Lesson 41: Isaiah 58-66

October 3-9
Isaiah 58-66 
"The Redeemer shall come to Zion"

Materials: emoji picture, video, whiteboard and marker
Opening Song: "I pray in faith" (Children's Songbook, 14)
Opening Prayer:

Attention Activity: Display the picture below. Give each family member a piece of paper and a pencil and ask them to draw the emoji that they think of when they hear the word, "fasting."

Lesson: 

What is it mean to fast? Fasting is when we choose to give something up for a set period of time, in order to turn our hearts to God. Usually, when we talk about fasting, we talk about giving up food and water for 24 hours. 

When do we fast? Fasting occurs church-wide once a month--usually the first Sunday of the month. We fast as an entire church. Then, in our individual wards, we have a testimony meeting but, we can also fast whenever we feel the need for extra spiritual strength, or to ask Heavenly Father for special need. 

Activity: Watch the video "Wherefore have we fasted?" from the church website.

In the video, the young man describes reading a passage in the book of Isaiah as the catalyst for refocusing his personal fasting. In Isaiah 58, Isaiah emphasizes that there is a proper way to fast. It isn't simply to go hungry and thirsty for the day. Isaiah speaks that true fasting centers on breaking the bonds of wickedness or letting go of selfishness and pride. It's about letting go of the heavy burdens placed upon you for the day and taking care for the poor and needy. 

Have your family take turns reading Isaiah 58: 8-12. Ask them to look for the blessings we get from fasting. On a whiteboard or piece of paper list the blessings. (Personal light: knowledge,  spiritual light; good health; righteousness; glory of the Lord; answered prayers; guidance; personal security; spiritual nourishment; inspiration; helping others; etc.) What blessings in our lives have we seen from fasting? 

When we start a fast, we should start with our morning prayers. We should ask Heavenly Father to help us in our fast to focus our mind and attention on the Spirit. We can also ask for help with something specifically like the health of a loved one, guidance during adversity, or spiritual or mental preparation. We can take the time during the day to reflect and remember the Lord. When it is time for our fast to end we should kneel down and say a prayer to "break" or end the fast. We also give money as a fast-offering each month to the church. This donation helps the poor and needy in our area. 

Bear your testimony on how fasting has helped you or given you comfort. 

Closing Song: "In fasting we approach thee" (Hymns, 139)
Closing Prayer:
Refreshment: mini pumpkin bundt cakes

Lesson 40: Isaiah 50-57

September 26- October 2
Isaiah 50-57
"He Hath Borne Our Griefs, and Carried Our Sorrows"

Materials: masks sheet, Isaiah 53 cards
Opening Song: "I Stand all Amazed" (Hymns, 193). 
Opening Prayer:

Attention Activity:

Who is your favorite superhero? What can your favorite super hero do? If you had super powers, what would they be? Today we are going to talk about the ultimate hero. 

Lesson:

What does a hero do? What makes him or her heroic? Heroes save people. They don't save people for money or for fame, but because it's right because, they want to help others. You've been saved by a hero. But He didn't wear a mask, or a cape, or even a utility belt. He couldn't fly and He didn't have x-ray vision, but He saved you from death. Who do you think I'm talking about? 

Jesus Christ is the ultimate hero. He saved each one of us from. His atonement overcomes the obstacles of physical death, spiritual death due to sin and trangression; afflictions and infirmities; and weaknesses and imperfections. 

Oh My Father by Simon Dewey

"In one sense, [the atonement] is a series of divine events that commenced in the Garden of Gethsemane, continued on the cross, and culminated with the Savior’s Resurrection from the tomb. It was motivated by an incomprehensible love for each of us. It required a being who was sinless; who had infinite power over the elements—even death; who possessed a boundless capacity to suffer the consequences of all our sins and ailments; and who, in fact, descended beneath it all.¹ This was the mission of Jcsus Christ—this was His Atonement" ("The Atonement of Jesus Christ," Tad R. Callister, General Conference April 2019). 

Activity: Watch "My kingdom is not of this world" video 

Isaiah prophesied a lot about Jesus Christ. In Isaiah 53, we read about the trials Jesus went through in his mortal life, including His suffering at Gethsemane and crucifixion.  

Activity: Hero Masks

(Before FHE, print and cut out the cards and the masks below. Glue one verse to the back of each mask.) Set the masks face up in front of your family. Have your family take turns choosing a hero mask, reading the verse on the back. How does each verse from Isaiah 53 relate to the Savior? 

Bear your testimony of Jesus Christ and His role as the Savior of the world. What do these verses in Isaiah teach your about the Savior?

Closing Song: "Tis' sweet to sing the matchless love" (Hymns, 177)
Closing Prayer:
Refreshment: Pecan Pie cupcakes recipe here

Lesson 38: Isaiah 13-14; 24-30; 35

September 12-18
Isaiah 13-14; 24-30; 35
"A Marvelous Work and a Wonder"

Materials: stacks of sticky notes (1/ family member), 35 small plastic bathroom cups, printout, glue or tape
Opening Song: "The Spirit of God" (Hymns, 2)
Opening Prayer:

Attention Activity: (Give each family member a stack of at least 5 sticky notes.) We have been given many blessings because we are members of the church. We are going to go on a scavenger hunt to recognize these blessings. You can place a sticky note on anything we have in our home that we have because we are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. (i.e. scriptures, temple pictures, family proclamation, etc.)

Lesson:

In Luke 4:14, Jesus Christ teaches from the book of Isaiah. Nephi said, "My soul delighteth in the words of Isaiah" (2 Nephi 25:5) Last week, we talked about Isaiah used symbols in his writings to teach. Isaiah was not just a prophet; he was also a seer. He saw and wrote about things past, present, and future. 

In Isaiah 29, Isaiah foretells of future events for him: the destruction of Jerusalem, the apostasy,  and the restoration. What is the apostasy? What is the restoration? Because the priesthood was taken off the earth, the restoration was neccessary to bring to pass Heavenly Father's plan for all his children. Read Isaiah 29: 13-14. The marvelous work and wonder that Isaiah prophesied of is coming to pass through the restoration of the gospel in the latter-days where "the meek also shall increase their joy in the Lord, and the poor among men shall rejoice in the Holy One of Israel"(29:19).  Isaiah prophesied during the gathering of Israel, which is happening right now, "They also that erred in the spirit shall come to understanding, and they that murmured shall learn doctrine" (29:24). 

Activity: Restoration Cups

Note: There is 1 cup missing from this photo (the top cup)

Before FHE, print out the document below and cut each numbered phrase. Tape or glue each number onto the outside of 1 small plastic bathroom cup with the words facing downwards when the cup is upright. Label the top of each cup with the number indicated on the paper. 

Starting with cup #1 Jesus Christ you will build a tower with the cups to represent the church. You will have 2 rows of 7 across the bottom. The next row will have 6 cups, the next row 5, the next row 4, the next row 3, the next row 2, and the final cup should be the #35 temple ordinances cup in the middle on top. (I like to print out a small picture of our local temple to place on this cup and a picture of Christ to put on that cup.)

As you stack the cups, use these talking points to describe how Christ built his church. 

Christ is the cornerstone of the church. He has called prophets to help guide it from the beginning. Christ called 12 apostles to help him in his mortal ministry (name them). Christ set up the priesthood to include the offices of deacon, teacher, priest, bishop, elder, high priest, seventy, and evangelist or patriarch. Christ taught that His church should be named after Him. He taught about his Father, Heavenly Father, and in the Holy Ghost. He taught that the foundational doctrine of the church is faith, repentance, baptism, and receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost. He taught people to keep the commandments, and he instituted the sacrament. The Church of Jesus Christ believes in additional scripture to the Bible and, most importantly, that eternal exaltation is possible for those who make scared ordinances and covenants. 

What happened to Jesus Christ here on earth? He was crucified (remove that cup carefully from the tower). After Christ died, he was resurrected and he came back to talk to his apostles. Christs apostles continued to preach his gospel after Christ returned to heaven, but by by one they started to be killed. (Have family members one by one slowly start to remove the apostle cups on the bottom until the tower falls over.) Without proper priesthood authority, the Church of Christ fell. People tried to rebuild it, making churches based on some of the things Christ taught, but none could match Christ's original church. 

Then in the spring of 1820, a 14 year-old boy decided to pray to know which church was the true Church of Christ. What was his name? Joseph Smith would go on to be the Lord's prophet in the latter-days. Joseph Smith translated the Book of Mormon, received revelations we know of as the Doctrine and Covenants, and organized the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Christ's true church through proper priesthood authority and based on the doctrine of Christ. 

Bear your testimony of the restoration of the gospel. How has it a marvelous work and a wonder for you?

Closing Song: "Joseph Smith's First Prayer" (Hymns, 26)
Closing Prayer:
Refreshment: Cannoli Cupcakes recipe here