Monday, September 26, 2011

FHE: A Living Prophet

Discussion:
With General Conference approaching, we'll be talking about the significance of having a living Prophet and Apostles on the earth today and the blessings that come from following their counsel.

Activity:
Then we'll play a matching game to learn more about the members of the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.  (I pulled pictures and information from lds.org--look for the General Authorities section and you can read through their biographies.  Maybe one of these days, I'll figure out how to post the pdf here, but in the meantime, not that anyone actually reads this blog, but if you're interested in a copy of the game, leave a comment with your email and I'll send it to you.)

Testimony:
Bear testimony of the reality of a living prophet and the blessings that come from being able to receive direction from the Lord during General Conference.

Thursday, September 15, 2011

FHE: Love at Home

Discussion:
Home should be a place where we feel safe and happy--a place where we know we are loved and accepted, a place where we can learn from one another and enjoy each other's company.  What are some words that describe how you would like our home to feel?  (make a list together)

Activity:
Take turns acting out scenarios and deciding how we could deal with these problems differently to create a loving atmosphere in our home.  (Make it a "movie night" and have one person be the director for each scenario.  After acting it out, the director gets to say "cut" and tell the "actors" how to change the scene to make it better.  Then change roles, so everyone gets a turn to be the director.)

#1:  Josh and Tyson came running through the front door, obviously upset.  Josh is yelling about Tyson kicking the soccer ball right at him and hitting him in the stomach.  Tyson is yelling about how he made a goal and Josh said it didn't count. 

#2:  Allison's Dad asked her to come brush her teeth, but she was too busy telling a joke to her brother to hear him.  When Allison's Dad finally got her attention, she got upset because she didn't like having him tell her what to do so she screamed and stomped down the hall. 

#3:  Sam loved to play baseball.  It was his favorite game.  As soon as he got his homework done, he went outside to practice hitting the ball.  When Mom called him to come in and clean up for dinner, he was still having a great time.  Sam was so upset about having to leave his favorite game, that he slammed the door and kicked the wall on his way in to make sure everyone knew he was upset.  When Mom asked him to pick up his things and come to dinner, he yelled, "No" and slumped down on the couch, refusing to do anything. 

#4:  Cami and Jessica are getting ready to play a game and Cami wants to go first.  She tells Jessica that she won't play anything with her unless she gets to go first.

#5:  Mom asked Aaron to straigten the family room before it was time for dinner.  As he was cleaning, he found a piece of paper that would be perfect for a paper airplane, so he stopped what he was doing to make one.  When Mom came back and asked him to finish quickly, Aaron got upset and told her if she didn't always bug him about cleaning up, it would get done faster. 

Dicsussion:
The way that we deal with situations affects the atmosphere of our home.  Each of us can make a difference in our home by taking a minute to think about how we want to react.  We can think about the example of the Savior and how we would want others to treat us. 

Testimony:
-We can make our home a place of happiness and love as we treat each other kindly. 
-Heavenly Father wants us to become like Him.  We can pray for His help to be more kind and loving, more patient and forgiving.