The Restoration and Powerful Prayer

This month in primary (our church's meetings for children age 3-11) our theme is the Restoration of Christ's church through Joseph Smith. With this in mind I thought it would be good for my little family to talk about the first vision and the power of prayer in our own lives. I know that our Savior and Heavenly Father appeared to young Joseph and through him restored the same church that existed in our Savior's time, even Christ's church. I want my little Madi to gain this testimony and its through prayer that each of us can do that. Prayer is such a powerful tool and since we talked about prayer a little last week as part of our "Testimony Toolbox" I wanted to expand on it. I hope this family home evening will help us all to remember the importance of prayer and what happened in the Sacred Grove when a young boy knelt seeking answers.

Tonight's Lesson: The Restoration and Powerful Prayer

Opening Song: Family Prayer Children's Songbook Page 189

Introduction: Play "Name That Prophet" Using a picture of Jospeh Smith like the one found here. Print it out and cover it with the puzzle pieces I have created. Read the facts  I have put together about Joseph and  have a family member take off one piece after each fact.  See if they can guess who the prophet is from the facts and the picture that will eventually be uncovered.
Fact Sheet: Use or create your own!

Puzzle Pieces to cover your picture of Joseph Smith. It should open as a JPeg and you can make it the size you need it or just write numbers on a piece of paper... keep it simple.

 

After uncovering the picture and talking about the prophet and what your family already knows read this story that Elder Uchtdorf shared in general conference in 2005. Full talk can be found here. You may need to give some background so that your family understands the story. What is an organ? Have you seen ______ playing it on Sunday. Organs used to be powered by young men instead of electricity.

The Zwickau chapel had an old air-driven organ. Every Sunday a young man was assigned to push up and down the sturdy lever operating the bellows to make the organ work. Even before I was an Aaronic Priesthood bearer, I sometimes had the great privilege to assist in this important task.

While the congregation sang our beloved hymns of the Restoration, I pumped with all my strength so the organ would not run out of wind. The eyes of the organist unmistakably indicated whether I was doing fine or needed to increase my efforts quickly. I always felt honored by the importance of this duty and the trust that the organist had placed in me. It was a wonderful feeling of accomplishment to have a responsibility and to be part of this great work.

There was an additional benefit that came from this assignment: the bellows operator sat in a seat that offered a great view of a stained-glass window that beautified the front part of the chapel. The stained glass portrayed the First Vision, with Joseph Smith kneeling in the Sacred Grove, looking up toward heaven and into a pillar of light.

During the hymns of the congregation and even during talks and testimonies given by our members, I often looked at this depiction of a most sacred moment in world history. In my mind’s eye I saw Joseph receiving knowledge, witness, and divine instructions as he became a blessed instrument in the hand of our Heavenly Father.

I felt a special spirit while looking at the beautiful scene in this window picture of a believing young boy in a sacred grove who made a courageous decision to earnestly pray to our Heavenly Father, who listened and responded lovingly to him.

Here I was, a young boy in post–World War II Germany, living in a city in ruins, thousands of miles away from Palmyra in North America and more than a hundred years after the event actually took place. By the universal power of the Holy Ghost, I felt in my heart and in my mind that it was true, that Joseph Smith saw God and Jesus Christ and heard Their voices. The Spirit of God comforted my soul at this young age with an assurance of the reality of this sacred moment that resulted in the beginning of a worldwide movement destined to “roll forth, until it has filled the whole earth” (D&C 65:2). I believed Joseph Smith’s testimony of that glorious experience in the Sacred Grove then, and I know it now. God has spoken to mankind again!

Questions to ask:
What did Elder Uchtdorf learn as he pumped the organ for his congregation?

Read the story of the First Vision found in Joseph Smith History 1:10, 11-12, 13, 16, 17. You could also watch The Restoration movie the Church has put out. It can be found here. It was one of my favorite DVDs to show on my mission.
Discuss with your family the importance of this prayer.
If you have older children and longer attention spans I really enjoyed this video clip on the importance of the restoration found here.

Questions to ask:
How can prayer help us in our own lives?

Share this story from the Friend told by Elder Faust. Full Friend article can be found here.

Family prayer is a powerful and sustaining influence [a long-lasting power to help us change for good]. During the dark days of World War II, a 500-pound [225-kg] bomb fell outside the little home of Brother Patey, a young father in Liverpool, England, but the bomb did not go off. His wife had died, so he was rearing his five children alone. He gathered them together at this very anxious time for family prayer. They “all prayed … earnestly and when they had finished praying, the children said: ‘Daddy, we will be all right. We will be all right in our home tonight.’

“And so they went to bed, imagine, with that terrific bomb lying just outside the door half submerged in the ground. If it had gone off it would have destroyed probably forty or fifty houses and killed two or three hundred people. …

“The next morning the … whole neighborhood was removed for forty-eight hours and the bomb was finally taken away. …

“On the way back Brother Patey asked the foreman of the [bomb disposal] squad: ‘Well, what did you find?’

“‘Mr. Patey, we got at the bomb outside of your door and found it ready to explode at any moment. There was nothing wrong with it. We are puzzled why it did not go off’” (Andre K. Anastasiou, in Conference Report, Oct. 1946, 26). Miraculous things happen when families pray together.

 

Questions to ask:

How did prayer help this family in the story?

What are some things we should include in our prayers?

 

Activity Idea: It might be fun to go on a "Prayer Walk". Go outside with your family and find things to include in your prayers. Ideas... neighbors who might need a specific blessing, gratitude for beautiful creations, or gratitude for home and each other.

 

This Week's Goal:

We will show faith like Joseph Smith as we pray to our Heavenly Father.

 

Closing Song: Joseph Smith's First Prayer LDS Hymn Book Pg 26

 

Tonight's Treat:

 

Nutella Brownies

 (We served these to the missionaries from our church tonight and they are missionary approved!)

Recipe found here.