Elder Gerrit W. Gong (Apr. '23): "Ministering"

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 As a relatively new Elders Quorum president, I spend a lot of time thinking about the needs of our ward members.  I am inspired and impressed by the goodness regularly done by assigned ministers.  I also love the vision of ministering with love and faith put forward by Elder Gong.

The Activity:

  1. Give each class member a post it note and something to write with.
  2. Make sure each class member has access to a copy of the talk either digitally or physically
  3. Discuss the phrase "higher and holier ministering" (par. 25).
  4. Invite the class members to quickly scan the talk and identify either a blessing of or suggestion for higher, holier ministering and write it on their post it note.
  5. When everyone has had a chance to write their comment, ask them to bring their post-its forward and stick them on the board-- blessings on one side, suggestions on the other.
  6. Using these quotes as a basis, discuss with the class what they found in one of the following ways.
    • Ask the class members to form small groups
    • Give each group a few of the quotes
    • Ask the groups to discuss the quotes they have
    • OR
    • Pull a quote off the board at random
    • Read it aloud to the class and ask them to either explain how they have seen this blessing in their own or someone else's life or to talk about how a particular suggestion would look and why it might be effective.

Using the Activity:

In essence, the impetus behind this activity is to foreground the things in the talk that most strike the class members.  This is one way to foster a home-centered, church-supported gospel learning environment-- centering what matters most to the class members.  Obviously, the discussion structures laid out in step #6 are only ideas.  Any approach would work and accomplish the same main objective.  

As always, I hope that this activity is of use to you in your efforts to teach with power and authority.  God bless.  

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