Family Home Evening – Page 3

On Fasting (FHE plans and quotes from President Eyring)

April 27, 2015April 27, 2015 Nurture Mama Leave a comment

After attending a recent stake training meeting, my husband expressed a desire to me that we teach our children about fasting. This is a direction that came down the lines of church leadership to our stake leaders. It didn’t escape our notice that the first talk at General Conference was given by President Eyring on the topic of the fast. With Fast Sunday approaching this week, this is a perfect time to share this lesson with our children. As I am putting it together, I know this will be a topic of discussion for more than just one night.

What is a fast?

Use the points from this Friend magazine article. Cut up the points and hide them around the room, have the children find them and discuss them in order.

Fast Sunday is on the first Sunday of each month. It is a special day to humble ourselves before the Lord by fasting, praying, and attending fast and testimony meeting.
On fast Sunday, members of the Church do not eat or drink for two meals. Children may be encouraged to fast when they are old enough.
Members donate the money they would have spent on food for the two meals to help the needy. This money is called a fast offering.
Members can give fast offerings to one of the bishopric or branch presidency members. The bishop or branch president uses the money to help those in need in his ward or branch.
Fast offerings may be used to help feed the hungry.
Fast offerings might be used to care for the sick.
In each way a fast offering is used, it helps take care of Heavenly Father’s children.

Discussion

Discuss the following teachings from President Henry B. Eyring, “Is Not This the Fast I Have Chosen?”. April 2015 General Conference.

“When we offer succor to anyone, the Savior feels it as if we reached out to succor Him.”

“Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.” (Matthew 25:40).

“So the Lord has given us a simple commandment with a marvelous promise. In the Church today we are offered the opportunity to fast once a month and give a generous fast offering through our bishop or branch president for the benefit of the poor and the needy. Some of what you give will be used to help those around you, perhaps someone in your own family. The Lord’s servants will pray and fast for the revelation to know whom to help and what help to give. That which is not needed to help people in your local Church unit will become available to bless other Church members across the world who are in need.”

“Rich promises are made by the Lord to those who fast and assist the needy. … Inspiration and spiritual guidance will come with righteousness and closeness to our Heavenly Father. To omit to do this righteous act of fasting would deprive us of these blessings” (President Spencer W. Kimball).

Stories of helping others through fast offerings:

-Tropical Cyclone Pam hitting Vanuatu

“Other storms and tragedies will come across the world to people the Lord loves and whose sorrows He feels. Part of your fast offering and mine this month will be used to help someone, somewhere, whose relief the Lord will feel as if it were His own.”

Application

An earthquake in Nepal on Saturday, April 25th, has killed thousands and left many more injured and in great need. How can we help?

Other scriptures about Fasting

“Turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting” (Joel 2:12).

“They did fast much and pray much” (Alma 45:1).

“Verily, this is fasting and prayer, or in other words, rejoicing and prayer” (D&C 59:14).

Further Study

“Fasting, coupled with mighty prayer, is powerful.” (Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin, “The Law of the Fast,” Ensign, May 2001, 73.)

Preparing our Family for General Conference (including FHE plans)

March 30, 2015April 3, 2015 Nurture Mama Leave a comment

General Conference is a twice-annual event that is very important to me. The opportunity to hear living prophets and apostles speak the word of the Lord is a special blessing, and I am grateful for it. I want my children to recognize what a blessing General Conference is, so we do a number of things to prepare our family for it.

Recognizing the Apostles

We have had a lot of success teaching our children the names of the First Presidency and Apostles by singing their last names to the tune of “10 Little Indians”. Monson, Eyring, Uchtdorf, Packer, Perry…etc. All of my children (age 10, 7, and 5 know the song well now). The next step is to match the right name with the right person. This month I ordered the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve Apostles picture set available from store.lds.org. We can use the 8×10 photos in many ways for many years!

FHE before Conference

Our FHE the week before conference is always focused on conference preparation. Here is our plan for tonight:

1) Using our new picture packet, review the names and faces of the prophet and apostles. Can we put them in the correct order?

2) Review the importance of General Conference by discussing the following quotes from Elder Hales.

“To the young members of the Church, I promise that if you will listen, you will feel the Spirit well up within you. The Lord will tell you what He wants you to do with your life.”

“Wherever we are in this world…I testify that we are gathered at His conference.”

“In conferences we can receive the word of the Lord meant just for us…This is possible because the Holy Ghost carries the word of the Lord unto our hearts in terms we can understand.”

We will hang these printable posters from the Red Headed Hostess on our wall and keep them up all week.

3)Plan for General Conference weekend: There are tons of resources available online to help keep children occupied during General Conference (sometimes it is a little overwhelming). We have done many activity packets and coloring in the past, but this year I want to find out what they are most interested in doing, so we aren’t scrambling at the last minute. We will pick our favorites from the ideas below.

Remove the poster from the most recent conference Ensign. Hang it on the wall, and then the children get to put a sticker on the picture of whoever is speaking.

My children have always enjoyed coloring the General Authority ties. I can’t find the link on Sugardoodle anymore, but I did find a version here or here.

I picked up a post-it-note pad for each person in our family. I will hang the pictures on the wall, and we can use the post-it-notes to jot down key topics and quotes and hang them on the wall. For my beginning readers and spellers, I printed and laminated these headband cards to use as reference cards.

One of our family goals this year has been to memorize scriptures (almost weekly). We can also use the post-it-notes to quickly record scriptures that are mentioned. We will also listen close to see if our scripture of the year is quoted.

As usual there are a number of packets and great ideas available on Sugardoodle.

We Talk of Christ, We Rejoice in Christ has a fabulous list of ideas and resources. We have had success with the concept of reverence stations in the past.

This time around I would like to try Smash Booklets. The children will have the freedom to write and draw and decorate their pages as they please.

And since it is Easter weekend, it would be fun to combine Easter eggs and apostles.

This Conference I Spy worksheet would be fun, along with homemade spy glasses made from toilet paper rolls.

On the menu

General Conference at our house means crepes for breakfast on Saturday, and cinnamon rolls on Sunday! Yummy!

What General Conference plans and traditions do you have?

Stay in the Boat and Hold On (FHE plans and quotes from Elder Ballard)

March 16, 2015March 16, 2015 Nurture Mama Leave a comment

Tonight for FHE we are focusing on Elder M. Russell Ballard’s talk from the October 2014 General Conference. The imagery of a boat passing through hazardous river rapids is a great metaphor for life for children and youth (and adults!) to understand.

Lesson Plan

Watch the video introduction of Elder Ballard’s talk, up to the 2:30 time point (available here).

Give each child a copy of the following printable from Life’s Journey to Perfection.

Read the quote from Elder Ballard:

“The Lord in His goodness has provided help, including a boat, essential supplies such as life jackets, and experienced river guides who give guidance and safety instructions to help us make our way down the river of life to our final destination.”

Use the lesson plan as follows from Life’s Journey to Perfection:

Discuss with your family member what the BOAT symbolizes? (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) Discuss with your family how each family member can STAY IN THE BOAT? What are some things that can be done each day? Invite family members to write on the boat, “The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints” as well as examples of things they can do each day to help them stay in the boat.

Discuss with your family member what the LIFE JACKET symbolizes? (The Scriptures/Word of God) Discuss with your family how daily scripture study can be like a Life Jacket and help us to hold on tight. Invite family members to write “the scriptures” next to the life jacket.

Discuss with your family members what the RIVER GUIDES symbolize? (The Apostles, Prophets, and Local Church Leaders) Discuss how the Prophets, Apostles and local church leaders can direct us and guide us through our journey. Invite family members to write next to the river guide, “Church Leaders”.

Additional Reading

“We need to experience a continuing conversion by increasing our faith in Jesus Christ and our faithfulness to His gospel throughout our lives—not just once but regularly” (Ballard).

“We should focus on studying, living, and loving the doctrine of Christ” (Ballard).

“And they said unto me: What meaneth the rod of iron which our father saw, that led to the tree? And I said unto them that it was the word of God; and whoso would hearken unto the word of God, and would hold fast unto it, they would never perish; neither could the temptations and the fiery darts of the adversary overpower them unto blindness, to lead them away to destruction. Wherefore, I, Nephi, did exhort them to give heed unto the word of the Lord; yea, I did exhort them with all the energies of my soul, and with all the faculty which I possessed, that they would give heed to the word of God and remember to keep his commandments always in all things” (2 Nephi 15:23-25).

“Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life” (2 Nephi 31:20).

We talk of Christ (FHE plans and quotes from President Packer and Elder Christofferson)

March 9, 2015March 9, 2015 Nurture Mama Leave a comment

Our family theme this year centers on Jesus Christ as our foundation. Teaching about Jesus Christ is the essential family curriculum! I want to introduce my children to one of my favorite scriptures, so tonight’s lesson is built around this verse:

“And we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins” (2 Nephi 25:26).

Lesson Plan

Read 2 Nephi 25:26. Remind the children that everything we do in the gospel is designed to bring us closer to Jesus Christ. Prophets in all time periods have always testified of Christ (we talked about this in Primary yesterday). It is important for us to learn about Jesus, about his life, his miracles, and his teachings. That is why read scripture stories as a family.

Ask the children: what are some of your favorite stories about Jesus Christ?

At the last session of General Conference, President Packer and Elder Christofferson both spoke about Jesus Christ and his atonement. I plan to have my children color a picture of Jesus Christ while we discuss as much of the talks as we can! Below are the points that especially stood out to me:

President Packer

“Those who will repent and forsake sin will find that His merciful arm is outstretched still. Those who listen to and heed His words and the words of His chosen servants will find peace and understanding even in the midst of great heartache and sorrow. The result of His sacrifice is to free us from the effects of sin, that all may have guilt erased and feel hope.

Had He not accomplished the Atonement, there would be no redemption. It would be a difficult world to live in if we could never be forgiven for our mistakes, if we could never purify ourselves and move on.

The mercy and grace of Jesus Christ are not limited to those who commit sins either of commission or omission, but they encompass the promise of everlasting peace to all who will accept and follow Him and His teachings. His mercy is the mighty healer, even to the wounded innocent.”

“If we seek to understand His Atonement, we will come to a deep reverence for the Lord Jesus Christ, His earthly ministry, and His divine mission as our Savior.”

“The true success of the gospel of Jesus Christ will be measured by the spiritual strength of its individual members. We need the strength of conviction that is found in the heart of every loyal disciple of Christ.”

“As one of the Twelve Apostles, I bear witness of the Lord Jesus Christ. He lives. He is our Redeemer and our Savior. “Through the Atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved” (Articles of Faith 1:3). He presides over this Church. He is no stranger to His servants. As we move into the future with quiet confidence, His Spirit will be with us. There is no end to His power to bless and direct the lives of those who seek truth and righteousness. I bear witness of Him in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.” (source)

Elder Christofferson

“The gospel of Jesus Christ opens the path to what we may become.”

“Divine aid can be ours every hour of every day, no matter where we are in the path of obedience. But I know that beyond desiring His help, we must exert ourselves, repent, and choose God for Him to be able to act in our lives consistent with justice and moral agency. My plea is simply to take responsibility and go to work so that there is something for God to help us with.” (source)

Further Reading

Neil L. Anderson, “Tell Me the Stories of Jesus”.

Family Tree Gatherings (FHE plans and quotes)

March 2, 2015March 2, 2015 Nurture Mama Leave a comment

In the April 2014 General Conference, Elder Cook put forth the idea of “Family Tree Gatherings”: a recurring effort where families bring family histories, stories, and photos to share. He said,

“Our young people are excited to learn about the lives of family members-where they came from and how they lived.”

“Family history centers are now in our homes.”

I really liked this idea, and I have spent some time pondering how to make this work the best for our family. Then Elder Allan Packer spoke about this same topic in the October 2014 General Conference:

“Temple and family history work is part of living the gospel at home. It should be a family activity far more than a Church activity.”

“Family history is more than genealogy, rules, names, dates, and places. It is more than a focus on the past. Family history also includes the present as we create our own history. It includes the future as we shape future history through our descendants. A young mother, for example, sharing her family stories and pictures with her children is doing family history work.”

I have also been watching some of the sessions online from the recent Rootstech conference held in Salt Lake City. Many of the sessions mentioned the importance of sharing and passing on family stories (I especially enjoyed the Family Discovery Day sessions).

I know that I need to be doing family history work. My family (as well as my husbands family) goes back many generations in the church. Our ancestors were some of the first members and pioneers. Which means that there are a lot of generations in the church now, and a lot of genealogists who have kept and recorded the important dates and places. Searching out new names in our family line to take to the temple would definitely take some digging.

But sharing the stories of ancestors is the part that is intriguing to me. My children (age 10, 7, and nearly 5) love to hear stories. They like to hear about when I was young, but honestly, my stories are running out! So it is time to look deeper and gather stories and photos of our ancestors to share. Like Elder Packer said, sharing family stories is the perfect fit for a young mother!

I am doing this in a few ways.

1) Collecting stories from my parents: I am conducting interviews with my parents, in two different methods. For my dad, it is working well for me to send him an email with a question (for example: Where did you live as a child? Describe your home.) Then he can respond in writing when he has time. My mom is not so computer proficient, but she can recall and tell her stories verbally. So I am planning regular phone calls to her where I can transcribe the stories she shares.

2) Collecting photos and stories from ancestors: This step will take a little more digging, and I will need to enlist the help of extended family. Thankfully I know that the information is out there, I just need to do a little digging and compile it in a way that I can share it with my children.

3) Preserving our own family history: I can’t forget the history that we are currently making! Keeping up our family blog and keeping my children’s schoolwork, photos, memories, etc. organized is important too.

4) Building connections with living family: Sadly, we live far away from any family members. That means that we have to work a little harder to stay connected to cousins and siblings. Technological advances certainly help, and we are working on some good old-fashioned letter writing to cousins.

5) Sharing stories: share stories at bedtime (or anytime!) with my children, and make the stories I collect available to my siblings and their children also.

Whew! This is getting long-winded!

To get my family involved, our FHE tonight will be our first “Family Tree Gathering”. Yesterday I introduced the topic by showing them a clip from Elder Cook’s Family Discovery Day session. I skipped to 11:30 in the video and we learned and sang “The Hearts of the Children” song.

Our scripture of the week is Malachi 4:5-6

“Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord: And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers…”

After discussing the scripture and some of the quotes from above, we are going to spend some time on Family Search introducing the children to our ancestors!

God’s Love for Us (FHE plans and quotes from President Uchtdorf)

February 23, 2015February 23, 2015 Nurture Mama Leave a comment

During the month of February, our Family Home Evening lessons have been centered on the topic of Love. Tonight we will conclude with a lesson on God’s Love for Us. As I have studied the talks from the recent General Conference, I felt that two of President Uchtdorf’s talks fit perfectly with this theme.

Lesson Plan

Remind the children of the lessons and focus on love that we have had this month: Loving Others and Loving God.

Tonight I want to testify of the love that Heavenly Father has for each of us. President Uchtdorf recently said:

“You are loved. You are dear to your heavenly parents. The infinite and eternal Creator of light and life knows you! He is mindful of you. Yes, God loves you this very day and always…He knows everything about you. He sees you clearly—He knows you as you really are. And He loves you—today and always!…He loves you not only for who you are this very day but also for the person of glory and light you have the potential and the desire to become” (source).

Show poster from 2015 February Friend Magazine.

“Heavenly Father is constantly raining blessings upon us.”

Can you think of some of the blessing that He has rained upon us? Play the Raining Blessings game: One person sits in the middle of the room, with an umbrella open over their head. Other family members drop bouncy balls onto their head (which is covered by an umbrella), naming a blessing for every ball that is dropped.

The greatest gift that Heavenly Father has given us is the gift of his Son. (Recite and work on memorizing this scripture this week).

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16)

The ability to gain a testimony of Jesus Christ is another way that Heavenly Father loves us.

“The process of gathering spiritual light is the quest of a lifetime.” (Uchtdorf, source).

Additional Quotes

“God cares about you. He will listen, and He will answer your personal questions. The answers to your prayers will come in His own way and in His own time, and therefore, you need to learn to listen to His voice. God wants you to find your way back to Him, and the Savior is the way.God wants you to learn of His Son, Jesus Christ, and experience the profound peace and joy that come from following the path of divine discipleship.”

“I suggest that this personal testimony of the gospel and the Church is the most important thing you can earn in this life. It will not only bless and guide you during this life, but it will also have a direct bearing on your life throughout eternity.”

The Experiment

1) Search the word of God

2) Consider, ponder, strive to believe, and be grateful

3) Ask Heavenly Father with faith

4) Live the principles of the gospel

President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, “Receiving a Testimony of Light and Truth”. October 2014 General Conference.

Loving God (FHE plans and quotes)

February 9, 2015February 9, 2015 Nurture Mama Leave a comment

During the month of February, our Family Home Evening lessons are mostly focused on LOVE. Tonights lesson is on Loving God.

Jesus Christ taught “If ye love me, keep my commandments” (John 14:15). What are some commandments that we have been given? Brainstorm ideas, then talk about Moses and the Ten Commandments.

Basically the Ten Commandments can be summarized in two principles—love for the Lord and love for our fellow men:

“Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself” (Matt 22:37-39).

How do we show love for God? By being obedient to his commandments.

Mini-Reverence Reminder for Children: Reverence is love and respect for God. How should we act during sacrament meeting, or family prayer, or other reverent times?

Note: Use this printable to hang up as a reminder for our scripture memorization this week, Matt 22:37).

Additional Quotes

“Trying to please others before pleasing God is inverting the first and second great commandments. It is forgetting which way we face…When other demand approval in defiance of God’s commandments, may we always remember whose disciples we are, and which way we face” (Elder Lynn G. Robbins)

“To love God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength is all-consuming and all-encompassing. It is no lukewarm endeavor. It is total commitment of our very being—physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually—to a love of the Lord.”

“When we put God first, all other things fall into their proper place or drop out of our lives. Our love of the Lord will govern the claims for our affection, the demands on our time, the interests we pursue, and the order of our priorities. We should put God ahead of everyone else in our lives.” (Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Ezra Taft Benson)

Loving Others (FHE plans and quotes)

February 2, 2015February 2, 2015 Nurture Mama Leave a comment

During the month of February, our Family Home Evening lessons are mostly focused on LOVE. This year we will focus on loving others, loving God, loving ourselves, and loving our ancestors.

Tonights lesson is on Loving Others. I plan to share the following quotes/scriptures. Then for an activity we will “Heart Attack Our Family“: we will cut out hearts and then write “I love_________because_________” for each member of our family. Hang the hearts on the wall to help us feel loved all month long.

I will also bring out our Love Note mailbox, to inspire continued messages of love to each other.

Quotes/Scriptures about Loving Others

“This is my commandment, that ye love one another, as I have loved you” (John 15:12)

“Love is the very essence of the gospel, and Jesus Christ is our Exemplar. His life was a legacy of love” (President Thomas S. Monson).

“Husband and wife have a solemn responsibility to love and care for each other and for their children…Parents have a sacred duty to rear their children in love and righteousness, to provide for their physical and spiritual needs, and to teach them to love and serve one another…” (The Family: A Proclamation to the World, paragraph 6.)

“Charity begins at home. The single most important principle that should govern every home is to practice the Golden Rule—the Lord’s admonition that “all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them” (Matthew 7:12). Take a moment and imagine how you would feel if you were on the receiving end of thoughtless words or actions. By our example, let us teach our family members to have love one for another.” (M. Russell Ballard)

Elder Oaks gave an entire address on this topic at the most recent General Conference.

“We should all follow the gospel teachings to love our neighbor and avoid contention. Followers of Christ should be examples of civility. We should love all people, be good listeners, and show concern for their sincere beliefs. Though we may disagree, we should not be disagreeable. Our stands and communications on controversial topics should not be contentious. We should be wise in explaining and pursuing our positions and in exercising our influence. In doing so, we ask that others not be offended by our sincere religious beliefs and the free exercise of our religion. We encourage all of us to practice the Savior’s Golden Rule: “Whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them” (Matthew 7:12).”

“The commandment to love one another surely includes love and respect across religious lines and also across racial, cultural, and economic lines. We challenge all youth to avoid bullying, insults, or language and practices that deliberately inflict pain on others. All of these violate the Savior’s command to love one another.” (Elder Dallin H. Oaks).

Setting goals and making choices (FHE plans and quotes)

January 26, 2015January 26, 2015 Nurture Mama Leave a comment

The start of a New Year is a time to evaluate our life in all areas and make changes as necessary. I have been thinking about this a lot in my own personal life, and at Family Home Evening tonight I will encourage my family to do the same. I am planning to share the following quotes (all from the October 2014 General Conference), and then spend a few minutes assisting each child to set personal goals for improvement.

“I encourage everyone, young and old, to review goals and objectives and strive to exercise greater discipline. Our daily conduct and choices should be consistent with our goals. We need to rise above rationalizations and distractions. It is especially important to make choices consistent with our covenants to serve Jesus Christ in righteousness.”(Elder Quentin L. Cook, “Choose Wisely“.)

“We must be willing to learn and to change. And, oh, how much we gain by committing to live the life our Heavenly Father intends for us.” (President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, “Lord, is it I?”.)

“Just because things are going well does not mean that we should not from time to time consider whether there might be something better.” (Elder Carlos A. Godoy, “The Lord Has a Plan for Us!”.)

“Acknowledge and face your weaknesses, but don’t be immobilized by them.” (Elder Jorg Klebingat, “Approaching the Throne of God with Confidence”.)

Conclude with this loving reassurance of God’s love from President Uchtdorf:

“God loves you this very day and always. He is not waiting to love you until you have overcome your weaknesses and bad habits. He loves you today with a full understanding of your struggles. … He knows of your remorse for the times you have fallen short or failed. And still He loves you. … He wants you to achieve your destiny—to return to your heavenly home in honor.” (President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, “Living the Gospel Joyful”.)

A few more quotes from Elder Cook that I liked:

“My concern is not only about the big tipping-point decisions but also the middle ground—the workaday world and seemingly ordinary decisions where we spend most of our time. In these areas, we need to emphasize moderation, balance, and especially wisdom. It is important to rise above rationalizations and make the best choices.”

“When we rationalize wrong choices, big or small, which are inconsistent with the restored gospel, we lose the blessings and protections we need and often become ensnared in sin or simply lose our way.”

“In all things we should remember that being “valiant in the testimony of Jesus” is the great dividing test between the celestial and terrestrial kingdoms.“

FHE: Wholesome Recreational Activities

January 19, 2015January 19, 2015 Nurture Mama Leave a comment

Today we enjoyed a nice day as a family. We travelled to nearby St. Augustine and explored the Castillo De San Marcos National Monument, the oldest military fort in the United States (it was built in 1695). Then we played in the chilly water and sand at the beach. After dinner this evening we watched a short video about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Our Family Home Evening lesson was short and to the point. I reminded the children about The Family:A Proclamation to the World, focusing on the following segments:

“…marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God and that the family is central to the Creator’s plan for the eternal destiny of His children.”

Happiness in family life is most likely to be achieved when founded upon the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ. Successful marriages and families are established and maintained on principles of faith, prayer, repentance, forgiveness, respect, love, compassion, work, and wholesome recreational activities. “

We focused in on “wholesome recreational activities” and explained that was what we had been doing all day. It was enjoyable to spend the day together, learning and exploring and doing good things!