2011 - Week 09: Missionaries

What You'll Need: scriptures, picture of Jesus Christ (or GAK 240: Jesus The Christ), map of the world or globe, photos of yourself or spouse on a mission, pass-along cards, printed missionary tags .

You can CLICK HERE to download the pdf of this lesson for easy printing. If you download, please leave a comment here on what you like about this lesson.

Scripture: Doctrine and Covenants 133:37 - And this gospel shall be preached unto every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people.

Opening Song: I Hope They Call Me on a Mission (PCS #169)

Lesson:

(show GAK 240: Jesus The Christ)

- What makes you like about going to church?

- How does knowing about Jesus Christ makes us more happy?

There are people on the earth who don't know about Jesus Christ.  They have never heard of him.  They don't go to church and they don't know how to return to live with Heavenly Father.

Jesus Christ loves all the people on the earth. He wants everyone to know about his true Church. It makes him happy when missionaries are willing to teach the truth to people everywhere.  That is why the Lord calls Missionaries.

Missionaries are special people called to teach others about Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ and the church.  Heavenly Father has commanded all young men to serve missions when they are 19 years old.  But girls can also go on missions and so can grandmas and grandpas.

(show world map or globe)

When you say you will serve a mission you don't get to pick where you go. You receive a mission call that tells you where Heavenly Father has called you to serve...it can be almost anywhere in the entire world and sometimes you have to learn to speak in a new language where you are going.

Missionaries You Know - if you or your husband served a mission this is a great time to share stories from your mission experience.  If not, ask the missionaries serving in your area to join you for FHE and share their experiences or call a relative and have them share.  You may choose to go over the following points.

- Why did you decide to serve a mission?
- What did you feel when you got your call? (Point on the map to where you went)
- How did you feel when you first arrived in your mission?
- What did you learn while there?

- What were the blessings of missionary service in your life.

- Bear a short testimony in the language you spoke (if foreign speaking)

- Show pictures of yourself as a missionary.

We can share the gospel too - Invite the children to be missionaries during the coming week by telling someone about the gospel or giving them a pass along card (available in most church buildings).

Bear your testimony about the joys and blessings of missionary service.

(For tips on sharing your testimony please click here.)

Practice Song: If you are teaching your family the FEBRUARY Song of the Month, go over the words and music with your family.

Activity: Choose from the following activities as they best suit your family.

I.    Writing a Missionary a Letter
Write a letter to a missionary in your family or in your ward.  Have children draw pictures, write encouraging words or create cards.

II.   Mini Mission Calls

Have each child open a sealed envelope with a mini mission call.  Use the LDS Mission Generator found here to get their call. (How FUN is that?)  Print these on your home computer before hand.  The letters should say,

"Elder/Sister child's first name  child's last name , you have been called to serve in the ___country/state___   _____city_____ mission.  While there you will preach the gospel in ____language____.  You will probably eat _____________ and ______________. The surrounding area will look ________________ and ______________ and the people will ___________________.  The weather will be ______________ and you might see ___________________ and _______________ there.  The neartest Temple is in ______________,___________ about  ______ miles away.  You will receive many blessings as you serve the Lord faithfully."

For example:

"Sister Ella Ahern, you have been called to serve in the South Africa, Johannesburg mission. While there you will preach the gospel in English. You will probably eat goat meat and bar-b-que called Braai. The surrounding area will look exotic and colorful and the people will speak with an accent that almost sounds British. The weather will be hot and rainy and you might see elephants and palm trees there. The nearest Temple is in Park Town, South Africa...about 3 miles away.  You will receive many blessings as you serve the Lord faithfully."

Give children their missionary name tags.  You can download the tag with the white bar and write the child's name in black pen/marker. If you own a white pen you may print the all black tags and add their name across the top.  Or you may choose a generic Future Missionary tag.

Print, laminate (optional) and attach a pin back with a glue gun or simply safety pin it to child's shirt.  Click on the image below to download a sheet of 8 tags.  Okay, seriosuly...can I just brag for a minute?  Did I not hunt down the exact fonts for these tags?  Yeah, I'm cool like that!

 

CLICK HERE to download

  

CLICK HERE to download

CLICK HERE to download

III. Coloring Pages

Click the image below to enlarge and print page.