What is the purpose of this story?

What happened in these stories?

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Video: Dieter F. Uchtdorf, Your Happily Ever After (Begin at 3:39 minutes)

Why is Jesus Christ Important in my Life?

What did Jesus Christ teach?

What did Jesus Christ do?

What has Jesus Christ done for me?

What can we learn about Jesus Christ?

Visiting Teaching Lessons on Jesus Christ

January 2014

February 2014

March 2014

April 2014

June 2014

July 2014

August 2014

September 2014

October 2014

December 2014

January 2015

February 2015

March 2015

April 2015

June 2015

July 2015

August 2015

September 2015

October 2015

December 2015

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Jesus Christ was chosen to be our Savior. His Atonement makes it possible for us to be resurrected and to repent and be forgiven so we can return to our Heavenly Father’s presence. In addition to saving us from our sins, Jesus Christ, our Savior, also offers us peace and strength in times of trial. He sets the perfect example for us, and His teachings are the foundation for happiness in this life and eternal life in the world to come.

Video: Reclaimed

Why is Jesus Christ important in MY life?

Elder Dallin Oaks: What Think Ye of Christ?

How can I prepare to establish a Christ-centered home?

What is your day like?

How can I prepare to establish a Christ-centered home?

L Tom Perry:

Lessons taught in the home by goodly parents are becoming increasingly important in today’s world, where the influence of the adversary is so widespread. As we know, he is attempting to erode and destroy the very foundation of our society—the family. In clever and carefully camouflaged ways, he is attacking commitment to family life throughout the world and undermining the culture and covenants of faithful Latter-day Saints. Parents must resolve that teaching in the home is a most sacred and important responsibility. While other institutions such as church and school can assist parents to “train up a child in the way he [or she] should go” (Proverbs 22:6), this responsibility ultimately rests on the parents. According to the great plan of happiness, it is goodly parents who are entrusted with the care and development of Heavenly Father’s children.

Video: Motherhood: and Eternal Partnership with God

L Tom Perry:

In our remarkable parental stewardship, there are many ways that goodly parents can access the help and support they need to teach the gospel of Jesus Christ to their children. Let me suggest five things parents can do to create stronger family cultures:

First, parents can pray in earnest, asking our Eternal Father to help them love, understand, and guide the children He has sent to them.

Second, they can hold family prayer, scripture study, and family home evenings and eat together as often as possible, making dinner a time of communication and the teaching of values.

Third, parents can fully avail themselves of the Church’s support network, communicating with their children’s Primary teachers, youth leaders, and class and quorum presidencies. By communicating with those who are called and set apart to work with their children, parents can provide essential understanding of a child’s special and specific needs.

Fourth, parents can share their testimonies often with their children, commit them to keep the commandments of God, and promise the blessings that our Heavenly Father promises His faithful children.

Fifth, we can organize our families based on clear, simple family rules and expectations, wholesome family traditions and rituals, and “family economics,” where children have household responsibilities and can earn allowances so that they can learn to budget, save, and pay tithing on the money they earn.

Individual Worth    #4

You are preparing now to fulfill a unique mission on the earth. Read Doctrine and Covenants 88:119. In your journal make a list of your hopes and dreams for your future home, family, and education and some important things you would like to accomplish in your life, including becoming a wife and mother. Then write a plan that will help you achieve your goals. Share this plan with a family member, leader, or friend.

Video: A House of God

D&C 88:  119 Organize yourselves; prepare every needful thing; and establish a house, even a house of prayer, a house of fasting, a house of faith, a house of learning, a house of glory, a house of order, a house of God;

Discussion:

Invite the young women to describe what they think a Christ-centered home is like. What would they see there? What would they feel there? Ask them to suggest answers to the question “How can I prepare to establish a Christ-centered home?”

Ask the young women what they think the role of mothers is in building the kingdom of God. Invite them to think about their own mothers and other mothers they know and share some of the qualities they have that the young women would like to emulate (for examples of qualities, see Proverbs 31:10–31). 

Whose Conversion Story is this?

1. As I was going to arrest followers of Jesus, I heard the voice of Jesus Christ.  I became blind but received his sight again when he followed the Lord’s command to find a man with priesthood power to heal him.  My testimony of Christ became so strong I was willing to die for it.

2. As I was going about secretly trying to destroy the church of God, I saw an angel who scolded me and commanded him to stop.  I became weak and helpless and unconscious for two days.  During this time I had visions of Christ and I repented.  I became a great leader and missionary.

3. I had a high position in a king’s court.  When a prophet came to preach to the king, the court and the people that they must repent, I believed the prophet’s words and followed Jesus Christ.  I baptized many even though it meant I had to give up my privileged life and run away for my own safety.

 4. I met Jesus Christ and was surprised when he asked me to fetch him a drink because he was a Jew and I was a Samaritan and Jews usually shunned Samaritans.  I was confused when he told me he had living water, but as he spoke to me and taught me I understood that he was the Messiah.  I went and told everyone that he was the Christ

 5. I married a man from a foreign country with a foreign God.  When he died I stayed with my mother-in-law to serve and care for her.  I later remarried and was accepted as an Israelite, being blessed for my faith and kindness.  I was an ancestor of Jesus Christ.

 6. I thought a lot about the gospel that my father had taught me and it touched my heart.  One day, when I was out in the forest, I decided to pray and ask forgiveness for my sins.  I was sincere and felt that the Lord forgave me.  After feeling this redemption, I continued to pray and was taught many things through the Holy Ghost.

 7. I always believed in my Heavenly Father, but as I obeyed his commandments and did what I thought was right, I gradually came to have more and more knowledge.  My choices helped me play an important role in the plan of salvation for all mankind.

8. I was the wife of a prophet and followed him through a long journey.  Although my faith was shaken when I thought my sons had died while serving an errand for the Lord, I came to understand God’s strength, even the power of deliverance.

Women and the Priesthood

Who are we?

Man was also in the beginning with God. Intelligence, or the light of truth, was not created or made, neither indeed can be. [D&C 93:29]

We existed in some form before God created us as the beings that we are now.

ALL HUMAN BEINGS—male and female—are created in the image of God. Each is a beloved spirit son or daughter of heavenly parents, and, as such, each has a divine nature and destiny. Gender is an essential characteristic of individual premortal, mortal, and eternal identity and purpose. [The Family: A Proclamation to the World]

Our gender, male or female, is an essential part of us that has been since before we were created as human beings.

What is the purpose of earth life?

And I, the Lord God, spake unto Moses, saying: That Satan, whom thou hast commanded in the name of mine Only Begotten, is the same which was from the beginning, and he came before me, saying—Behold, here am I, send me, I will be thy son, and I will redeem all mankind, that one soul shall not be lost, and surely I will do it; where fore give me thine honor.

But, behold, my Beloved Son, which was my Beloved and Chosen from the beginning, said unto me—Father, thy will be done, and the glory be thine forever.

Wherefore, because that Satan rebelled against me, and sought to destroy the agency of man, which I, the Lord God, had given him, and also, that I should give unto him mine own power; by the power of mine Only Begotten, I caused that he should be cast down;[Moses 4: 1-3]

Our life on earth is a continuation of the battles in heaven.  Satan tempts us to join his side, God and his Son invite us to follow them in order to receive blessings now, and return to Him and enjoy many blessings in eternity. Here is where we choose the life that we want to have forever.

For behold, this is my work and my glory—to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man. [Moses 1: 39]

Honor to God isn't bragging rights, trophies, or admiration.  His glory comes when he can exalt his family to live with Him with life eternal.

 And he that receiveth my Father receiveth my Father’s kingdom; therefore all that my Father hath shall be given unto him. [D&C 84:38]

 How does life on Earth prepare us for Eternal Life?

Experience, trials, connection to others- God's plan does not involve leaving us here on our own without help.  His power is not only on this earth, but in each of us.

The September 2015 Relief Society Message testifies of Jesus Christ as one who is powerful and full of glory.  It asks women to consider the question, "How does the power of God arm us with power and glory?"  The first reference suggested for further reading is a Priesthood session talk.  Why do you think they would put that as a reference for an article directed at women?

What is the priesthood?

The priesthood is the eternal power and authority of our Heavenly Father. Through the priesthood, God created and governs the heavens and earth. Through this power He redeems and exalts His children. [Come Follow Me Young Women Lessons, June]

Do men have this "eternal power and authority of our Heavenly Father"?  Do women?

Why do we, in the church, often compare Motherhood to Priesthood, instead of Fatherhood?

What callings would you want?  Nursery Leader? Sacrament meeting greeter?  Bishop?

We shouldn't spend our energies pining after a calling, and understand that the Lord with help us to fulfill whatever He asks us to do (see 1 Ne 3:7)

He will help us to fulfill our callings as men and women, too.

In order to have harmony, there needs to be at least two parts.  Women and men have unique qualities that compliment each other without 'being' each other.  

In addition to helping each other, our roles strengthen us as individuals.

We are not here to compete, but to complete each other.

We don't always know why the Lord has created his plan the exact way that he has, but we can find the meanings when we fulfill the roles that He has told us will help us fulfill our potential.

In a World....

Who is this?

Who is this?

Who is this?

...the first two of [the Ten] commandments direct our worship and our priorities. In the first, the Lord commanded, “Thou shalt have no other gods before me” (Exodus 20:3). Centuries later, when Jesus was asked, “Which is the great commandment in the law?” He answered, “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind” (Matthew 22:36–37).


The second of the Ten Commandments elaborates the direction to have no other gods and identifies what should be the ultimate priority in our lives as His children. “Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing” in the heavens or the earth . The commandment then adds, “Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them”. More than merely forbidding physical idols, this states a fundamental priority for all time. Jehovah explains, “For I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, … shewing mercy unto … them that love me, and keep my commandments”. The meaning of jealous is revealing. Its Hebrew origin means “possessing sensitive and deep feelings”. Thus we offend God when we “serve” other gods—when we have other first priorities.

I.

What other priorities are being “served” ahead of God by persons—even religious persons—in our day? Consider these possibilities, all common in our world:

• Cultural and family traditions
• Political correctness
• Career aspirations
• Material possessions
• Recreational pursuits
• Power, prominence, and prestige

If none of these examples seems to apply to any one of us, we can probably suggest others that do. The principle is more important than individual examples. The principle is not whether we have other priorities. The question posed by the second commandment is “What is our ultimate priority?” 

What are some things that might 

overshadow eternal life as our first priority?

How can we overcome putting these 

priorities above serving our Heavenly Father?

Video: Dare to stand alone

Matthew 5: 14-16

 14 Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.

 15 Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.

 16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.

Video: The Lost Purse

Choice and Accountability   

3

Agency, or the ability to choose, is one of God’s greatest gifts to His children. Read about agency in Joshua 24:15; 2 Nephi 2; and Doctrine and Covenants 82:2–10. With a parent or leader, discuss the blessings and responsibilities of agency. Record in your journal your understanding of agency and the consequences of choices and actions.

An ordinance is a sacred, formal act that has spiritual meaning. Ordinances are performed by the authority of the priesthood and under the direction of those who hold priesthood keys. 

Some ordinances are essential to our exaltation. These ordinances are called saving ordinances.

Which of the following ordinances are "saving ordinances?"

Naming and blessing children

Baptism

Dedication of a grave

Dedication of a church building or home

Father's Blessings

Temple Endowment

Setting apart (for a calling)

The Sacrament

Confirmation of the Holy Ghost

Consecrating oil/ Anointing/ Sealing an anointing

Ordination to the Priesthood

Patriarchal Blessing

Temple Marriage Sealing

The ordinances of baptism, confirmation, Melchizedek Priesthood ordination (for men), the temple endowment, and temple sealing are required for exaltation for all accountable persons. These are called the saving ordinances. As part of each saving ordinance, the recipient makes covenants with God.