A Family Lesson on the LDS General Conference talk "Now is the Time" by Elder Jack N. Gerard. This is how I taught and shared about making sure we are learning, seeking revelation, and trusting in God.
We discussed what goals we had as a family and personally, and why we needed to take a moment for Family Home Evening to make sure we were headed the right way.
This is how I did it:
Elder Gerard begins his talk telling a story about how he had a life threatening scare while on a business trip. He had a serious blood clot in his lung which required immediate attention while far from home and family.
Having had three blood clots myself, I can tell you how dangerous and scary these are. And when they get to the point of being in your lungs, that is the point where few survive.
Knowing Elder Gerard was far from home, and not sure if he was "prepared for such life altering events, the doctors said if there was anything in 'his life' that 'he' needed to consider, now was the time."(1)
While Elder Gerard had a life threatening scare, this time of year we have a tendency to look at our own lives and evaluate how we are doing.
Object lesson: (requires jar or vase, large rocks to fit in jar but also overflow at top)
- What are some goals that we make this time of year?
- As sisters respond with goals, place a rock inside the jar until overflowing. Continue to place rocks around jar as needed.
- How often do we feel like this in our lives? overwhelmed? not sure of our focus?
We don't need to have a scare or wait until the new year to assess our lives. Each Sunday while we take the Sacrament or each morning while we pray we can "take a step back from the world, reflect on where we stand on the covenant path, and, if necessary, make adjustments to ensure a firm grip (on the Iron Rod) and a forward gaze."(1)
As President Dallin H. Oaks taught us, we must assess and prioritize our choices each day. "We have to fore go some good things in order to choose others that are better or best." (2)
Elder Gerard has given us three ways to help us to do that in this talk.
FAMILIARIZE OURSELVES WITH DIVINE TRUTH
"Understanding our divine origins (and thus, divine truths) is essential to our eternal progress and can free us from the distractions of this life." (1)
The Family: a Proclamation to the World teaches us many truths about ourselves that can help us to not be distracted by the things of the world.
What are some of those truths? How can they apply to our lives?
- There is a God
- I am a child of God (I am loved and I matter)
- Gender is eternal
- Marriage
- Parents must teach children
The Family: a Proclamation to the World tells us that "parents have a sacred duty to rear their children in love and righteousness...and to teach them to love and serve one another (and) observe the commandments of God." (3)
- How do we teach what we do not know?
- How can we come to know eternal truths?
President Dallin H. Oaks has said "When we seek the truth about religion, we should use spiritual methods appropriate for that search: prayer, the witness of the Holy Ghost, and study of the scriptures and the words of modern prophets." (4)
- how has knowing the truth of who you are, why you are here, and where you are going impacted your life? your choices? given you comfort?
Elder Jefferey R. Holland urges us to "Hold fast to what you already know and stand strong until additional knowledge comes...In this church, what we know will always trump what we do not know." (5)
But when we need help, we can always turn to God
REVELATION
In April conference, President Nelson taught "If we are to have any hope of sifting through the myriad of voices and the philosophies of men that attack truth, we must learn to receive revelation." (6)
One thing I love about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints is that we aren't asked to blindly follow. We are encouraged to seek, pray, and find out for ourselves.
President Lorenzo Snow taught "This is the grand privilege of every Latter day Saint...that is our right to have the manifestations of the Spirit every day of our lives." (7)
President Nelson continues "Oh, there is so much more that your Father in Heaven warts you to know. As Elder Neal A. Maxwell taught, 'to those who have eyes to see and ears to hear, it is clear that the Father and the Son are giving away the secrets of the universe." (8)
But we must be tuned in to listen.
How do we make sure we are tuned in?
- Ask (we can't get answers to questions we don't ask.)
- Remove spiritual blocks (we can't listen if we are throwing a tantrum about the circumstances or think we know it all about how are life is to be.)
- Live a righteous life (prayer, temple attendance, scriptures)
- Understand what it feels like to receive (most answers are quite personal and undramatic)
Can use Joseph Smith's example if needed.
Why is revelation so vital to us in the Latter Days? How does it keep us on the covenant path?
Our prophet warns us that "in coming days, it will not be possible to survive spiritually without the guiding, directing, comforting, and constant influence of the Holy Ghost." (6)
TRUST IN THE LORD
We live in the last days of the earth. A time when evil is surrounding us on all sides. It's going to be hard. Even the prophet told us to take our vitamins and get our rest.
There are times when you think you can't do it all. There are times when you will be as overwhelmed as our jar of rocks.
But even then, we have a loving Father who wants us to remember that we are children of Him. We can turn to him in prayer and receive revelation. And we don't have to fear because with God, nothing is impossible.
This week in our Come Follow Me reading, we were to read the story of Zacharias and Elisabeth.
Can someone quickly tell that story? (Luke 1)
"From a mortal perspective, it was impossible. A Virgin could not conceive. Nor could a barren woman who was well past child bearing years. But God had a plan. So against all earthly odds, Mary and Elisabeth became mothers." (9)
Zacharias and Elisabeth had probably prayed for years for a child. With Zacharias being a priest, they probably wondered why they weren't blessed when they were doing what was right. But Heavenly Father had a plan AND a time.
How does these stories help us as we confront difficulties in our lives? How can we trust the Lord's timetable?
Don't be afraid to look at your life each week, even if it feels like you are far from the convent path.
Like Mary, sometimes Heavenly Father's plan is not what we had planned. Sometimes like Elisabeth, our time table is not His. Sometimes the hardest thing is to let go of what we want and trust in that the Lord's path is what will make us happiest.
"As we step back from the world and assess our lives, now is the time to consider what changes we need to make. We can take great hope in knowing that Jesus Christ has once again led the way. He tells us 'in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer: I have overcome the world." (1) John 16:33.
Handout:
I have added all the scripture graphics above to a half sheet of paper. I am planning to give these out to the sisters at the start of the lesson so they can add notes from the lesson to the back of the paper and then place the paper in their journal, scriptures, or the General conference Ensign issue.
I have added all the scripture graphics above to a half sheet of paper. I am planning to give these out to the sisters at the start of the lesson so they can add notes from the lesson to the back of the paper and then place the paper in their journal, scriptures, or the General conference Ensign issue.
Notes:
1. Jack N. Gerard, "Now is the Time" October, 2018
2. Dallin H. Oaks, "Good, Better, Best" October, 2007
3. The Family: A Proclamation to the World
4. Dallin H. Oaks, "Truth and the Plan" October, 2018
5. Jeffery R. Holland, "Lord, I Believe" April, 2013
6. Rusell M. Nelson "Revelation for the Church, Revelation for Our Lives" April, 2018
7. Teachings of the Presidents of the Church: Joseph Smith (2007), 303-94
8. Neal A. Maxwell, "Meek and Lowly" October, 1986
9. Come Follow Me (2018), 7
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