The Holy Ghost will prompt me to repent and live righteously after I am baptized and confirmed. August Sharing Time Helps and Ideas for Week 2

The following are some reader’s theatres I wrote for Senior sharing time based HEAVILY off the following articles from the Ensign:

1.Born Again by Elder D. Todd Christofferson (May Ensign 2008)

2.Elder Quentin L. Cook A Willing Heart and Mind by Elder Jeffrey R. Holland (April Ensign 2008)

3.President Thomas S. Monson In the Footsteps of the Master by Elder Jeffrey R. Holland (A supplement to the Ensign June 2008)

All quotes are from the apostles and are directly from these articles or from scriptures.

*Reminder NO ONE READS ITALISIZED PARTS, they just do what it says.

*You will need a script for everyone one or two people.

*Simple costumes always a plus!

*With a reader’s theatre it’s more reading than acting out, so I always have the children sit in a circle and encourage energetic reading.

*Be aware of children who might not read as well. There are smaller parts incorporated for them.

*Our children really need to know who our current apostles are. They teach us this week's principle beautifully. Let's get to know them!

*The children could be divided in groups and then asked to read to the primary, or you could just read them through all together. Pray for guidance.

Reader’s Theatre #1

By Sofia Lykes

Parts Needed:

Narrator #1

Mystery Apostle #1

Elder Boyd K. Packer

President Joseph Fielding Smith

Alma

Nephi

Narrator 1: I have been baptized and was confirmed a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. I look to the Savior and His servants the prophet to teach me. Which apostle is this?

Mystery Apostle #1: “My patriarchal blessing, received at age 13 from a beloved grandfather, includes this statement: “(Your Heavenly Father) sent you forth in this last and glorious dispensation that you might be born under the new and everlasting covenant by goodly, righteous parents.”

Narrator 1: Wait a second, I’m confused. What is the new and everlasting covenant?

Elder Boyd K. Packer: Hello. I’m Elder Boyd K. Packer and I think I can answer your question. But first, let’s see if anyone here can answer what is the new and everlasting covenant?(Let the primary children have a shot at this question)In the book I wrote, The Holy Temple, I quote President Joseph Fielding Smith, “The new and everlasting covenant is the sun total of all covenants and obligations… baptism is A new and everlasting covenant.”

President Joseph Fielding Smith: Well said. Well said.

Narrator: Thanks! I know now that baptism and all the covenants we make were very important to our mystery apostle.

Mystery Apostle #1: “Alma pled, “O Jesus, thou Son of God, have mercy on me, who am in the gall of bitterness, and am encircled about by the everlasting chains of death” Alma 36:18. Forgiveness came to him and he stood and publicly confessed: “I have repented of my sins, and have been redeemed of the Lord; behold I am born of the Spirit.”

Alma: Well said. Well said. My friend Nephi also has some wise words on the subject.

Nephi: Alma, you are too kind! All the words we speak are wise because they are given to us from Heavenly Father. I’d just like to add, “For the gate by which ye should enter is repentance and baptism by water; and then cometh a remission of your sins by fire and by the Holy Ghost.”

Narrator 1: By fire?

All: By fire AND by the Holy Ghost!

Mystery Apostle #1: “Let us not be content to retain some disposition to do evil. Let us worthily partake of the sacrament each week and continue to draw upon the Holy Spirit to root out… impurity within us.”

Narrator #1: That is so deep. The Holy Ghost will prompt me to repent and live righteously after I am baptized and confirmed. Thanks… but one more question. Who is our mystery apostle?

Mystery Apostle #1: (Holds up Picture) I’m one of the newest apostles, Elder D. Todd Christofferson!

Ask the children to think of 2 things they learned from this script. Call on a few to share their thoughts. If there is dead silence:How does the Holy Spirit root out impurities?Why are you grateful for the Holy Ghost?What was your baptism like?How has your baptism and the gift of the Holy Ghost influenced your life?

Reader’s Theatre #2

By Sofia Lykes

Parts Needed:

Narrator #2

Joe

Mystery Apostle #2

Concerned Girl

Narrator #2: The Holy Ghost will prompt me to repent and live righteously after I am baptized and confirmed.

Joe: I sure do love my little brother! He has a big heart and is always thinking of others. Once when we were in elementary school in Logan UT we had a fire drill. I was the fire drill captain and I was in 6th grade.

Mystery Apostle #2: “I was in first grade.”

Joe: Everyone was out and I thought we were going to set a record and “Go down in history. Then just as fame seemed within…” my grasp someone said….

Concerned Girl: Oh no! This is terrible! Someone is still in the building! Hey, is that Joe’s little brother?? Boy, Joe, you sure do look mad.

Joe: Mad? Mad? “What on earth were you doing!!!”

Mystery Apostle #2: I “held up a pair of large worn boots and said, Joe you know that (I mentioned a friends name) sometimes has to wear hand me down shoes that are too big for him. When the fire drill rang, he took off running and ran right out of these. He didn’t want to ruin the drill, so he left them and ran outside barefoot. I went back to get his boots for him because I didn’t want his feet to be cold in the snow.”

Narrator #2: Our mystery apostle learned at a very young age how to be kind. When we listen to the Holy Ghost he encourages us to do things that are kind and charitable. The Holy Ghost helps us to make good choices.

Concerned Girl: In D&C 18:18 it says, “Ask the Father in my name, in faith believing that you shall receive, and you shall have the Holy Ghost, which manifesteth all things which are expedient unto the children of men.”

Joe: Later on in life, I had a difficult choice to make on whether to serve a mission or go to medical school.

Mystery Apostle #2: “I was 15 years old.”

Joe: I talked with my brother well into the night. My obligation was clear and I left for a mission soon after.

Concerned Girl: That conversation profoundly affected our young Mystery Apostle. He had always had a testimony of the Savior… but he had yet to receive a spiritual witness that confirmed their certain reality. After he and Joe parted that night, our mystery apostle knelt in prayer, a witness he desired with all his heart. And it came in a way so powerful that any doubts he had were swept away forever.

Mystery Apostle #2: I am Elder Quentin L. Cook.

Narrator #2: From these times in Elder Quentin L. Cook’s life, we can see the Holy Ghost can have a lot of good influence in our lives if we allow him in!

Ask the children to think of 2 things they learned from this script. Call on a few to share their thoughts. If there is dead silence:Can the Holy Ghost be with us even though we are not apostles?What would you have done if your little brother or sister ruined something important to you to show kindness to another person?Have you ever had a witness that came in a way so powerful that you don’t have any doubts? Would you like to share what that felt like?

Reader’s Theatre #3

By Sofia Lykes

Parts Needed:

Narrator #3
Narrator #4

Melissa Georgell

Tommy

YM Advisor

Narrator #3: Prepare yourselves. This is an awesome reader’s theatre. You will be amazed by the talented readers! By the good looks of our charming actors! And I even give an amazing fact about hawks!

Narrator #4: But more importantly, you will learn about the Holy Ghost. How it can help us repent and live righteously after we are baptized and confirmed.

Narrator #3: Right! Now on to the action.

Melissa Georgell: (crying into hands)" Oh Tommy! I am so sad because the boys in particular do not behave during primary."

Tommy: “I had a lot of energy and found it difficult to sit patiently in a class.” Narrator #4: But still, the young Tommy asked…

Tommy: “May I help, Sister Georgell?”

Melissa Georgell: “Would you??”

Narrator #3: she said with a smile on her face. "Young Tommy agreed and the Primary’s disciplinary problems ceased that moment.”

Narrator #4: He repented, stopped that behavior and was guided by the Holy Ghost to do great things the rest of his life. He helped many inactive young men come back to church because of a leader who knew of his love of birds.

YM Advisor: “How would you like me to give you a pair of purebred Birmingham Roller pigeons?”

Narrator #3: "The female of the pair was special and had one eye, the other damaged by a cat. Tommy kept the pigeons for 10 days and then let them free to see who would come back. The male pigeon came back but not the female, she went back to the advisor’s home. When Tom went to get the pigeon back the advisor told him…."

YM Advisor: "There’s a boy in our teacher’s quorum who isn’t active."

Tommy: “I’ll have him at quorum meeting this week.”

Narrator #4: The next time Tommy released his pigeons, the same thing happened. The male pigeon came home, but the female flew to the advisor’s home. This happened many times and each time Tommy went to get his bird the advisor would talk to him about a boy that was inactive.

Tommy: “I was a grown man before I fully realized that indeed, Harold, my advisor had given me a special pigeon, the only bird in his loft he knew would return every time she was releaed. It was his inspired way of having an ideal personal priesthood interview with the teachers quorum president every two weeks. Because of those interviews and that old one-eyed pigeon, every boy in that teacher’s quorum became active.”

Narrator #3: Wow! I never knew that about President Thomas S. Monson! That is way too cool! I personally prefer Hawks and Eagles to pigeons. Don't get me started. Did you know that the Hawk is the fastest creature on earth and has been clocked at speeds of 200 MPH during a dive?
Narrator #4: Ok. Focus Narrator #3. More importantly we learn about how the Holy Ghost helped the Young Men’s advisor in an inspired way. The Holy Ghost also helped President Monson to make good choices and help his inactive friends. I am so grateful for baptism and the gift of the Holy Ghost!

All: We are too! The Holy Ghost will prompt me to repent and live righteously after I am baptized and confirmed.

Ask the children to think of 2 things they learned from this script. Call on a few to share their thoughts. If there is dead silence:How do you know President Monson is a true prophet?Can we read 1 Nephi 13:37, 2 Nephi 33:1, Article of Faith 1, Moses 5:58, Amos 3:7

Junior Sharing Time
You will need write the stories into your own words and have the kids act it out. Have them be animals, trees, the apostles... Have plenty of props! You can even have them say certain things, just be sure to PROMPT them.