| Sharing Time
"Follow Me"
Friend,
July 2003
By Vicki F. Matsumori
Ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ
Jesus (Galatians 3:26).
Peter and Andrew earned
their living by catching fish. One day as they cast their nets into
the Sea of Galilee, they saw
Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus said to them, "Follow me." Even though
Peter and Andrew were in the middle of their work, "they straightway
[immediately] left their nets, and followed him."
Jesus then invited two other fishermen, James
and John, to follow Him, and they too "immediately left the ship and their father, and followed
him." (See Matthew
4:18–22.)
Have you ever wondered what you would do
if you saw the Savior and He called to you, "Follow me"?
Would you leave what you were doing to follow Him?
Today we are also invited to follow the Savior. How can we follow Him?
We follow Jesus Christ when we have faith in Him, repent of our wrongdoings,
and are baptized. We follow Him when we listen to the promptings of the
Holy Ghost, the words of the living prophet, and the wise counsel of
our parents. We follow Him when we choose the right.
Just like His disciples of old, we will be
blessed when we answer the Savior's call to "follow me." Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin of the
Quorum of the Twelve Apostles said, "I . . . give you my witness
that those who, in faith, . . . follow the Savior will experience happiness
beyond their ability to comprehend [understand]" (Ensign, May 2002,
17).
Scripture Maze
- Mount page 36 on heavy paper; then cut out the large rectangle
and the individual maze pieces.
- Locate the scripture referred to on each maze piece, read it,
find the person or persons mentioned in that scripture on the large
rectangle,
and glue that piece of the maze on that part of the large rectangle.
- Find the path that leads to the Savior.
- Display the maze as a reminder of your choice to follow Jesus
Christ.
Click on the image below to view an enlargement.
When the image appears, click your browser's print button to print the
image.
[illustration] Illustrated by Thomas S. Child and Beth M. Whittaker
Alma and Helam are baptized. |
The 2,000 warriors do not doubt. |
Paul testifies of Jesus Christ. |
Nephi tells his father that he will obey the Lord. |
Enos prays and is blessed. |
Peter and Andrew put down their nets and follow the Savior. |
The sons of Mosiah search the scriptures. |
Jacob goes to the temple. |
Jesus' disciples partake of the sacrament. |
Ten lepers obey and are healed. |
Naaman obeys the prophet Elisha. |
The children of Israel keep the Sabbath day holy. |
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Sharing Time Ideas
(Note: All songs are from Children's Songbook
(CS) unless otherwise
indicated; GAK = Gospel Art Kit; TNGC = Teaching, No Greater Call)
1. Review Jesus' teachings on prayer by reading and discussing Matt.
6:7–13. Explain that Jesus also taught us by example that we can pray
anytime, anywhere. On pieces of paper, write these scripture references:
Matthew 14:23; Matthew
26:36 and Bible Dictionary—Gethsemane; Mark
1:35; Mark 6:46; Luke
3:21; Luke 5:16; Luke
6:12; Luke 18:1. Have each
class choose a reference, locate the scripture, and, by reading it, discover
where or when a person could pray. Have a child from each class draw
on the chalkboard or on a piece of paper a picture that illustrates that
class's scripture, such as a mountain, a sunrise, or a wilderness. Have
the rest of the Primary guess what was illustrated, then locate the scripture
and read it aloud. Sing a song about prayer or about the Savior. Repeat
the process with the other classes' scriptures. Discuss additional places
and times they can pray (see Alma
34:17–27). Share an experience of
a time when your prayers were answered and bear testimony that Heavenly
Father will answer the children's prayers for their good.
2. Help the children become more familiar
with the scriptures by inviting people from the ward or branch or the
teachers to share their favorite
scriptures. Have the adults read or recite from memory their favorite
scripture and tell how it helps them follow the Savior. Emphasize that
learning about Jesus and His commandments through the scriptures and
then being obedient to these teachings help us follow the Savior in faith.
Sing a song about following the Savior, such as "I'm
Trying to Be like Jesus" (pp. 78–79). Help the children share a scripture that
has meaning to them. For those who need help choosing a scripture, list
on the board familiar scriptures, or help children locate specific scriptures
they enjoy by using the Topical Guide. Have each child write a scripture
on a piece of paper (or copy a scripture for younger children). Invite
them to display it at home where they can review it as they memorize
it during the week. Challenge the children to be prepared to recite their
scripture the following week, and follow up on this challenge the next
Sunday.
3. Help the children understand what they
can do to follow the Savior in faith by using Hebrews
11 and Ether
12 to review examples of faith
by others. On the back of the following pictures, write the scripture
reference indicated, then arrange the pictures on the front wall in random
order in the shape of a clock: • Enoch / GAK 120 / Hebrews
11:5 • Noah
/ GAK 102 / Hebrews 11:7 • Abraham / GAK 104 / Hebrews
11:8–10 • Abraham
and Isaac / GAK 105 / Hebrews
11:17 • Jacob blessing his sons /
GAK 122 / Hebrews 11:21 • Joseph / GAK 109 / Hebrews
11:22 • Baby
Moses / GAK 106 / Hebrews
11:23 • Moses parting the Red Sea / Primary
picture kit 6–12 / Hebrews
11:24–29 • Christ appearing to the
Nephites / GAK 315 / Ether
12:7 • Alma and Amulek in the fallen
prison / Primary picture kit 4–29 / Ether
12:13 • Nephi and Lehi
encircled by fire / Primary picture kit 4–41 / Ether
12:14 • Ammon
teaching King Lamoni / Primary picture kit 2–18 / Ether 12:15.
Have the children locate Ether
12:6, and invite an older child to read
it aloud. Discuss how Moroni defined faith.
Choose a child to be the timekeeper. Have
another child choose a picture and read the reference aloud. Have all
the children quickly locate the
scripture while the timekeeper tracks how long it takes. The first child
to locate the scripture reads it aloud. Help the children retell the
story about that person by asking questions such as "Why did this
happen?" "How were they able to do this?" "Who obeyed,
or did not obey, and what happened to them?" "What can you
do to show faith like this person?"
Based on the amount of time it took to find the first picture, have
a child read aloud the scripture reference from the back of a picture
positioned at that time on a clock. For example, if it took 45 seconds
to find it, the picture at nine o'clock would be chosen. If a picture
has been chosen previously, have the child take the next unchosen picture
in order. Repeat the process until all the pictures have been chosen.
Have the children locate Ether
12:18 and
read it aloud together. Emphasize that all of the things happened because
the people first believed in
Jesus Christ. Sing songs about faith, such as "I'll
Follow Him in Faith" (Friend, Jan. 2003, 24), "Lord, I Would Follow Thee" (Hymns, no. 220), and "Faith" (CS, 96–97).
4. For younger children: Place figures from
the Primary Visual Aids Cutouts (see cutout numbers below), or actual
objects, in paper sacks
numbered from 1 to 10. Fold down the tops so that the children cannot
see what is in each sack. Distribute the sacks throughout the Primary
room. Ask an adult to write a number from 1 to 10 on the chalkboard and
cover it with her or his hand. While the pianist plays music, have the
children pass the sacks up and down the rows. When the music stops, the
adult shows the number on the chalkboard. The child holding the sack
with that number opens it to show something the children can express
gratitude for in their prayers. Sing a song that the children know and
that goes with the object, such as:
Repeat the process, writing a new number on the board until all the
songs have been sung. Have the children discuss other things they can
thank Heavenly Father for in their prayers. Express gratitude for the
blessings you have been given.
5. Song presentation: Help the children learn "Lord, I Would Follow
Thee" (Hymns, no. 220) by teaching the phrases in reverse order.
Discuss how the last phrase expresses our commitment to follow the Savior.
It is so important that it is used to end each verse. Have the children
listen as you sing it, and raise their hands when they think of something
they can do to follow Him. Ask one of them to share a way to follow Jesus
Christ, and invite that child to hold a picture of Him while everyone
sings the last phrase.
Tell the children that the phrases leading
up to the final phrase indicate ways they can follow the Lord. Sing
the next to the last phrase, "Savior,
may I learn to love thee," then have the children sing it with you.
Have them sing these two phrases and raise their hands if they have thought
of a way they can follow the Savior. Have another child share his answer
and hold up the picture while everyone again sings the two last phrases.
Repeat this procedure until you have all sung the entire hymn. Bear testimony
of your love for the Savior and your desire to follow Him. 6. Additional Friend resources: "Eugene's
Quiet Place," July
2002, 10–12; "Pray
Always," July 2001, 2; Sharing Times—Sept.
2000, 10–12; Jan.
1999, 14–15, 5; Sept.
1998, 12–13, 26. Additional
Ensign resources: "We
Walk by Faith," May 2002, 72–74; "They
Pray and They Go," May 2002, 49–51; "The
Lifeline of Prayer," May
2002, 59–62. |
