Alma 32-35
"Plant this word in your hearts"
Materials: seeds (could be beans, sunflower seeds, seed packet etc.), Faith printouts (below), crayons or colored pencils
Opening Song: "Faith" (Children's Songbook, )
Opening Prayer:
Scripture: Alma 32: 42
Attention Activity:
Show your seed to the children. Play a few rounds of "button, button, who's got the button?" with your child. ("...players form a circle with their hands out, palms together. One child, called the leader or 'it', takes an object such as a button and goes around the circle, putting their hands in everybody else's hands one by one. In one person's hands they drop the button, though they continue to put their hands in the others' so that no one knows where the button is except for the giver and receiver.
The leader, or all the children in the circle, says "Button, button, who's got the button?" and then each child in the circle guesses. The child guessing replies with their choice, e.g. "Billy has the button!"
Once the child with the button is finally guessed, that child is the one to distribute the button and start a new round." [from Wikipedia.org])
Lesson:
Prophets in the scriptures often used nature as examples for object lessons or parables. Do you remember the Parable of the Sower from last year? The parable of the sower was one that Christ gave to demonstrate how the gospel is received by different kinds of people. Alma also used the concept of planting seeds when he taught about faith.
Activty: Directed coloring
Have the following coloring page printed out and give one to each family member. Starting with the seed, read the scripture passages on the page, following the instructions below.
The seed: Read Alma 32:28. Color the seed. Where do you plant a seed? If our seed represents faith, where do we plant our faith? Draw a heart around the seed.
The sprout: Read Alma 32: 30;34. Color the sprout. When your faith grows like a sprout, what happens to your mind? Color the sprout and draw a head or brain above the sprout.
The Rain: Read Alma 32: 37. Color the raincloud. How do we nourish a tree? How can we nourish our faith? What can we do to help our faith grow? Draw a picture of one thing you can do to nourish your faith.
The Sun: Read Alma 32:38 Color the sun. What happens if we don't nourish our faith? *You may want to point out that the harsh sunlight in these verses represents harsh conditions or trials.
The Tree: Read Alma 32:41. Color the roots and trunk of the tree. What two things do we need to practice to help our faith grow? Sometimes, when we are having a "trial of faith," it's hard to remember to be patient and be diligent. Alma reminds us that these are important to get us to eternal life.
The Fruit: Read Alma 32:42. Color the leaves green, leave the fruit white. Earlier, Alma tells us that the tree that grows from our faith is the "Tree of Life." Who else talked about the tree of life? Lehi and Nephi had great visions of the Tree of Life. What does the fruit of the Tree of Life represent? (eternal life)
Read Alma 32:33. Alma calls this process an "experiment". He approaches the matter of faith scientifically. If we have a little tiny amount of faith like a seed, let it grow, and keep nourishing it, (by doing all the things like keeping the commandments, going to church, praying, keeping your covenants, etc.) then your faith will continue to grow. With diligence and patience, you'll be able to receive eternal life.
Faith is a powerful force. It is the first principle of the gospel. Without faith, everything else falls apart. We have to believe; we have to faith in our Heavenly Father's plan, in Jesus Christ's atonement, in the restoration of the gospel, and in personal revelation. Bear your testimony.
Closing Prayer:
Refreshment: French Toast Roll Ups recipe here
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