Elder Christophe G. Giraud-Carrier (Oct. '23): "We Are His Children"

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I really loved this talk.  As with other conference talks it covers familiar ground but does so in a way that helps us to gain greater insight.  The activity I am sharing almost leaped off the page and I feel it is the one I am to share.  But in using it, please be careful to do so in a way that everyone feels loved and encouraged to do/be better and that no one feels attacked.

The Activity:

  1. Make sure that everyone has something to write on and write with.
  2. Read par. 4-5 "When the scribes . . . to each one."  and par. 12-14 "President Russell M. . . . to our Maker!"
  3. Invite the class members to silently make a list of the labels that we use to divide people, e.g. Ute fan/Cougar fan (in Utah), liberal/conservative, stupid/smart, freshman/sophomore/junior/senior, etc.  Notice that not every label needs to be something serious.
  4. Allow the class members a few moments to create a list
  5. Come back together as a class and ask some of the class members to share what they wrote down as you write their ideas on the board.
  6. Invite the class members to again silently consider what labels they use and how they do it.
  7. Allow the class members a couple of moments to consider this.
  8. Read par. 16-17 "First and foremost . . . of Jesus Christ."
  9. Discuss with the class ways to remember that everyone is a child of God above all else.
  10. Invite the class members to set a goal of one thing they can do to better remember our common identity with everyone around us and treat everyone accordingly.

Using the Activity:

As I said in the introduction, I can see this activity being done is such a way that some people may feel singled out and attacked.  That is by no means the intention nor should it be for any one of us.  After all, as the talk teaches we are just human beings here doing our best, and that means we all have different strengths and weaknesses.  

Having said that, this is an activity that requires a good deal of introspection on the part of the class members and may be difficult for some (as it is for all of us at one time or another).  So, as the teacher, you will need to be fairly comfortable with some silence during this activity.  That can be a scary thing as a teacher, but remember that the Spirit is the true teacher and sometimes we talk so loud that we may drown out the still, small voice.  

I'm glad that you found your way to my blog and I hope you found it helpful.  Please leave me a comment and let me know how it goes.  God bless.

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