3 Activities YOUTH CAN TEACH
Topics: Christmas and Blessings
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Interactive Activities For Youth
. . . CHRISTMAS . . .
Heavenly Father works through His faithful children to accomplish His purposes.
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Class members are more likely to have meaningful experiences while studying the New Testament this year if they can draw lessons from the experiences of the people they read about. To help them do this, you could write the names of the people in Matthew 1 and Luke 1 on the board, along with scripture references about these individuals, as follows:
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Mary (Luke 1:26–56)
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Joseph (Matthew 1:18–25)
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Elisabeth (Luke 1:5–7, 24–25, 40–45, 57–60)
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Zacharias (Luke 1:5–23, 59–64)
What can we learn from these accounts that will help us today?
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To help class members think more deeply about Mary and her role in the Father’s plan, you could show the videos “An Angel Foretells Christ’s Birth to Mary” and “Mary and Elisabeth Rejoice Together” (ChurchofJesusChrist.org). Or you could read together Luke 1:26–38, 46–56, looking for things Mary said that reveal something about her character. What else do we learn from Mary?
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SPOTLIGHT: Mary, Joseph, Elizabeth, Zacharias
YOUTH LESSON ACTIVITY. ANGEL TELLS OF TWO BIRTHS: John and Jesus puppet story and match game. Youth can present these to younger children to know that an angel appeared to tell Mary and Elizabeth they were having babies and Mary’s would be Jesus and her cousin Elizabeth would have John (the Baptist) who would later baptize the Son of God (Jesus). READ MORE
SINGING TIME. “HE SENT HIS SON” song visuals. With this song youth can know how much Heavenly Father loves us, to send His only begotten son to earth to sacrifice his life for us. All because He wants us to return. Write the words on the cue cards (in your language) to place on the back. For example, “How could the Father tell the world of love and tenderness?” READ MORE
. . . BLESSINGS . . .
God’s blessings come in His own time.
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There may be people in your class who, like Elisabeth and Zacharias, are living righteously and yet have not received a hoped-for blessing. Consider inviting the class to search Luke 1:5–25, looking for lessons they can learn from Elisabeth and Zacharias about waiting on the Lord. What other examples of waiting on the Lord’s timing can class members share from their own lives or from accounts in the scriptures? What do we learn from these examples? Class members could also discuss the statement in “Additional Resources.”
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“With God nothing shall be impossible.”
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Class members may at times wonder—as Mary did—how God’s plans for them or promises to them can be fulfilled. To help class members understand that through God’s power all things are possible, you could display the picture The Annunciation: The Angel Gabriel Appears to Mary (Gospel Art Book, no. 28) and invite them to read together Luke 1:26–38. What can we learn about overcoming the seemingly impossible by studying Mary’s words and actions? Ask class members to share experiences in which God helped them accomplish something they thought was impossible.
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Waiting on the Lord.
Acknowledging that many of us question why we have to wait for God’s blessings, Elder Jeffrey R. Holland said:
“The answer to such questions is ‘Yes, God can provide miracles instantaneously, but sooner or later we learn that the times and seasons of our mortal journey are His and His alone to direct.’ … Faith means trusting God in good times and bad, even if that includes some suffering until we see His arm revealed in our behalf. …
“… Those who ‘wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength [and] shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; … they shall walk, and not faint’ [Isaiah 40:31; emphasis added]. I pray that ‘by and by’—soon or late—those blessings will come to every one of you who seeks relief from your sorrow and freedom from your grief. I bear witness of God’s love and of the Restoration of His glorious gospel, which is, in one way or another, the answer to every issue we face in life” (“Waiting on the Lord,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2020, 116–17).
“How long do we wait … so slow in coming … why the delay when burdens seem more than we can bear …”
SPOTLIGHT: Mary, Joseph, Elizabeth, Zacharias
SCRIPTURE ACTIVITY. HEAVENLY FATHER WILL GUIDE ME – Nephi’s message poster 2 Nephi 4:15-24. “I know in whom I have trusted.” Like Nephi, I know that Heavenly Father will guide me if I trust Him. READ MORE
SCRIPTURE MEMORIZATION. 2 NEPHI 27:23 – FAITH IN JESUS CHRIST. Nephi 27:23: “For behold, I am God, and I am a God of miracles; . . . and I work not among the children of men save it be according to their faith.” READ MORE
