower 6.Jesus in garden of GethsemaneAnd
If ye love me, keep my commandments (John 14:15).
In an outside wall of the Brazilian Army Academy, cadets can read the words “You will command. So learn to obey!” Early in life I learned that obedience is essential to our progress. I am not talking about blind obedience but the obedience that allows us to reach a higher and more spiritual level in life, using our agency to do the will of the Lord. The prophet Joseph Smith taught that “when we obtain any blessing from God, it is by obedience to that law upon which it is predicated” (D&C 130:21). Something else I learned in the army is that soldiers in my country do not use the verb to work when they talk about their assignments. Rather, they use the verb to serve, helping them always remember their commitment to our people and our country. In Church service, this definition is enlarged to include service to Heavenly Father’s children wherever they may live.
Many times the most beautiful examples of obedience and service are given by ordinary people who live close to us. Sister Ana Rita de Jesus, an elderly widow, lived in Anápolis, Brazil. She could not read or write. The missionaries would go to her home every week to read the scriptures to her. She was loving and kind. Every Sunday she asked the missionaries to help her fill out a tithing slip. Sometimes her tithing and offerings were not more than a few cents, but she knew the law and wanted to obey it. After paying her tithing, she would walk into the room where the sacrament meeting was held in a rented house and would place a flower on the pulpit. In doing so, she served her brothers and sisters, bringing beauty to the place where we worshiped the Lord. That sister, in a very simple way, taught us obedience and service. She knew that obeying the commandments is the best preparation to serve. The greatest example of obedience and service was given by the Lord Jesus Christ when He said, “Nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done” (Luke 22:42).
In an outside wall of the Brazilian Army Academy, cadets can read the words “You will command. So learn to obey!” Early in life I learned that obedience is essential to our progress. I am not talking about blind obedience but the obedience that allows us to reach a higher and more spiritual level in life, using our agency to do the will of the Lord. The prophet Joseph Smith taught that “when we obtain any blessing from God, it is by obedience to that law upon which it is predicated” (D&C 130:21). Something else I learned in the army is that soldiers in my country do not use the verb to work when they talk about their assignments. Rather, they use the verb to serve, helping them always remember their commitment to our people and our country. In Church service, this definition is enlarged to include service to Heavenly Father’s children wherever they may live.
Many times the most beautiful examples of obedience and service are given by ordinary people who live close to us. Sister Ana Rita de Jesus, an elderly widow, lived in Anápolis, Brazil. She could not read or write. The missionaries would go to her home every week to read the scriptures to her. She was loving and kind. Every Sunday she asked the missionaries to help her fill out a tithing slip. Sometimes her tithing and offerings were not more than a few cents, but she knew the law and wanted to obey it. After paying her tithing, she would walk into the room where the sacrament meeting was held in a rented house and would place a flower on the pulpit. In doing so, she served her brothers and sisters, bringing beauty to the place where we worshiped the Lord. That sister, in a very simple way, taught us obedience and service. She knew that obeying the commandments is the best preparation to serve. The greatest example of obedience and service was given by the Lord Jesus Christ when He said, “Nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done” (Luke 22:42).
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