Honoring and Learning from our Veterans: Obedience

It has been a fun day for our little family! I apologize for getting this out so late. My goal for the upcoming weeks is to have the FHE lesson posted on Thursday so that there is more time to prep. But, for tonight this will have to do. Family comes first and today belonged to them!
We wanted to honor the veterans that have fought and continue to fight to protect our freedoms. My little family is safe and allowed to live in a free country because of those men and women that choose to give of their time to defend what is so important to us. We appreciate those families that have sacrificed time with their loved one or even lost their family members all in protecting this great nation. Tonight we honor and remember our veterans! Thank you!

Opening Song: A little different tonight but this really set the tone for our family. Listen and watch this video by The Piano Guys found here. "Bring Him Home"
You may also want to share the lyrics of this song with your family. You can find them here.

Lesson:
Today is Memorial Day, a holiday set aside to remember those that have fought to protect our freedoms. Many men and women fought during WWII to protect freedom. This included Elder Tom L. Perry. Share this story of obedience with your family.

I received a special gift last Christmas that brought with it many memories. My niece gave it to me. It had been among the things I had left in our old family home when I moved out after I was married. The gift was this little brown book I hold in my hand. It is a book that was given to LDS servicemen who entered the armed forces during World War II. I personally viewed the book as a gift from President Heber J. Grant and his counselors, J. Reuben Clark Jr. and David O. McKay.

In the front of the book, these three prophets of God wrote: “The incidents of the armed service do not permit our keeping in constant personal touch with you, either directly or by personal representation. Our next best course is to put in your hands such portions of modern revelation and of explanations of the principles of the Gospel as shall bring to you, wherever you may be, renewed hope and faith, as likewise comfort, consolation, and peace of spirit.”¹

Today we find ourselves in another war. This is not a war of armaments. It is a war of thoughts, words, and deeds. It is a war with sin, and more than ever we need to be reminded of the commandments. Secularism is becoming the norm, and many of its beliefs and practices are in direct conflict with those that were instituted by the Lord Himself for the benefit of His children.

In the little brown book, immediately after the letter from the First Presidency, there is a “Prefatory Note to Men in the Service,” titled “Obedience to Law Is Liberty.” The note draws a parallel between military law, which is “for the good of all who are in the service,” and divine law.

It states, “In the universe, too, where God is in command, there is law—universal, eternal … law—with certain blessings and immutable penalties.”

The final words of the note focus on obedience to God’s law: “If you wish to return to your loved ones with head erect, … if you would be a man and live abundantly—then observe God’s law. In so doing you can add to those priceless freedoms which you are struggling to preserve, another on which the others may well depend, freedom from sin; for truly ‘obedience to law is liberty."

 

The whole talk can be found here.  It's a great talk!

 

Questions to ask:

Why was the little brown book important?

How can our lives be blessed if we live obediently?

 

Watch the following Mormon Message. Ask your family to think about OBEDIENCE. What is this video teaching us about obedience and why is it important?

Video can be found here.

 

Goal for this week:

"I will be more obedient by..."

 

Activity:

Tonight our family wrote "Thank You" cards to the veterans in our ward family. We want to make sure they know we appreciate their example of sacrifice, service, obedience.

 

Tonight's Treat:

 

Watermelon!!!!!

Welcome summer!

 

Hope you had a great Memorial Day and fabulous FHE!

 

Love,

Amanda

 

 

 

 

 

 

Faith

This month in primary we have been learning about the principles and ordinances of the gospel of Jesus Christ. I am the primary chorister and decided I would teach the song "Faith" this month to go with that theme. With that in mind I decided tonight's FHE would be on Faith. This lesson is for my nephews... they are all so much fun and I thought they might like our activity tonight. So here we go...


Opening Song: The Fourth Article of Faith Children's Song Book Page 124

Lesson:
Start by printing off the following picture and cutting the boat into 5 pieces. (Each piece has a scripture on it)

You will use this puzzle to teach about Faith.

Introduce the topic:
Ask your family what faith means to them. Tell the following story found in a talk given by Elder Tuttle in a 1986 General Conference. The full talk can be found here. It would be fun to have a picture of a space shuttle as well like the one below...

I was told of a conversation by a Primary teacher, who related what transpired in his class. He was teaching the eleven-year-olds. He asked the question, “Suppose the Lord asked you to build a spaceship big enough to take you and your family and provisions off this planet? Could you do it?”

Steve spoke up and said, “Yes.”

And the teacher said, “Have you ever built a spaceship?”

“No.”

“Have you ever built a model spaceship?”

“No.”

“Have you ever seen one?”

Steve said, “Yes, on TV.” But then he declared, “You said the Lord told me to build it. If the Lord told me to build it, I could do it.”

Questions to ask:
Why was Steve so confident that he could build a space ship?
How would he do it?
How would the Lord help Steve?

Object Lesson:
Using the puzzle pieces continue talking about Faith.
There are 5 steps to building our Faith in our Savior Jesus Christ.
First, we must BELIEVE..
Lay out the bottom of the sailboat with the word "believe" on it. Have the family turn to the scripture listed and then discuss.
Next, we must ACT.  Lay out the mast and read and discuss the scripture.
Third, we must PRAY. Lay out the sail and read and discuss the scripture.
Fourth, we must STUDY. Lay out the sail and read and discuss the scripture.
Last, we must CHOOSE THE RIGHT always. Lay out the final flag and read and discuss the scripture.
Thoughts to share:
Just like Nephi was commanded to build a boat the Lord has things for us to do and with FAITH we can do them. We must strengthen our faith by doing the things we talked about as we built our boat and if we do we will be successful just as Nephi was in building his boat.

Ask your family for other examples of faith in the scriptures.

Goal for this week:
"I will build my faith in Jesus Christ by..."

Activity:
Soap Boat Races
Build soap boats with your family as shown here.
You can race them in a gutter like the blogger suggests or we have a park near by that has a little shallow stream running through it that we will race our boats in. It is supposed to rain here today so we could even race them out in front of our house in the rain gutter ;) or just use the bath tub to have some sail boat fun. Do what works for your family!

Closing Song: Nephi's Courage Children's Song Book Page 120

Tonight's Treat:
Brownie Mud Pie

Make your favorite brownie recipe or brownie mix. Follow recipe instructions EXCEPT bake in a 9x13 pan for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
Allow brownies to cool.
Thaw a container of Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream for about 20 minutes or until you can spread it.
Spread over the brownies and place in freezer to set.
Melt 3/4 cup chocolate chips with a 1/2 cup whipping cream. I just put them in a bowl, microwave for about 1 minute and then stir until melted. Spread this mixture over the top of the ice cream and brownies. Return to freezer to set.
Make 1 cup of fresh whipped cream or buy a container of cool whip.
Spread on top of brownie, ice cream, and chocolate. Put in freezer to set.
Serve!
Store in freezer!
I actually made mine in a 7x11 pan so the brownies were thicker and then only used about half the container of ice cream and we really enjoyed it this way.

Hope you have a great Family Home Evening1

Love,
Amanda

100 Years of FHE!

Did you know that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints admonished us to hold "family night" once a week 100 years ago? Family Night or Family Home Evening is a time to gather our little ones around us and teach them of our Savior and the love He has for each of us. It should be a fun evening not something that is dreaded... easier said than done right?! So for tonight's Family Home Evening let's celebrate! In our home we are going to have a little birthday party for FHE. Here is our plan...

Opening Song: Family Night Children's Song Book 195

Introduction: Read a portion of the original letter sent to members of the church encouraging them to begin holding Family Night. It can be found in the April 2015 Ensign Magazine here.
One of my favorite points from this letter is that Family Night should "studiously avoid stiffness and formality". Family Home Evening should be fun.
Questions to Ask: How can we make FHE more fun in our family while still centering it on our Savior?
I also loved this promise that we will discuss: " If the Saints obey this counsel, we promise that great blessings will result. Love at home and obedience to parents will increase. Faith will be developed in the hearts of the youth of Israel, and they will gain power to combat the evil influences and temptations which beset them."
What great promised blessings are in store if we consistently come together as a family!

Lesson: Continue the discussion on the importance of FHE. Choose a few quotes from some of the prophets to have family members read. They can be found here.
My favorite quote was from President Monson that came from a talk he gave in 2005 called: "Constant Truths for Changing Times". Here's the portion of the talk that focuses on FHE:

I begin with family home evening. We cannot afford to neglect this heaven-inspired program. It can bring spiritual growth to each member of the family, helping him or her to withstand the temptations which are everywhere. The lessons learned in the home are those that last the longest. As President Gordon B. Hinckley and his predecessors have stated, “The home is the basis of a righteous life, and no other instrumentality can take its place nor fulfill its essential functions.” ²

Dr. Glenn J. Doman, noted author and medical authority, wrote: “The newborn child is almost an exact duplicate of an empty … computer, although superior to such a computer in almost every way. … What is placed in the child’s [mind] during the first eight years of life is probably there to stay. … If you put misinformation into his [mind] during [this period], it is extremely difficult to erase it.” Dr. Doman added that the most receptive age in human life is that of two or three years. ³

I like this thought: “Your mind is a cupboard, and you stock the shelves.” Let us make certain that our cupboard shelves, and those of our family members, are stocked with the things which will provide safety to our souls and enable us to return to our Father in Heaven. Such shelves could well be stocked with gospel scholarship, faith, prayer, love, service, obedience, example, and kindness

 

The full talk can be found here.

Activity:
 Favorite Family Home Evenings
You will need:
1 Jar or other container
Popsicle Sticks or Slips of Paper
Markers, Pens

What to do: I thought it would be fun as part of our celebration tonight to create a jar full of our favorite FHE activities. There are some great ideas on the church's website here. Have each family member write down some of their favorite things to do for family night (one per popsicle stick or slip of paper). Read what everyone has written to make sure you don't have any duplicates. Then, drop them in the container and use them to plan future FHE activities. I will post a picture of ours tomorrow after we have made it.

Closing Song: Families Can Be Together Forever C.S.B. (Page 188)

Tonight's Treat:
Black Forest Trifle from "A Baker's Wife"
Recipe Found here.