Lesson 13: D&C 29

 March 22-28
Doctrine and Covenants 29
"Jesus Christ will gather his people"

Materials: picture "How many Times" from manual; "Why did Jesus Christ compare himself to a hen" video (youtube); paper strips printed, cut out, and put in a bag; scriptures
Opening Songs: "Israel, Israel God is calling" (Hymnal, 7)
Opening Prayer:

Attention Activity:

Show the picture below. Ask your family what the hen in the picture is doing? The hen is gathering her chicks and protecting them with her wings. Did you know that Christ referred to himself as a hen gathering her chickens. 

How Many Times by Liz Lemmn Swindle

Lesson:

Show the video from youtube below. 

In D&C 29, Jesus states that he is gathering his people. The gathering of Israel has been something prophets have been speaking of for thousands of years. What is the gathering of Israel? Well a good place to start when learning about the gathering of Israel is to remember that there are twelve tribes. 

Abraham the prophet prayed to have a son,
So the Lord sent Isaac as the chosen one.
Isaac begat Jacob, known as Israel.
Jacob's sons were twelve tribes, so the Bible tells. 
("Follow the Prophet" verse 4)

Israel had twelve sons and these 12 sons went on to have descendants known as the 12 tribes of Israel. A lot of the world are descendants of these tribes and those who aren't literal descendants can be adopted into a tribe. When you receive your patriarchal blessing, you will discover what tribe you belong to. "When we speak of the gathering, we are simply saying this fundamental truth: every one of our Heavenly Father’s children, on both sides of the veil, deserves to hear the message of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. They decide for themselves if they want to know more" (Russel M. Nelson, "Hope of Israel"). 

Read D&C 29:4. Since the church has been restored, its members have been given the sacred opportunity to help gather Israel. Not long after Pres. Nelson was sustained as the prophet of the church, he held a special meeting with all the youth of the church to talk about the gathering of Israel. In this address, President Nelson asked, "So my question to you is: are you willing to enlist in the youth battalion of the Lord to help gather Israel?”

Read D&C 29:7-8. We have all been called into the Lord's battalion to help gather Israel in the latter-days--to help others learn the truth of the gospel. In his address, President Nelson also mentioned many things we can do to aid in this cause and help gather Israel. 

Activity:

Print the sentances below, cut them into strips, and place them in a bag. Have each family member take turns reading different things they can do to help gather Israel. 

Lesson 12: D&C 27-28

 March 15-21
Doctrine and Covenants 27-28
"All things must be done in order"

** A lot of this lesson is repeated from the lesson from my lesson on Ephesians from 2019. It has been updated to included additional doctrines from the D&C. 

Materials: Household Items to represent the armor of God (see below), video "Put on the whole Armour of God" on churchofjesuschrist.org, Armor of God paper dolls. 
Opening Song: "Scripture Power" verse 2 (found on Sacred Music app or churchofjesuschrist.org)
Opening Prayer:
Scripture: 2 Timothy 2:3 Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.

Attention Activity: If you have plastic swords or wrapping paper rolls, have a mock sword fight with your family. 

Lesson: 
Read D&C 27: 15. Explain the phrase "gird up your loins" means to get ready to work. This verse says that we need to put on the whole armor so that we can withstand the "evil day" or the day when Christ comes again and the wicked are destroyed. What is the "whole armor" the Lord is referring to? Is it actually armor we need to have in our closet like a sword or a bullet proof vest? No, the armor of God is a spiritual armor. It is what we use to guard ourself in the spiritual war against Satan. 

Armor of God Activity:
Invite someone to be your soldier. While you dress them with each piece of armor, describe how that piece can help protect us spiritually.

Helmet of Salvation (bike helmet, football helmet, hat, etc): Just as a helmet protects our heads, our minds need to be protected from Satan. How can we protect our minds from Satan (watch good media, listen to good music, speak kindly, no profanity, no pornography, getting an education). We protect our minds with salvation with the knowledge that we will receive salvation and be saved from our sins. 

Shield of Fatih (Paper plate, round lid, etc.) Our faith in Christ and His Atonement is our shield against Satan. Having faith in Christ can protect us from temptation and lead us back to him after we have made wrong choices. D&C 27:17 says our shield of faith protects us from "the fiery darts of the wicked." Our faith reflects Satan's tools of doubt and deceit just like a shield protects from arrows and darts. 

Girdle of Truth (belt): Knowing the truth always gives you power over the adversary and can protect us from Satan's lies and tricks. Our loins are one of the most vulnerable parts of our bodies, protecting our loins with truth suggests that knowing the truth of the gospel will help us to guard our virtue.

Breastplate of Righteousness (vest): Breastplates are worn to protect the heart and other vital organs. We must love God and all his children. Choosing the right and living righteously will protect our heart, our feelings and we will be happy. "“And the heart, what kind of a breastplate shall protect our conduct in life? We shall have over our hearts a breastplate of righteousness. Well, having learned truth we have a measure by which we can judge between right and wrong and so our conduct will always be gauged by that thing which we know to be true. Our breastplate to cover our conduct shall be the breastplate of righteousness." (Feet Shod with the Preparation of the Gospel of Peace, Brigham Young University Speeches of the Year [Provo, 9 Nov. 1954], pp. 3–7.)

Shoes shod with Preparation of the Gospel of Peace (shoes, boots): We must always be spiritually prepared through things like reading our scriptures and studying the words of the apostles and prophets, which the Lord has sent his "angels to commit unto [us]" (D&C27: 16). 

Sword of the Spirit (toy sword, paper towel tube, foil sword, etc) The Spirit or the Holy Ghost is our weapon against Satan. Through the spirit his word will be revealed unto us. If we live worthy, the Holy Ghost, a member of the godhead will help us to combat Satan and lead us from temptation. 

As we put on the armor of God and remain faithful, it says in verse 18 we will be "caught up" which is another way of saying that we will be saved on the day the wicked will be destroyed. 

Watch the video "Put on the whole Armor of God" found on churchofjesuschrist.org 

What can we do to help each other put on the armour of God? Share a story of a time in  your life when you were able to use your testimony of the gospel to resist temptation. Bear your testimony of the armor of god and what that means to you.

Activity: Armor of God Paper Dolls
Print and cut out one per family member. If you have a laminator, you could laminate the pieces and attach with bits of velcro. This is a great activity for the church bag!

Closing Song: "We Are All Enlisted" (Hymnal, 250)
Closing Prayer:

Lesson 11: 23-26

 March 8-14
Doctrine and Covenants 23-26 
"Strengthen the church"

Materials: whiteboard and marker, scripture cards below printed and cut out, scriptures
Opening Song: "The Spirit of God" (Hymnal, 2
Opening Prayer:

Attention Activity:

Show the following list below written on a piece of paper or whiteboard. 

Sacrament Meeting

Announcements
Invocation (opening prayer)
Ward [or branch] business
Sacrament
Speakers
Benediction (closing prayer)

Explain that the things on this list are parts of sacrament meeting. What happens in sacrament meeting that is missing from this list? (Opening and closing hymns; sacrament hymn; prelude and postlude music.) Why do you think we use music in our Church meetings? Why do we sing hymns? What difference do you think it would make if we did not sing hymns in our Church meetings?

Music, especially hymn singing, has always been an important part of worshiping Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. It brings a spirit of reverence and love to our Church meetings.

Lesson:

Who can tell me the name of Joseph Smith's wife? Her name was Emma Hale Smith. She and Joseph were married on Jan. 18, 1827 and a few months later, she accompanied Joseph to the Hill Cumorah when he was given the gold plates by the angel Moroni. 

Emma endured many hardships in the few short years since their marriage including the disapproval of her parents, the death of her first baby, persecution, and other heartaches. Still, Emma was a devout woman who wished to have a place in the Kingdom of God. 

In July 1830, Joseph received a special revelation for Emma Smith. In the revelation God told Emma that she was an "elect lady." Heavenly Father makes it clear in D&C 25 that women have a special place in his heart and special duties in the Kingdom of Heaven. 

Activity: Scripture cards

Directions: Print and cut out the cards below and display them in order on a whiteboard or taped to a wall. Have a family member choose in order and read each card. Some cards have activities marked with an *. (Note: Each card references a scripture. If you are short on time, you may only need to read the scriptures that have the word "read" in front of the reference.)

Emma Smith was a very special lady who made many amazing contributions to the church. One of her most important contributions was the church's very first hymnal. In 1835, she helped publish "A Collection of Sacred Hymns" to fulfill the request from the Lord made in D&C 25. In it, "She felt the need for a hymn tradition that would reflect the unique history and theology of the Latter-day Saints. As heirs of divinely restored truth, the early saints wanted to do more than just borrow from other Christian hymn traditions” (Church News, Aug. 11, 1985). 

Today we use a lot of the same hymns in our book that Emma selected all those years ago. And currently, the church is undertaking the compilation of a new hymn book to add to Emma Smith's legacy. 

Emma was also a valiant member of the church who underwent more difficult trials than most people. Lucy Mack Smith, descibed Emma in this passage:  “I have never seen a woman in my life, who would endure every species of fatigue and hardship, from month to month, and from year to year, with that unflinching courage, zeal, and patience, which she has ever done; for I know that which she has had to endure … she has breasted the storms of persecution, and buffeted the rage of men and devils, which would have borne down almost any other woman.” (History of Joseph Smith, pp. 190–91.) 

The last few verses of D&C 25 list out actions Emma needed to take in order to receive celestial glory. In verse 16 it states, "And verily, verily, I say unto you, that this is any voice unto all." Even though this section was written for Emma, it is also directed toward all of us. We can learn a lot from Emma Smith and the revelation received on her behalf. 

Closing Song: "Redeemer of Isreal" (Hymnal, 6)
Closing Prayer:
Refreshment: Lemon Blueberry Muffins recipe here