Everyday object lessons

I will have a 2 pieces of paper. We will be drawing 2 houses. One will be drawn with permanent markers and the other will be drawn with water-soluble. We will read the story from two different sections, Matthew 5:24-27 and Luke 6: 46-48. They both offer some interesting insights. As we draw and fill in the houses, we will talk about the symbolism of the different parts, the foundation, the rock, the sand, the house, the floods and rain and the great fall of the house. Each boy will get a chance to draw something onto the picture.

We will take the pictures outside or someplace where it won’t make too much of a mess and then spray the pictures with a water gun or squirt bottle to represent the floods and rain. Of course the water soluble pix will run off the paper. The permanent marker will not be ruined.

This is specifically how I will teach my 8-11 yr old boys the story of the temptations of Jesus and other concepts about temptation. You can change the lesson to fit your circumstances. My objective for this lesson is to cover some simple concepts
1) Temptation is influence of Satan to choose the wrong behavior. We have the age (over eight) and mental ability (not handicapped) to know right from wrong and are accountable. It is a battle within our heart and mind of whether to choose Satan or choose God.
2) When we choose Satan we choose darkness for our spirit, when we choose God, we choose light and companionship of the Holy Ghost.
3) Tell the simple JST translation story of Jesus’ temptation after the 40 day fast
4) Repeat the scripture many times: get thee behind me Satan

Here’s how I want to do that
On the flannel board have 3 scenes, each one of the 3 different temptations of Jesus. On the wall or door or board have the word temptation and then a line leading to a picture of the Savior and another line with nothing on the end.

Our classroom can go entirely dark, so each boy will have a flashlight to shine on the flannel story or board.

1. Hand out the flashlights very soon after walking in. Give instructions that they are to shine the flashlight on the item that I tell them, or they lose the flashlight and if they flash in someone else’s face, they lose their light. I will probably give them a second chance after awhile, but I’m not going to tell them that! Turn off the lights and ask them to check that the light works. Tell them we have a very special, fun lesson where we get to use the flashlights in the dark, so lets get thru the other things quickly so we have lots of time to use the flashlights.

2. Cover any announcements and other things as needed.

3) Turn off the lights. Shine on the word temptation and discuss the simple definition. When we talk about the battle going on in our heart and mind, then they get to go wild with the light all over the room and we when we say, Get thee behind me Satan, then all the lights shine on the pix of the Savior. One time we will illustrate that choosing Satan’s influence leaves our spirit in darkness and everyone will turn off their light.

4) Have someone read the stories of the temptations of Christ – the Joseph Smith Translation gives a better detail so I will use that. As we get to each one the boys can shine the lights on the flannel board.

5) Reinforce the idea that thru our whole life we will have temptations. Satan will influence us to behave different than we know is right. We must do as Jesus taught us and say to ourselves, Get thee behind me Satan and then have courage and choose God. Use the lights on the words and pix on the board.

6) Find one or two stories that give illustration of temptation and how the choice brought the person more light. And then do step 5 again. Maybe there is a primary song we can sing that goes with this too.

You need 2 pair of scissors for this lesson. One should be dull and maybe toddler type scissors that would only cut paper. The other should be fabric scissors. Also have a piece of heavy duty fabric – like canvas The topic of the lesson would be something about being instruments in the hands of God. Both of these are instruments, and both are tools for cutting. Have someone demonstrate how nearly impossible it is to cut a piece of fabric with the first pair, but how easily the other scissors cuts thru the fabric.

Develop the story in whatever way you need to in describing the difference between the two. One example would be that all people on earth have the capacity to be instruments for God. We can bring joy to others, we can contribute to peace in the family or neighborhood, we can help teach others or tend the earth and animals. Those are all beneficial. The toddler scissors are able to cut paper.

Those who have taken the covenants of baptism or received the priesthood or taken temple covenants are then obligated and called to be a different and very specific kind of instrument. We are preparing the world for the coming of Christ. We must find the sheep who will hear his voice. We must actively use and bless the earth with the proper priesthood power and ordinances.

Then add whatever scriptures and other examples fit your needs.

Idea from a speech by Sheri Rose Shepherd
For the object, get a sharp knife and hold it up from the sharp end as you give the story You know how toddlers are very curious and they ask lots of questions and they want to touch and get into everything because they are learning about everything in life.

Imagine if you had a toddler exploring around in the kitchen and you find your toddler holding onto a very sharp knife by the sharp end. Your heart leaps and you know you need to act quickly but carefully so the child doesn’t injure himself. The worst thing would be to scream and yell and grab the knife away. What you would probably do is to speak very softly and request the child give you the knife and maybe use something else to distract the child until you can safely remove it from view.

This is how God works with us in our school of learning called life. Many times we are like toddlers and getting into all sorts of things that could cause us great injury and harm. God calls us with a still small voice and gently seeks to persuade us to leave those things alone.

Add to this beginning any scriptures or more elaboration on the story so it fits with your lesson

This is for a lesson on Malachi in the Old Testament and discussing the windows of heaven and that all things belong to God. First I will pass out some legos to each student. Each student is instructed to build a little house with a window in it.

In olden days it was a custom on feast days and weddings and other big celebrations for the rich people to open their upstairs windows and throw gold and silver coins to the people below. Maybe this is where the idea of “windows of heaven pouring down blessings” came from.

As the students build, I will ask them who owns the legos. I can ask for all of them back, or a few back or give them to permission to build something of their own choice, or like now they are building something that I ask for. But either way, they don’t need to feel like they are losing anything because the legos all belong to me.

Ask them to each give 2 bricks back and when they do – give them a handful more in return.

When they finish their houses, make a few two story versions as an illustration of the people opening their upstairs windows.

Continue the discussion and reading the scriptures in Malachi. Discuss how all things belong to God just like the legos belonged to me and then discuss tithing and offerings. Build the lesson from there…….

This was a sharing time in primary. I adapted it a bit for our Family Home Evening. Get a clear bowl or clear glass pitcher and fill with water. Get two oranges. You could draw a face on the orange if you want too. Put the oranges in the pitcher to show that they float. Go the scriptures in Ephesians and read thru the portion on the armour of God. You can include as much or as little of this as you have time for. Have class members come up with things both that strengthen or represent the armour of God, and things that weaken or distress the armour of God. Each time you discuss something that weakens the armour, cut a slice off of the orange peel. Keep going until the whole orange is peeled.

Keep the other orange whole. Float the two a few times during the lesson to see how they are doing. When the whole orange is peeled, the orange without the armour sinks to the bottom.

Idea from Zig Ziglar
Its human nature to follow what your friends, pastors, leaders, parents DO more than what they say. That’s why your actions are so much more important than talking. Here is a little game that illustrates this perfectly. Have your class or audience do this: “I want you to follow what I say here. Hold your hands up in front of you…….now when I say go – clap them together……Let’s start…….ONE……..TWO……..THREE (you clap your hands together)……..GO!” Your audience is going to clap their hands together when you do – not when you say GO. So then you can point out to them that they followed what you did. They did not follow what you said!

Source: Heather M. K.
Object lesson on priesthood authority. Teaches that in order to perform the ordinances necessary to gain eternal life you must have the proper priesthood keys given by the proper authorities. Take a “Master” lock and attach a sign to it that says “Eternal Life”. The only way to get the “Eternal Life” is if you unlock the lock. Have several keys that you can give to a class member and let him/her take one and pass the rest to the person beside them. That person takes one and passes the rest until they are all passed out. Then discuss how the keys of the priesthood are passed from one individual to another worthy individual. Once the keys are passed ask a person without a key to unlock the lock to gain eternal life. He/She will not be able to because he/she doesn’t have a key. Then give the lock to the person that has the correct key. Then discuss how other churches say they have the power to gain eternal life, but are unable to do so because they don’t have the authority given by God.

Submitted by: Robin Guthrie
After many lessons on explaining a testimony, I did this for my YW class: I played a game with the YW with about 20 questions of general and interesting things to know about the organization, history and doctrines of the Church (Some easy and some a little harder and interesting. ie–How old was Joseph Smith when he received the First Vision? How old was Pres. Monson when he was called to the Quorum of the 12? Who is the current prophet?) We played this game for most of class time, and then the last question I asked was “What is the difference between knowing the answers to these questions and a testimony?” Basically I was trying to teach the girls that you can know all of the answers to our game, but still not have a testimony if you don’t DO the things we’re asked to do. The adversary and his angels KNOW all of the answers to the questions we asked. They know Pres. Hinckley is the prophet today and that Joseph Smith restored the Gospel. The testimony comes when you have the faith to DO what Heavenly Father has asked us to do.

Then I talked to them about the story behind “I am a Child of God” song. Originally the words read “Teach me all that I must know to live with Him someday,” but President Spencer W. Kimball said that that’s not enough–we have to DO. I challenged them to keep the commandments and test these truths for themselves.

Both of these lessons are similar so I am putting them together. How the lesson is expounded upon is up to your own creativity……

First you have a balloon and it can be easily popped with a pin.  Contrast that with a rock that cannot be popped by a pin.  This could be temptation, a testimony, faith, just be imaginative.

Next is the comparison between a raw egg and if you drop it, it flows all over and a hard boiled egg doesn’t fall apart when dropped.  Again, this idea could be worked into different lessons.