Pres. Henry B. Eyring (Apr. 18): "His Spirit to Be With You"

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The purpose of this activity is for each class member to identify at least one thing she or he can do immediately to more completely qualify for the companionship of the Spirit.

The Activity:
  1. Read the following three quotes:
    1. Paragraph 5:  "It is your . . . heart and mind."
    2. Paragraph 27:  "At that moment . . . over a lifetime."
    3. Paragraph 49:  "Neither the Father  . . . free to choose."
  2. Focus on the words regarding choice and remind the class that for a single idea to be repeated three times in a single talk must denote importance.
  3. Now, read the sacrament prayer (D&C 20:77) and ask the class members to listen for the two things we must choose to do in order to qualify for the Spirit.
  4. After reading and identifying them, write on the board "Always Remember" (on one side) and "Keep His Commandments" (on the other side). 
  5. Now, ask the class members to consider ways that they choose or could choose to do each of those things.  For example, some members might always remember Him by choosing to memorize scriptures; others might choose to hand a picture of the Savior or their families near their computers in order to help them avoid dangerous content on the internet and more fully keep the commandments.  These ideas should be mostly practical in nature.
  6. After the class has had time to consider some strategies, ask what they have thought of and record some other their answers on the board under the appropriate heading.
  7. Once the list is fairly long, explain that while we are different people and we aren't all wired the same, we can learn from each other.  Ask each class member to identify one thing on the list that they will commit to do (better) during the next week.
  8. Have them share what they will do with a neighbor.
Using the Activity:
Activities such as this only work if the Spirit is there, and these discussions alone seldom bring the Spirit.  The Spirit comes as we discuss the doctrines of the gospel.  Therefore, this activity is best suited to the end of a lesson, when hearts are soft and spirits are contrite, when class members are most receptive to making commitments.  Even then, this activity is designed to tie concrete actions to specific words from a prophet and the scriptures.  In this way, the commitments will be binding on class members. 

Also, with this activity (and others like it that I share on this site or that you design on your own) are made more powerful when there is an opportunity to report back.  The youth curriculum follows this model, where the youth are asked to commit to do things in the gospel, observe the blessings of those actions, and share what they have learned with someone else.  So, if possible, spend the first few minutes of the next class asking a couple of class members to report back on what they did and the results of their efforts. When doing so, though, please be cautious not to pressure people to share.  Some members may in good faith tackle an issue that they find uncomfortable to talk about; other members may forget; even others may simply be too shy to feel comfortable being put on the spot.  So, exercise caution but if it is possible to have people share these things, the Spirit will testify as they testify and everyone will be edified.

May God bless you in your callings.  Please let me know how these ideas are working for you. 

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