May 25-31
Mosiah 29- Alma 4"They were steadfast and immovable"
Materials: scriptures, coloring page
Opening Song: Keep the Commandments (Children's Songbook, 146)
Opening Prayer:
Scripture: Alma 1: 30 And thus, in their aprosperous circumstances, they did not send away any who were bnaked, or that were hungry, or that were athirst, or that were sick, or that had not been nourished; and they did not set their hearts upon criches; therefore they were dliberal to all, both old and young, both bond and free, both male and female, whether out of the church or in the church, having no erespect to persons as to those who stood in need.
Attention Activity:
Who has ever gotten a birthday card, maybe from Grandma or Grandpa? Have you ever opened it to see money inside the card? How do we usually get money? We usually have to work to get money. Is having a lot of money a good thing or a bad thing? We need to have enough money to pay for the essentials of living like our homes and our food. But, it is important to remember that all the money and the success receive are blessings from our Heavenly Father.
Lesson:
We are going to learn today about the Nephites and the effects that money had on them and their standing with the Lord. Read Alma 4:6-9. How were the Nephites doing at this moment? They were wealthy but they were also living is sin. They were spending their wealth on gold, silver, and "precious things". What kind of clothes were they buying? (Fine silks, fine-twined linen, costly apparel). We hear the term "costly apparel" often in The Book of Mormon just like we hear the term "precious things" often. The Nephites' priorities were all mixed up. They were too focused on things.
In the book series The Lord of the Rings, there is a character named Gollum. While out fishing, Gollum finds a beautiful shiny gold ring. Overtime, he becomes possessive and greedy. He pushes all others away and the ring consumes him until he becomes a grotesque creature. He calls the ring his "precious" and even commits murder to possess it. His love for a worldly possession ruins his whole life and even leads to his death.
Photographs were copyright free images taken from pixabay.com
Let us learn from Gollum's mistakes. Although it is nice to have material things, true joy and happiness can only come through living the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Split your family into two groups have half our your family read Alma 4:12-14 and the other read Alma 1:27-31. How does the righteous spend their wealth? What differences could you see between what we just read in our groups and what we read before? It is not sinful to earn a lot of money as long as you use that money to help others. In fact, it is made quite clear in Alma 1 that Heavenly Father blesses the righteous with success and wealth so they can use it to help others.
Read Alma 1: 27 again. What kind of clothing did the righteous Nephites wear? (not costly, but neat and comely) This doesn't mean that we can't get dressed up or wear nice clothes, but rather that our clothes should not be the center of our attention. In the For Strength of Youth pamphlet it says, "Prophets of God have continually counseled His children to dress modestly. When you are well groomed and modestly dressed, you invite the companionship of the Spirit and you can be a good influence on others. Your dress and grooming influence the way you and others act." (pg. 6) What does it mean to dress modestly? It is important that you practice dressing modestly now, because later you will make a covenant to do so when you attend the temple to receive your endowment.
The Nephites have a complicated relationship with wealth and pride. We will talk about this even more in later chapters when we study the pride cycle. Jesus Christ and the prophets of the Lord have made it clear that our priorities should not revolve around money or "stuff". We should use our blessings to help those around us and build up the kingdom of God.
Activity: Coloring Page (link here) and Service Activity
The next time you go to the grocery store have every member of your family choose one can of food to purchase and drop off at the local food bank.
Closing Song: "I'm Trying to Be Like Jesus" (Children's Songbook, 78)
Closing Prayer:
Refreshment: Banana Carmel Ice Cream Pie Recipe here
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