Family Home Evening Lessons...

I have been asked to guest post every third Monday of the month over at Safely Gathered In. I love this site and enjoy doing FHE lessons on preparedness and self-reliance. Go check it out. I have posted twice. Click on the Family Home Evening label.

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The Widow's Mite (Tithing)

There is clip art that goes with this lesson. Please e-mail me if you would like the clip art and I will e-mail you with it. Thanks. Tiffany

Lesson: The Widow’s Mite
(Tithing)

Things to Prepare:1. Popped popcorn in two bowls, small bowls for each participant.
2. Tithing Slips for each participant.
3. Empty cans for each participant.
4. Paper, crayons, stickers, anything to decorate your cans with.
5. Print and Cut out clip art, laminate if desired (use as flannel board pieces)

Opening Song: I’m Glad to Pay a Tithing (pg. 150 Children’s Songbook)

Opening Prayer:

Scripture:

Luke 11:28 or D&C 64:23

Quote: Elder Robert D. Hales –(Ensign, November 2002)
Tithing has been established in these latter days as an essential law for members of the Lord’s restored Church. It is one of the basic ways we witness our faith in Him and our obedience to His laws and commandments. Tithing is one of the commandments that qualifies us, by our faith, to enter the temple—the house of the Lord.

Object lesson: Popcorn Blessings (see below)
Have participants sit on the floor with the small bowls in front of them. Parcel out 10 kernels to each, pretty much using up one bowl. Then ask each participant if you can have one kernel, thanking each one who is willing to share, but just moving on from those who won't. Then, fill each bowl of those who shared overflowing with popcorn.

Explain that we receive an abundance of popcorn/ blessings if we give to the Lord what is already his.

Story: Tell the story of the Widow’s Mite -using pictures if desired. (My two year old sits better when there are lots of pictures that she can hold and help with) --From New Testament stories Chapter 34 pg. 94

Jesus was by the temple in Jerusalem. He was watching the people give money to the church. The people were putting their money into big boxes. Jesus saw many rich men put a lot of money into the boxes Mark 12:41
A poor woman came to the boxes. Her husband had died. She was a widow. She put in two pieces of money called mites. Two mites were not very much money. But the two mites were all the money she had Mark 12:42, 4
Jesus saw her. Jesus wanted to teach his disciples a lesson. He told them about the widow. Mark 12:43
Jesus told his disciples the rich men gave lots of money. But the rich men had more money at home. Mark 12:43
The widow had only two mites. She had no money at home. She gave all her money to the Church. She had given more to the Church than all the rich men Mark 12:44

Discussion: Talk about what the story is about.
· Is she paying her tithing?
· Why is her contribution more meaningful than the others?
· Why should we give all that we have?
· What does tithing go towards in the church?

Story: Tell the story of, The Empty Can (Friend, June 1999) Use the clip art if desired, for a flannel board story.

Alma J. Yates, “Empty Can,” Friend, Jun 1999, 2
Blessed are they that hear the word of God, and keep it (Luke 11:28).
I had been admiring the new baseball glove in the sporting goods store for weeks, hoping that some day it would be mine. Every day on my way home from school, I took the long way and stopped at the store to look and wish. There were lots of other mitts there, but only one that was just right for me. That was the one I grabbed each day. I pulled it onto my hand, pounded my fist into it, and pretended I was in left field, waiting for that long fly ball.
Each time I walked into the store, I crept down the last aisle, almost afraid to look, for fear someone had already bought it.
I already had a baseball glove, but one of the seams was coming loose, and it was worn and scuffed. I was planning to make the Little League all-star team, and I figured that I needed the best mitt possible.
My birthday was coming up. I’d hinted to Mom and Dad a hundred times that it would sure be nice to have that mitt at the sporting goods store. They nodded and smiled, but they didn’t make any promises. I even took my dad into the store and showed him what a great glove it was. He agreed with me, but the morning of my birthday, the glove was still there.
After my birthday dinner, Mom brought in my presents and set them before me. Right away I could see that my baseball glove wasn’t there. I tried not to be disappointed, but it was hard. And then I got a real surprise. Brother Tice came back from his vacation early and paid me twenty dollars for taking care of his dog and mail and mowing his lawn and stuff. I had already saved nineteen dollars, so with Brother Tice’s money, I had enough to buy my glove now!
As soon as I finished the last of my cake and ice cream, I raced to the sporting goods store. The man was just getting ready to put the CLOSED sign in the window, when I burst in and grabbed the glove.
I had eighty cents left over, so on the way home I stopped at the drugstore and bought a half pound of cinnamon bears.
I left with three cents in my pocket, my new glove on one hand, and my sack of cinnamon bears in the other. I couldn’t have been happier.
That night, I propped up my new glove on the dresser so that it would be the last thing I saw before I went to sleep and the first thing I saw when I got up in the morning. And all night long I dreamed of playing in the all-star game.
The next morning was Saturday, and no one had to wake me. As soon as the first bits of light streaked across my room, I was up and getting dressed. I snatched my glove and bounded for the door, knocking half the stuff off my dresser. That’s when I saw my tithing can. My empty tithing can.
Suddenly I got a sick feeling inside. Mom and Dad had always told me to pay my tithing before I used my money for anything else. I had always remembered to do that—until yesterday! Yesterday the only thing I had had on my mind was getting my baseball glove.
I looked down at it. I looked over at the paper sack that had only three cinnamon bears left inside. I swallowed hard and figured out how much money I had stolen from the Lord. I’d received twenty dollars from Brother Tice, so I owed the Lord two dollars. Two dollars! Where would I ever get two dollars before Sunday?
Clutching my glove, I promised myself that the next time I had two dollars I’d give it all for tithing. I sneaked out of the house and tried to forget about everything except the all-star game.
When I reached the park and showed my teammates my new glove, they all said that they were sure that I’d be able to catch any ball that came to me. But the first time Rodney hit a fly ball in my direction, I missed it. When Charlie knocked a grounder my way, it slipped right past me. The guys said that I just wasn’t used to playing with a new glove, but I knew that that wasn’t the reason. I couldn’t stop thinking of the two dollars I owed the Lord.
While the other guys kept playing, I headed for home, dragged myself to my room, dropped my glove on the bed, and stared at my empty tithing can. Finally I got on my knees and said a little prayer, telling the Lord that I was sorry for taking His tithing and using it for my glove, and that I would pay Him back as soon as I could. But I still had that sick feeling inside.
Slowly I set my baseball glove on the dresser and pushed it way back. Then I set my tithing can in front of the mitt.
“Mom,” I asked as I walked into the kitchen, “do you have any work I could do?”
She was making bread at the kitchen table and looked up at me like I might be feeling sick. “I thought you were playing baseball with your new mitt.”
“I went,” I muttered, hanging my head down, “but I need to earn a little money.”
“You need more money?”
“Well,” I stammered, “I owe somebody else some money, and I forgot about paying up before I spent it all.”
Mom thought for a minute. “The garage needs cleaning. I suppose if you did a really good job there I could give you fifty cents.”
Fifty cents wasn’t a lot of money, especially considering how much work was to be done in the garage, but I didn’t care. I needed to square myself with the Lord.
For the rest of the morning I worked in the garage. I stacked all the boxes, straightened all the tools, swept the floor, and hauled out the trash. I’d cleaned the garage before, but never as well as I did then. When Mom inspected my work, her eyes got big. “Well, Justin,” she exclaimed, “I’ve never seen the garage look so good. I think that’s worth at least seventy-five cents.”
“Brother Tuckfield,” I asked my neighbor across the street, “do you have any work a guy could do?” Brother Tuckfield was digging in his flower bed. He looked up and wiped a big drop of sweat from his nose.
“I’m trying to earn a little money,” I explained. “I’ll work hard. And I don’t charge much.”
“Well, there are some weeds along the ditch bank in my backyard. If you’d chop those down for me, I could pay you twenty-five or fifty cents.”
There was a jungle of weeds along Brother Tuckfield’s ditch. I worked for over an hour, pulling and chopping and digging. Before I quit, there wasn’t a single weed left along that ditch bank. Brother Tuckfield gave me fifty cents, and I went down the street still looking for work.
Sister Caldwell needed trash hauled out to the curb. That was another ten cents. Sister Hadfield wanted the grass raked in her front yard. That was worth twenty-five cents. Brother Henderson let me pull the weeds in his rose bushes. I ended up with scratched hands and arms, but I earned twenty-five cents there, too.
I stopped by Brother Raymond’s home and helped him weed his garden. It was about the hardest work I’d done all day. I had to get down on my hands and knees and pick the tiny weeds among the carrots and the radishes. It was worth it when Brother Raymond pulled two quarters out of his pocket and dropped them into my hand. I’d finally earned enough money to make things right with the Lord!
When I finally headed for home, I was too tired and sore to do more than drag my feet over the hot sidewalk. I was thirsty and had two big blisters on my hand.
I passed the park. All the guys had gone home long ago, but I didn’t care. I wasn’t thinking of baseball and the all-star game anymore.
I made my way to my room. The tithing can was waiting on the dresser, still empty. I poured my two dollars and thirty-five cents into the can, grabbed my new ball glove—the mitt that was honestly mine, now—and pounded my blistered fist into it with a satisfied smile.

Activity:· Make and decorate Tithing Cans.
· There is also an activity sheet, that is about tithing around the world.
· Show tithing slips and practice filling them out. Make sure your children see you filling them out. Since the best teaching tool is by example. Maybe show them some old receipts so they can see that you as parents contribute.

Closing Song: I Want to Give the Lord My Tenth (pg. 150, Children’s Songbook)

Closing Prayer:

Treat: Use the Popcorn as your treat tonight and they can eat it during the lesson if they are still listening.

Easter or Resurrection

I know I haven't posted in a while, life has been crazy and I have been recycling the lessons that I already had, so there was nothing new. I decided that I really wanted an Easter lesson for Annabella. I am not sure how much she learned, especially when you have to go so fast since she is still so young. But we tried.

Opening Song: He Sent His Son (Children's Song Book p. #34)

Scripture: Mark 10:34

Lesson:

I found a Flannel Board Story from the Friend about The Resurrection of Jesus Christ. I told the flannel board story and let Annabella help with the pictures. We sang Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes (Children's Song Book p.#275) when she started getting wiggly.

Closing Song: I Am A Child of God (Children's Song Book p.#2)

We really enjoyed this lesson. Below are the flannel board story pieces that I colored. The other ones are not colored. Have fun.

Found link to Flannel Board Story on Sugar Doodle. net

Arming Ourselves

This is a lesson that my sister did for her family. They are ages 11, 9, 8, and 4. They are doing a series on this type of thing and this was the first one. She did not give any songs so I choose a few that I thought would be great with this lesson.

Opening Song: We'll bring the World His Truth Children's Songbook pg 172
Closing Song: The Prophet Said to Plant a Garden Children's Songbook pg 237

Arming Ourselves
Part 1 - Parents

We started with talking about the Army of Helaman, I used this article from the Friend to summarize the story and how it relates to them.
Then we talked about the war in Heaven and how we chose to follow Christ. But Satan and his followers want us to miss out on the blessings we can get by being obedient. So we discussed how we are in a war with Satan and every time we make a good choice we are defeating him. One way to help them to make the right choices is for them to talk to us, their parents. We can help them to make better choices if they will let us know what is going on in their lives. One thing Satan will do is try to make them think that they can't talk to us. He will tell them that we wouldn't understand, or that they will get in trouble, or that we won't listen. Satan does this because he knows that parents can protect their kids from making the wrong choice. We talked about how to talk to us and discussed ways to get our attention appropriately using this article from the New Era as a resource.
Then my husband did his part of the lesson, he made a wooden shield earlier and found a wooden dowel to use as a sword. He talked about how parents are like a shield, if you use it you will be protected, but if you foolishly leave it on the ground you could be seriously hurt. Of course my husband used the opportunity to have each of the kids hold the shield then he hit it really hard and asked them how it would have felt to be hit without the shield. They of course responded that it would have really hurt. Then to close our lesson, I handed out CTR rings to the kids that had lost them. We then explained that not only does it remind them to Choose the Right, but it is in the shape of a shield to help them remember that their parents are like the shield that can help them to Choose the Right too.

Obedience and Jonah

So I was looking for a lesson on obedience and I found this one at ldssplash.com I liked it and am using it this week. Everything typed in green was the idea from the website. I am adding some things that I liked.

Opening Song: Quickly I'll Obey (Childrens Hymn Book pg. 197)
Closing Song: Pioneer Children were Quick to Obey (Children's Hymn Book pg. 215)
Scripture: Romans 5:19
For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.
Thought: "Obedience to His commandments and a commitment to living a life that demonstrates He can trust you."- Elder Richard G. Scott January 2007 Ensign

Needed: This printout A fastener (or paper clip if fastener isn't available)
Cut out all the shapes on the printout. Place the mouth up to the whale, with the gray part behind. Stick the fastener into the middle of the whale so that the mouth opens and closes.
Lesson:What is obedience?
Read or tell the story of Jonah. Use the printouts to tell the story. (Jonah chapter 1 and 2)
How was Jonah not being obedient?
what did Jonah do to ask forgiveness?
What can we do to be obedient?
Bare your testimony about how we are blessed when we are obedient.

I wanted to tell the story of Jonah in a way that my daughter (23 months old) might understand so I found the church's story board from the Old Testaments Stories I like that they have pictures if I want to print them out.

*Jonah was a prophet of God. God told him to go to a city called Nineveh. The people there were wicked. God told Jonah to tell the people to repent.
Jonah 1:1–2
*Jonah did not obey God. Jonah did not want to go to Nineveh. He did not want to tell the people to repent. He got on a ship. The ship was sailing to another city.
Jonah 1:3
*God sent a bad storm. The wind blew hard. The men on the ship were afraid it would sink.
Jonah 1:4–5
*The captain of the ship went to Jonah. Jonah was sleeping. The captain woke him. He told Jonah to pray and ask God to help them.
Jonah 1:6
*The men thought the storm came because Jonah was on the ship. They wanted the storm to stop. They asked Jonah what they should do.
Jonah 1:7–11
*Jonah told them to throw him into the water. He knew God sent the storm because of him. He had not obeyed God.
Jonah 1:9–12
*The men did not want to throw Jonah into the water. But they knew the storm would stop if they did. So they threw him into the water. The storm stopped.
Jonah 1:13–15
*God sent a big fish. The fish swallowed Jonah. Jonah was in the fish for three days and three nights. Jonah prayed to God. He repented. He said he was sorry he had run away. He promised to obey God.
Jonah 1:17; 2:1–9
*The fish put Jonah out on dry land. Again God told Jonah to go to Nineveh. He said to tell the people to repent.
Jonah 2:10; 3:1–2
*This time Jonah obeyed God. He went to Nineveh. He told the people to repent. If they would not repent, Nineveh would be destroyed.
Jonah 3:3–4
*The people did repent. They stopped being wicked. They fasted and prayed. God did not destroy Nineveh.
Jonah 3:5–10

Reverence

I enjoyed this lesson. Annabella on the other hand well she listened but I am not to sure that she understood any of it. I think that this is a lesson that I can keep going over and she will get it. I just love all the visual aids and she did love those and wanted to play with them. I shorted the lesson because she is just 23 months old and couldn't sit that long. I again got this idea from the yahoo group that I joined, fhe4children I really like this site.

REVERENCE
By, Tina Felt -- February 1989

Main Idea: Reverence is a special feeling of love and respect that should be reflected in actions, words, and attitudes.

Note to Parents: “Children are not born with the concepts which produce reverence, nor can these concepts be matured in them suddenly…. But by and large, children in their early years and most of them in later years will be just about as reverent as they are trained to be, and no more.”

Opening Song: Reverently, Quietly

Opening Prayer:

Have you ever thought what it means to be reverent? Reverence is a special feeling of Respect and Love. It is a feeling close to our Heavenly Father. It is caring about others, showing respect for them and being courteous to them. When we love our Heavenly Father, our families, friends, leaders, and teachers, we will respect them. We show our special feeling of love and respect for others by REVERENCE. When we listen to our parents, teachers, and leaders and do what they want us to do because we respect and love them, we are being reverent, as Heavenly Father expects us to be.

Poem: REVERENCE (Have members of the family hold up the different letters as the poem is being recited either by a parent or an older child who can read and take part.)

Our chapel is a sacred place where we should be reverent and show respect to our Heavenly Father. A sacred place is a holy place, a place where Heavenly Father’s spirit may be felt.

Happy and Sad Chapels: Hold up the picture of a sad chapel and ask your children what this is a picture of. Tell them that :
This is a picture of a sad chapel.
The children in this chapel were very noisy
They didn’t sign the songs well at all
Some children talked without raising their hands
A lot of the children came late
There was talking during the prayer
The children in this chapel didn’t show love and respect for our Father in Heaven

Hold up the picture of the happy chapel and ask your children what this is a picture of. Tell them that:
This is a picture of a happy chapel
The children were quiet during their meetings
Everyone was reverent
All of the children sang their songs well
No one whispered to their neighbors
The children sat quietly in their chairs
The children folded their arms and closed their eyes during the prayer
They walked quietly in the halls
They showed their Heavenly Father how much they loved and respected Him through their reverent actions.

Which one of these chapels do we have? Let’s all try to make our chapel a happy chapel.

Story: Children Like Animals

Activity: Using your happy and sad chapels. Place them on the floor. Have each member of the family draw a game card and act out what is on their card. When they are through, have the other members of the family guess what their behavior is. Have them decide if this behavior belongs in the Happy Chapel or the Sad Chapel and put their card on the right one.

Poem: I Love You Jesus
(Pick our 3 boys and 2 girls from the previous story to use for this poem)

“One of the most Christ-like qualities we ought to develop is reverence, an attitude that shows how we feel about Heavenly Father and the things He has asked us to do… Reverence is more than just being quiet. It is a spiritual communication between us and our Father in Heaven. When we are reverent, we don’t do anything that reflects negatively upon the Lord or His Church.” Vaugh J. Featherstone

Reverence is a special feeling that helps us feel near to Heavenly Father and makes us want to show by our actions, words, and attitudes how much we love him.

Closing Song: Father, I will Reverent Be

Closing Prayer:

Refreshments: Frosted animal cookies with ice cream.


Use cards with each letter to spell reverence and have the children hold each card as they give the poem.

REVERENCE POEM

R: Reverence is true respect
For Jesus whom we love.
And for this chapel where we meet
To worship him above.

E: Each child should come in quietly
No push, nor jump, nor run,
But be polite and orderly
Until the meetings done.

V: Very softly we should speak
And yet distinct and clear
The soft sweet tones of children
Our Savior likes to hear.

E: Every child should fold his arms
And while the prayer is said
Should close his eyes and listen
And always bow his head.

R: Remember, little children,
Be courteous and true,
Be kind to one another
For, this is reverence too

E: Enter here with happy thoughts
But don’t be rough and loud
For Jesus loves a smiling face
But not a noisy crowd.

N: Neat and tidy we should be
With faces shining bright
And if our thoughts are clean and pure
We’ll always do what’s right.

C: Cleanliness is reverence
Let’s try in all we do
To keep the chapel neat and clean
Now and the whole week through.

E: Everyone should reverent be
In every act and word
When we are in the Savior’s house,
The chapel of the Lord.


I LOVE YOU, JESUS

"I love you Jesus, so much," said Mike
"I want to do the things 'you'd like."
But he forgot to try at all
As he ran and shouted through the hall.

"I love you Jesus," said Betty Ann
"I want to be as good as I can."
In Sharing Time she talked aloud.
That makes an awfully noisy crowd.
"I love you Jesus," said John one day
"I want to learn in every way,
All I need to know to grow strong and good."
But he didn't listen when he should.

"I love you Jesus," said little Sue
"I'll do all the things you want me to."
But she forgot to bow her head,
Or close her eyes when the prayer was said.

"I love you Jesus, so much," said Joe
"The things I do today will show
How much I want to do my part.
I'll think of thee with all my heart.”
“Two hands that know where they belong,
Two feet that quietly walk along.
Two lips that speak only when they should,
Two ears that listen to all things good.
Two eyes that when the prayer is said
Will gently close when I bow my head.
One heart that loves Thy will to do
Dear God these things are my gifts to you."

Out of all these five, Jesus knows who loves Him most … which one are you?
Children Like Animals

Teacher: Today we'll learn about some children and how they act In Our Heavenly Father's house.
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1. This is Nan. Nan is only three years old. It’s hard to be good when you are only three. Nan tries hard. She puts her toys away, sometimes even before her mother asks her.

But sometimes when Nan goes to church she acts like a kitten. Kittens are soft and usually quiet, so you may wonder what would be wrong - with having a kitten at church. Have you ever watched two kittens together? They are always swatting each other. This was Nan's problem-she didn’t always remember to keep her hands to herself. Heavenly Father is happy if we fold our hands and keep them in our laps while we are in his house.
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2. This is Jeremy. Usually Jeremy is a good boy. He likes to help his father work in the yard. He mows the grass in the summer and rakes the leaves in the fall.

But sometimes when Jeremy goes to church he acts like a big polar bear. Polar bears are soft and furry. If you have ever seen one at the zoo you know that they are heavy and walk plunk! plunk! plunk! Sometimes Jeremy forgets and lets his feet go plunk! plunk! as he walks down the chapel aisle. Heavenly Father is happy when we walk with light, quiet feet in his house.

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3. This is Diane. Diane is a happy little girl. She helps her mother with the dishes and doesn't even grumble.

But sometimes when Diane goes to church she acts like a bird. Birds like to chirp and sing. And Diane loves to sing in church. But sometimes she forgets where she is and sings when it isn't time to sing. Heavenly Father wants us to be happy and to sing when we are in his house. But he wants us to sing only when everyone else is singing or when we are asked to sing a special song.

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4. This is Jason. Jason always obeys his parents. He always, remembers to wear his coat when he goes outside if it is cold or stormy.

But sometimes when, Jason goes to church he acts like a duck. If you have ever watched a flock of ducks you know that they often stray away and get into places where they, don't belong. Sometimes Jason forgets to stay in his seat and wanders all over the chapel. Heavenly Father is happy if we stay in our places while we are in his house.

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5. This is Veronica. Veronica is getting to be a big girl. She is even big enough to make her bed in the morning before she goes to breakfast.

But sometimes when Veronica goes to church she acts, like a monkey. Sometimes she crawls under the bench, and sometimes she climbs up onto the back of the bench. Heavenly Father is happy when we sit quietly and prop­erly on the benches while we are in his house.

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6. This is Kirt. Kirt eats his vegetables and is growing strong. He is even strong enough to help carry groceries into the house.

But sometimes when Kirt goes to church he is grumpy. He likes to stay up late on Saturday night and watch his favorite show on TV. When he wakes up Sunday morning he acts like a lion. He growls at his sister and brother and he even growls at his friends at church. Heavenly Father is happy when we are cheerful while we are in his house.

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7. This is Nicky. Nicky is a happy girl. She smiles and is pleasant even when she has to tend her little brother, though she would rather be playing with her friends.

Always when Nicky goes to church she acts like a butter­fly. She gently moves down the aisle and quietly takes her seat. She sings the songs. She thinks of Jesus during the sacrament, and she listens to the speakers. Heavenly Father is happy when we are truly reverent in his house.

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Teacher: Heavenly Father is happy when we show love and respect for his house.

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