LESSON LIFESAVERS For CHURCH & HOME:
Primary, Sunday School, and Family
Old Testament LESSON 21
Teaching Come, Follow Me lessons just got easier with our activities for MAY (week #4)
Theme: “Be Strong and of a Good Courage”
Joshua 1-8; 23-24
YOU WILL FIND:
• SCRIPTURE SCHOLARS to get them reading with reward stamps and pop-ups to match the lesson theme.
• Lesson-Match Interactive Activities to match the CFM curriculum for all ages.
BUNDLES to save & INDEX for Come, Follow Me May 2026 ⇒
PART 1
Come, Follow Me
Scripture Scholars
bookmarks, stamps, & pop-ups
Lesson 21 Scripture Scholars
This week’s Scripture Scholars bundle includes:|
• 2 BOOKMARKs and
• 1 scripture POP-UP (to place in scripture binding).
STAMPS and STAMP KEEPER can be purchased below.
Lessons 18-22 Scripture Scholars
MAY’s BUNDLE includes the following for each lesson:
• 2 BOOKMARKS,
• 1 POP-UP, and
• 1 STAMP.
Glue STAMPS onto the STAMP KEEPER (to download separately, below). SEE TESTIMONIALS HERE
STAMPS & STAMP KEEPER
MAY STAMPS $1.50
SCRIPTURE SCHOLARS Stamps for weeks 1-5. For Lessons 18-22 – Miscellaneous Scriptures. If you have purchased the BUNDLE above, the stamps are included.
January – December $3.00
SCRIPTURE SCHOLARS Stamp Keeper holds 52 stamps for the 2026 weeks 1-52. This is included in the January BUNDLE.
PART 2
Come, Follow Me
Lesson-match Activities
poster presentations & games, handouts, puzzles, and song visuals
Click on the weekly lesson posters (below) to find interactive activities:
. . . 6 LESSONS & 42 ACTIVITIES . . .
Step 1 CHOOSE LESSON
Step 2 CHOOSE ACTIVITY
Step 3 CLICK ON POSTER
Step 4 DOWNLOAD ACTIVITY
May 18–24: “Be Strong and of a Good Courage”
Joshua 1–8; 23–24
It had taken several generations, but the Lord’s promise was about to be fulfilled: the children of Israel were finally going to inherit the promised land. But in their way stood the Jordan River, the walls of Jericho, and a mighty people who had rejected the Lord (see 1 Nephi 17:35). And they would have to face all of that without their beloved leader Moses. The situation may have made some Israelites feel weak and fearful, but the Lord said, “Be strong and of a good courage.” What reason did they have to be courageous? It wasn’t because of their own strength—or even Moses’s or Joshua’s—but because “the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest” (Joshua 1:9). When we have our own rivers to cross and walls to bring down, wonderful things can happen in our lives because “the Lord will do wonders among [us]” (Joshua 3:5).
For an overview of the book of Joshua, see “Joshua, book of” in the Bible Dictionary.
COME FOLLOW ME
Ideas for Learning at Home and Church
with MATCHING ACTIVITIES
GAINING GOD’S STRENGTH
God will be with me as I strive to be faithful to Him.
Imagine what it might have been like for Joshua to be called to replace Moses. Notice what the Lord said in Joshua 1:1–9 to encourage him. Think about the difficult challenges you face; what in these verses gives you courage?
The name Joshua (Yehoshua or Yeshua in Hebrew) means “Jehovah saves.” And the name Jesus comes from Yeshua. So as you read about Joshua, consider his role in leading the children of Israel across the Jordan River and into the promised land. How was his mission similar to what Christ does for us?
IDEAS FOR TEACHING CHILDREN
“Be strong and of a good courage.”
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Here is one way to help your children “be strong and of a good courage” (Joshua 1:6) through Jesus Christ. Invite them to find a phrase that is repeated in Joshua 1:6, 9, and 18, and write it down or memorize it. Help your children think of situations where they might need this message, just as Joshua did. You could also review together some of the stories in Joshua 1–4; 6 (see also “Joshua the Prophet” and “Rahab and the Spies” in Old Testament Stories, 85–91). How did the people in these stories show courage and strength in the Lord?
SCRIPTURE POWER
The word of God can make my way prosperous.
As He encouraged Joshua, the Lord gave counsel in Joshua 1:8 about the scriptures, or “the word of the law.” Considering Joshua’s heavy responsibility, why might this counsel have been especially helpful?
When the Lord invites us to read the scriptures, He often uses words that go beyond just reading. He also promises great blessings. The table below can help you discover these invitations and promised
blessings:
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Invitation |
Promised blessings |
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Meditate day and night |
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Prosper in the land |
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Russell M. Nelson, “Hear Him,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2020, last paragraph on page 89 |
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How has the Lord fulfilled these promises in your life? Now may be a good time to evaluate your scripture study habits. What’s going well? What do you feel inspired to do to have more meaningful experiences with the word of God?
See also “As I Search the Holy Scriptures,” Hymns, no. 277.
IDEAS FOR TEACHING CHILDREN
Studying the scriptures brings me blessings.
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Reading Joshua 1:8 could inspire your children to read the scriptures on their own. Help them find words in this verse that teach them how and why we should read the scriptures. They could look for the same thing in 1 Nephi 15:23–24; 2 Nephi 31:20; 32:3; Jacob 4:6; Helaman 3:29–30. You could also help them make and carry out a plan to read the scriptures.
- DOWNLOAD “Scripture Power” song visuals (HERE or below)
FAITH & WORKS
Both faith and works are necessary for salvation.
New Testament Christians saw Rahab as an example of the power of both faith and works (see Hebrews 11:31; James 2:25). As you read Joshua 2, consider the role of Rahab’s faith and works in saving herself, her family, and the Israelite spies. What does this teach you about how your faith in Christ and your works can influence yourself and others?
With faith in Jesus Christ, I can experience God’s “wonders.”
The Lord worked wonders among His people as He led them into the promised land, and He can do the same for you. Here are some questions to guide your study of Joshua 3–4:
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Why do you think the Israelites needed to sanctify themselves before they crossed the Jordan River? (see Joshua 3:5).
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Note that the river parted only after “the feet of the priests … were dipped in the brim of the water” (Joshua 3:13, 15). Why is that significant?
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Several other significant events happened at the Jordan River—see 2 Kings 2:6–15; 5:1–14; and Mark 1:9–11. What connections do you see between these events?
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How has the Lord done “wonders” in your life? (Joshua 3:5). How can you experience—or recognize—those wonders more often? (for example, see Joshua 3:17).
DOING GOD’S WILL
Obedience invites God’s power into my life.
Joshua 6–8 deals with battles over the lands of Jericho and Ai. As you read these chapters, consider how you battle temptation (for example, see Joshua 7:10–13). What do you learn about how God can help you and what you need to do to access His power? For example, what impresses you about the Lord’s instructions for taking Jericho? (see Joshua 6:1–5). Perhaps the account in Joshua 7 will inspire you to determine if “there is an accursed thing” in your life that you need to remove (Joshua 7:13).
BAPTISM: The Way to Heaven
IDEAS FOR TEACHING CHILDREN
I must be baptized to enter the kingdom of heaven.
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You might use the story of the Israelites crossing the Jordan River as a symbol of baptism—giving up our old life in the wilderness and starting a new one in a covenant relationship with God. So as you read together Joshua 3–4 (or “Joshua the Prophet” in Old Testament Stories, 85–89), you could also look at a picture of Jesus being baptized and explain that Jesus was baptized in the same river the Israelites crossed. You could then sing a song such as “Baptism” (Children’s Songbook, 100–101).
DOWNLOAD “Baptism” song visuals (HERE or below).
Share with each other how being baptized is like starting a new life in Jesus Christ’s kingdom.
• DOWNLOAD John 3:5 (rebus) scripture poster/card set (HERE or below) … “enter into the kingdom of heaven.”
• DOWNLOAD Heaven’s Gate activity HERE or below* showing baptism is the gate that puts us on the strait (straight) and narrow path back to heaven.
“total allegiance to the kingdom of God”
SEE TEEN ACTIVITY …
- “enter into the kingdom of heaven”
SEE SCRIPTURE ACTIVITY …
SHARING IN THE LORD’S WORK
“Choose you this day whom ye will serve.”
Joshua’s final teachings to the Israelites in Joshua 23–24 include important warnings, counsel, and promised blessings. Perhaps you could make a list of what you find. Considering everything the Israelites had been through, why do you think Joshua chose to tell them these things at the end of his life? What do you find that inspires you to “cleave unto the Lord”? (Joshua 23:8).
See also Dale G. Renlund, “Choose You This Day,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2018, 104–6.
Scripture Helps
See the SCRIPTURE SCHOLARS below* with the scripture pop-up:
Joshua 24:15 “Choose you this day whom ye will serve; but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”
I can choose to serve Jesus Christ.
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What could you do to help your children learn to choose to follow Jesus Christ, as Joshua invited the Israelites to do? You might invite them to:
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Memorize a short phrase from Joshua 24:15. Try to make it fun for your children. The number of words they memorize may depend on their age.
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Find stories about people who chose to serve Jesus Christ. They could look in the Friend magazine, the Gospel Art Book, or Old Testament Stories and other scripture stories books.
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Role-play situations in which they can choose to follow and serve the Savior.
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See the Joshua 24:15 SCRIPTURE SCHOLARS (shown below, and you can DOWNLOAD on the right).
It is illustrated in the POP-UP you can place in your scriptures. Print it on clear Velum paper so it can be seen on both sides to insert in the scripture binding next to the scripture you can underline (using Washi tape from the craft store).
Joshua 24:15 “Choose you this day whom ye will serve; but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”
Also featured in this week’s Come, Follow Me lesson (above).
SUMMARY OF SUBJECTS FOR:
OLD TESTAMENT
Joshua 1-8; 23-24
MAY (week 4)
Lesson 21: May 18-24, 2026
“Be Strong and of a Good Courage”
SUMMARY of the above lesson plans and activities to make learning fun!
YOUTH CAN TEACH
So, please let them teach as it helps them learn the gospel and grow their testimony as they share it.
Use this BRIGHT IDEAS LESSON Planner to plan lesson objectives, activities, and discussions (included with each activity).
#ComeFollowMe #OldTestament #Primary #FamilyHomeEvening #SundaySchool #Seminary #YouthClasses #YoungMen #YoungWomen #FamilyScriptureStudy #ChurchOfJesusChrist #GospelGrabBag #LessonActivities #SongVisuals #BeStrongAndOfAGoodCourage
