The Atonement and Resurrection of Jesus Christ

Chapter 6: The Atonement and Resurrection of Jesus Christ

i have a gift for you today, some assembly required

paper -

the first piece is a piece of white paper. i know, it's an expensive and impressive gift.

what can you do with it?????????

you can fold it and cut it and crumple it up but that isn't what it was invented for. that isn't its purpose. paper is for writing on. it is for recording information.

this paper actually represents something you already have, or rather what you are. this piece of paper represents your spirit. it is clean and white and waiting for information to be written on it. it is waiting for experience.

pencil -

what can you do with the pencil alone????????

you can throw it and poke your neighbor with it, make some kind of craft with it, but that isn't its purpose either.

a pencil is for writing or drawing. it is for recording information.

the pencil represents your body. the body is sturdy and makes a mark on anything it touches. the body moves through mortality having experiences and recording this experience on your spirit. that is why we are here.

just as a pencil and paper are meant to be together, so are a spirit and body. neither can fulfill their true purpose without the other.

2 Nephi 2:23

And they would have had no children; wherefore they would have remained in a state of innocence, having no joy, for they knew no misery; doing no good, for they knew no sin.

#1

“In the glorious dawn of Easter morning, when the thoughts of the Christian world are turned to the resurrection of Jesus for a few fleeting moments, let us express appreciation to our Heavenly Father for the great plan of salvation that has been provided for us.”

this is the plan of salvation. our spirits came to earth to receive bodies. in life we experience joy and sorrow. we learn new talents and commit sin. our spirit papers are waiting for experience.

i'm going to give you a moment to write down at least one of each of these that are important in your life right now.

at least one joy, one sorrow or worry, one talent you are using or developing, and one sin you are struggling with. these are yours, we are not sharing them so it should be things that are personal and meaningful to you.

----------time---------

keep these things in mind today and apply the lesson to those things.

pres hunter loved the holy land. he was often there. as he shares his thoughts when visiting special places there, we will travel with him and hopefully gain a deeper understanding and testimony on our journey.

my next gift to you.

blood / sacrament

#2

I have stood in the garden of Gethsemane on many occasions. I’ve contemplated in my mind the suffering, the agony of the Savior—that agony that was experienced when our Heavenly Father permitted him, in a way our minds cannot even comprehend, to take upon himself the pain and sins of all mankind. My soul was filled with sorrow as I’ve thought of his great sacrifice for mankind.

Matt 26:27 - 28

And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.

Mosiah 3:7 And lo, he shall suffer temptations, and pain of body, hunger, thirst, and fatigue, even more than man can suffer, except it be unto death; for behold, blood cometh from every pore, so great shall be his anguish for the wickedness and the abominations of his people.

----------time----------

the next piece of your gift-----------cross / nails------

#3

I’ve stood beneath Golgotha, the place of the skull, and contemplated the humiliation of the crucifixion which led to our Savior’s mortal death, but which brought to pass his and all mankind’s immortality. And again my soul has been subdued.

John 10:17-18

17 Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again. 18 No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father.

John 19:28 and 30
28 ¶After this, Jesus knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the scripture might be fulfilled, saith, I thirst. 30 When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost.

i did a lot of studying trying to find one or two scriptures to represent the crucifixion. 2 stuck out to me.

over and over, it says, "that the scripture might be fulfilled". these things were not done to Him outside of His control. He allowed it. not only did he allow it, He made sure every mortal and spiritual obligation was fulfilled. He made sure His death prepared the way for us, down to the tiniest detail. He was filling list of the demands of justice, that we might have mercy.

#4

Think of it! When his body was taken from the cross and hastily placed in a borrowed tomb, he, the sinless Son of God, had already taken upon him not only the sins and temptations of every human soul who will repent, but all of our sickness and grief and pain of every kind. He suffered these afflictions as we suffer them, according to the flesh. He suffered them all. He did this to perfect his mercy and his ability to lift us above every earthly trial.

----------time-----------

-----------------tomb-------------gift---------------

#5

And I’ve stood in front of the garden tomb and imagined that glorious day of resurrection when the Savior emerged from the tomb alive, resurrected, immortal. In that contemplation my heart has swelled with joy.

#6

Without the Resurrection, the gospel of Jesus Christ becomes a litany of wise sayings and seemingly unexplainable miracles—but sayings and miracles with no ultimate triumph. No, the ultimate triumph is in the ultimate miracle: for the first time in the history of mankind, one who was dead raised himself into living immortality. He was the Son of God, the Son of our immortal Father in Heaven, and his triumph over physical and spiritual death is the good news every Christian tongue should speak.

although the tomb is empty, all of the things Christ did are contained in it.

just as Christ left behind His mortality when He emerged immortal from the tomb, we leave all of our sorrows, sins and pains of this world behind as we partake of the sacrament and His atonement.

--------------blood and nail in tomb----------

#7

Christ’s resurrection ushers in the blessing of immortality and the possibility of eternal life. His empty tomb proclaims to all the world, “He is not here, but is risen.” (Luke 24:6.) These words contain all the hope, assurance, and belief necessary to sustain us in our challenging and sometimes grief-filled lives.

we will someday also rise from the tomb. we will leave our mortal life behind to be immortal and live with Him forever.

------------spirit and pencil in tomb------------------

----------passalong card----------------https://www.mormon.org/easter

my last gift to you, is an invitation. i invite you to search the scriptures and read about Christ's Atonement. search for the many details and effort Christ went to to pay for us fully.

i encourage you to share this gift with others.

#8

It is the responsibility and joy of all men and women everywhere to “seek this Jesus of whom the prophets and apostles have [testified]” (Ether 12:41) and to have the spiritual witness of his divinity. It is the right and blessing of all who humbly seek, to hear the voice of the Holy Spirit, bearing witness of the Father and his resurrected Son.

it is my testimony that no matter how dark the hour, day, weeks may seem, Jesus Christ has taken the path before us. He has carried it all before He has asked us to. He carries the majority of the load if we will but allow Him to.

**************how to****************

if anyone wants to make their own set, i just copied and pasted the sacrament prayers from doc and cov 20 .   77 is the bread and 79 is the water.  i changed the wine to water to make it what it is today.   (less miraculous in this case than it was biblically)      i used craft pins, not a sewing pin for the nail in the prayer for the bread and drop of red paint watered down for the red spot to represent the blood.   

the tomb is a coloring page from the church i edited it so i had a top to put on the envelope flap.   

you can see in the picture that the top of the tomb would be gone with the stone in place, the envelope closed without that extra piece.   i got two on a page by printing them as 5x7 size . . .  .( i think).   i had to play with the size a bit so it would fit my envelopes.   envelopes with a triangle flap work better so you have room for the top of the tomb and the stone to overlap.   

we used wood, bricks and stones to color on.  i made 50 for my lesson so the different under textures let us mix it up a bit.  

if possible, leave time at the end for testimonies, be sure to bare your testimony.  

i hope you enjoy this lesson and can feel the Spirit of the Lord in it.   

mosiah 3

mos 3: 13- even as though he had already come among them.
every time i read this and other verses that refer to believing in Christ as though He had already come, i wonder how different it would be to be looking forward to a time unknown as opposed to looking back to a time that seems unreal. it seems easier to look forward to the second coming than to comprehend something that happened over 2000 years ago. it's funny how even the ones who lived during His time had a hard time really fathoming the whole thing. they mourned Him as though He wouldn't be resurrected. maybe it is just too much for our little brains to handle while the veil is still in place.

helaman 1 continued

helaman 1

15 - 21 Coriantumr is a really big and really smart dude. the king of the lamanites figures he can send Coriantumr in and he will totally wipe the floor with the nephites.

 he starts to because of all the chaos that has been taking place with the 3 brothers arguing over who will be chief judge. everyone is taken by surprise. Coriantumr marches right into the heart of the land and into zarahemla itself, finds the last of the 3 ring circus of brothers that caused this mess in the first place and kills him. (now, the pahoran family has lost 4)

23-29 Coriantumr figures he has the nephites on the run so he just keeps plowing the road. the leader of the nephites sees this and decides he better nip this thing in the bud. lehi and his army are sent to head off the lamanites and succeed in keeping them from doing further damage. whew! that was close! 

30-34 Moronihah, the nephite leader, comes in with his army behind coriantumr and together with lehi and his army, they totally kick lamanite booty. that was no easy task and it was pretty close.

i am all for plunging into things to try them out. some things are a totally fabulous and some are fabulous fails. at least i learn what not to do. somethings, are better left untouched though. we hear about addictions of all kinds spreading like wild fire. why is it best to stay clear? well, you'll end up in the middle of enemy territory and end up hurtin'. 

so . . . what if you are already in? you have plunged in, and now, you are knee to neck or more deep. the nice thing about the Atonement is there is always a way back out. it might not be fun and it will require a lot of work, but God is willing to pull you out. we have all gone into some kind of sin and needed back out. none of us will get through life without that situation happening often. it may not be addiction, but some kind of addictive sinful behavior. (some are not something you can actually stay away from. swearing, lying, unkind or unclean words come out of your own mouth! those are hard habits to break as well) so, just think of the big smart dude that still ended up dead and remember that you can still turn back, there is a way out, no matter how deep you get.

the footstool story

when i was 18, i met my father for the first time.   one of the first stories he told me was of the footstool.   he made me a small footstool for a necklace and i wore it for a long time.    although the necklace has been lost to moving and time, the story has stuck with me.   i prefer the memory since it is the only one of the two i can take with me.

the story goes something like this - (it has been a few years since i heard the story so the details may be off but the gist is the same) -
every night my dad would need to get up in the middle of the night.   you know how that goes.   well, he tried to not wake the house full of kids and wife, so he didn't turn on the light.   this would normally be great and not a problem.   he knew where the furniture was.  certainly a man can navigate his own home in the dark, right?
yes, unless you have kids.   the kids were pretty good about the toys, but there was this little footstool that was just the perfect height.   it was great for climbing up, sitting down, hopping over, driving cars under.   everything!  that meant that it got used a lot.   that means it was never in the same place twice.   so, as my dad would carefully and quietly make his way through the house . . .thump!  found the footstool with his toe, banged into it with his ankle or just tripped over the darn thing. . . e v e r y night.  

you would think that at some point he would turn on a light, get a flashlight, light a candle, something.   no!   this was becoming a matter of pride!   this was war!   he was bound and determined to get through the house without the stool beating him!   it's just a footstool, right?   right!

night after night, my dad stubbornly stubbed his toe.   then, he finally decided that his toe was more important than his pride.   toes tend to hurt more than pride after a while.   he turned on a light.   the funny thing is, by turning on the light, he won.   his toes won!

it has always reminded me of how silly our pride, our competition, our stubbornness makes our lives harder, sometimes even painful.   we work so hard at doing something the way we want to do it, that we miss the simple answer that will allow us to move forward.

look around, turn on the light and really look at what is causing you pain, what is it that is making your life harder than it really needs to be?   what is it that just needs a little light?  

missionary lessons for kids #2 - plan of salvation

the plan of salvation is an interesting one.   i searched high and low for some pictures for the kids to color while listening to the lesson as well as activities and some visuals without words.   here are several links and the finished product i came up with.

the coloring pages i used- downloadable pdf 

  http://www.sugardoodle.net/joomla/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=8403

the no words version for the visuals - also downloadable

http://ayearoffhe.blogspot.de/2011/10/2011-wk-42-plan-of-salvation.html

i had to make it a jpeg so i could paint out the words and translate it to german.   i added the resurrection to it as well. 

i took the plan of salvation maze from these conference packets - http://simple2url.com/GeneralConferencePackets
the maze is in the senior primary version.   love these packets.

allow the kids to color while they listen to the lesson.   you can ask the to color the part you are talking about, what do they think it would look like?   you can color your own version too.   i think it's less of a lesson when you are just "coloring together".   then you can cut them out after explaining it and ask them to put their version in order.

some other ideas would be cut out some large puzzle pieces and let them glue their artwork to the puzzle pieces and put their puzzle together over and over.   we are gluing it to a strip of paper and hanging it up.

a few more references -
 http://www.sugardoodle.net/joomla/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=4319
this is another version that looks like they have cut out a person and are moving the person through the plan.   you could also use a picture of the child to move through the plan.   if your family is dealing with a friend or loved one passing away, use a picture of that person.    you could do a lot of role play with pictures of family past and present to show how we all move through the plan at different times but all end up in the same place together.   the second link has cut outs in color and black and white to represent the body and spirit.   this concept could be used with family pictures as well to show that the spirit is still alive, just separate from the body.

the official church version -http://www.lds.org/friend/1994/03/sharing-time-the-plan-of-salvation-offers-me-peace?lang=eng&query=plan+of+salvation

patches

i was patching my favorite pair of jeans today.   i love these jeans!   i inspected them and kept finding places that needed little reinforcements before they tore out.   i am determined to continue patching these jeans until i am patching patches and there is nothing left but patches.   in an effort to better use my time, i was also listening to a talk by craig a. cardon entitled, the Savior wants to forgive

i took me until the end of the talk to realize the object lesson in this.  

"Peter once inquired how many times he should forgive his brother and then asked, “Till seven times?” Surely that would be more than enough. But the Savior’s response opened wide the door to His merciful heart: “I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven."

i realized that i was doing for my jeans, is what the Savior does for our spirits through the Atonement.   he patches, and patches, and patches, and patches.

as i was finding those thin spots, and applying some backing to strengthen them, i realized the same thing happens in our spirits as well.

"The Lord knows our weakness and the eternal consequences of “the world” upon imperfect men and women. ".   

ether 12:27  And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them.

 God strengthens us, He sees the weak spots and will bolster us so that those places do not completely wear through.     of course, we have to do our part.   like my jeans, passing through the heat of my iron, we have to read, pray, have faith, all of those simple primary answers that just seem too easy to have any effect.   all of those things put a patch on our weak spots.   the simple, daily things that God has asked us to do, strengthen us.    the Atonement repairs us.   Christ wants to patch us up, heal our souls, because he loves us.   He loves us more than i could ever love my jeans that i am putting so much work into.   He does so much more than patch.      

i don't know how crafty you are, but if you have ever have to patch a pair of pants, a tire, a stuffed animal, a roof, or anything else, use that moment to teach and learn something deeper.



the references for the underlined quotes from brother cardons talk
Matthew 18:21–22; emphasis added; see also Luke 17:1–4.

Doctrine and Covenants 64:2; emphasis added.

1 Nephi 20:9–11; Doctrine and Covenants 24:2; 50:41; 63:47;108:1–8.

the broken egg

today in sunday school, we had a great object lesson, actually two about sin and atonement.
the first was the broken egg.   our teacher showed us a figurine that had a broken arm.   she just pulled the arm off, i would guess it had been broken before.   she asked how would you fix it?   of course, with glue.   i think she had a glue dot on it or something sticking in it to hold it on.   she then just stuck it back on and talked about how when we repent, we have to not just change our ways but do what we can to repair the damage.   then she showed us and egg.   she laid a towel out on the table and broke it into a bowl.   now, she said, "how do we fix the egg?".   uh. . . we don't.   there are some things that we can't repair.   she used a pregnancy as result of sin as an example.    many things that violate not only God's laws but also laws of the land also have some non-repairable results.   basically, there are things that have not just spiritual results but temporal as well.   that means that you can't put the egg back together because you have now changed the container.   the broken egg made me think, though, that it doesn't mean all is lost.   i would use the egg to make cookies, for instance.   a pregnancy may not be the desired result but it will be a blessing to someone.   even if the baby is put up for adoption, it is a blessing to someone.   some sin may lead to legal repercussions.   obviously, jail time or legal fines etc were not in the game plan, but part of the repentance process and still able to take advantage of the atonement.   there are a good many sins that have temporal as well as spiritual results.   things are not as easy had you not sinned in the first place but it is workable.    i think that is always the most important lesson.   it is always workable.   God can always heal the soul and you can return to His presents.   nothing in the world you do can make Him love you less.   nothing makes you unworthy of His love.   you are God's child and He always loves you and wants you to come back to Him.   ALWAYS!    no matter how many eggs you've broken God provides us the other ingredients for the cookies.

this kind of brings us to the second object lesson.   she held up a 20€ bill.   (i'm in germany, so we have euros)   she asked who wanted it.   then she ripped it into 2 pieces.   who wants it now?   well, some people still wanted it because they know the value of it.   they know that it can be turned in at the bank for a new one as long as you have both halves.   (this is true in america as well.)   when we sin, we tear ourselves.   God knows that not only can we be repaired, but we can be made new.   we can just tape ourselves together and try to carry on or we can do the work, the process of repentance.   we can gather the pieces, go to the bank and have ourselves made new through the Atonement of Christ.

as an end note, i would like to stress to you how important it is focus on the Atonement.   talking about avoiding sin is great and talking about the proper use of the Atonement is good as well.   i just want to stress that when talking about sin, the sin part is not the point, the Atonement, being made whole through Christ, that is the important part.   the Atonement is what should be stressed, God's love for us and willingness to make us whole should be stressed.   never, ever, ever think that God's love is lessened, or that Christ's Atonement is too little to bring you back, or that you have lost worth in any way.   God always loves you!   always, forever, no matter what.

missionary games

We have the missionaries over most every week.   last week, the kids decided they needed to come over for a game night for family home evening.   hmmm . . . games to play with the missionaries.

here's what we came up with -

SCRIPTURE SCAVENGER HUNT
I came up with a couple versions of this game. You can make this fit any scriptures you are studying or subject you are talking about.
you could always use scriptures you're working with or the
 Articles of Faith,
The Family: A Proclamation to the World,
The Living Christ: The Testimony of the Apostles,
 http://seminary.lds.org/mastery/?lang=eng
you can use 4 teams with each using the scripture mastery set from the 4 sets of works, old test., new test., book of mormon, doc. & cov.   everyone can use the same set, mix it up however suits your purposes.   use time limit or til each team is done or just go all together.   we aren't competitive, so we don't keep score anyway.   it would be a fun thing to take on a nature walk or on a car ride  as well.   basic scavenger hunt  except you get to be creative with it.

take this scripture for example : john 10:16  And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.
you could find a sheep or something sheep related. - we got toy sheep taped together into one fold and we got a toy sheep with a farmer (shepard).
you could find something to represent fold, like folded clothing.
something for hearing or voice.
a shepherd or shepherds staff or a stick.
possibly a fence to keep the sheep together
the number 1.
you could get less symbolic and go with america or nephites/lamanites which is what this refers to. . . .
you get it.

it's fun to see what people come up with.   if someone gets too far off, take a vote.

one of the other options is to use the scriptures as clues to where to find things/more clues.
genesis 8: 6  And it came to pass at the end of forty days, that Noah opened the window of the ark which he had made. That would lead to the window where another clue would be found.  
Leviticus 25:22 22 And ye shall sow the eighth year, and eat yet of old fruit until the ninth year; until her fruits come in ye shall eat of the old store which would lead to your food storage etc.
if you've read book of mormon sleuth, it does this all the way through and has some really obscure references.

I found a quick list for a scavenger hunt if you are too lazy to look some up, (like i am)    http://katscratchme2.blogspot.de/2009/04/scripture-scavenger-hunt.html
I used all but the last one and added john 10:6 from above. We got some really creative answers. It was fun to see what they came up with.


BALLOON BOUNCE
*spiritual thought - surround yourself with those who are uplifting and be uplifting to others*
we always have balloons, they are better for you than candy.    everyone enjoyed batting them back and forth.   there are rules, but no one really plays by them for more than a few minutes.   and when you're playing with a rambunctious 2 year old, just keeping the balloon it the air is great


WHO'S THE ANIMAL?
*spiritual thought - listen closely to recognize who you're following*
To start the game, you need a person that is it. Everyone stands in the circle, except the person who is it, they stand in the middle. Put a blindfold on the person who is it. Have them say "Go" everyone runs around, not making any clue of where they are. When the person who is it says "Stop" all the people stop in the circle again. The person who is it points in a direction, saying an animal. Whoever he/she points to has to make the animal noise that they were told. Trying not to sound like themselves. The person tries to guess the person who made the noise. If he/she guesses right, the person who did the animal is it, if not you just pick someone else to be it. - Maren Jacobs from http://ldssplash.com/fhe/fhe_games/family_home_evening_games.htm
this was really fun.   we got a bit off topic and started naming pokemon and other sci-fi creatures which was just more hilarious.   one of the missionaries wasn't familiar with pokemon so he was totally lost but a good sport anyway.


 FLOUR TOWER

*this is a great example of how satan and the world slowly cuts away at your will, truth, righteous choices etc. until your most valuable possession  your eternal progression falls.   through the Atonement, you can repent and rebuild your tower and again claim eternal glory*or show how the church was cut away until it fell and was taken from the earth by God.   he used the same things (priesthood prophets etc = flour) to rebuild the church (tower)*
 use a cup and form your flour like a sand castle.  you'll have to pack it to get it to stay.  .   then put your plate on top of the cup and turn them over so the flour can come out on the plate.   i used an old ice cream cup and put a hole in the bottom so it would release easier.    clear is best so you can see if it is coming out, tapp it a bit with knife.   place a penny on the top and take turns cutting chunks off of the tower with a butter or plastic knife.   you have to cut from top to bottom, no chicken little chunks.   the one who makes the penny fall loses.    we played this a lot.   the new rule we had to make is that the little blonde 2 year old curls gets to finish the tower after the penny falls and if you're holding the knife when he bumps the table making the penny fall, you lose.


SCREAMING TOES-
spiritual thought for this game – when faced with temptation, scream and run away
so much fun!   Everyone gets in a circle. Look down, close your eyes, someone says, “1.2.3” and everyone opens their eyes to look at someone's toes. You look at the face of the owner of those toes and if that person is looking at you, you scream and get out of the circle. Sometimes we get an elder that is shy and doesn't really scream. We tell him he is going to outer darkness because he won't scream in the face of evil and then show him how to scream. They usually will get into it after they hear everyone else screaming like madmen. It's tons of fun! One of our elders made crazy noises while screaming. He unleashed his t-rex scream on my daughter. She laughed so hard that she just sat down to keep from falling over, (so did everyone else).


SIGNS A.K.A. NEPHITE IN THE MIDDLE
*spiritual thought - you could talk about gadianton robbers or recognizing evil, the murders around the judgment seat during pahoran's time is a great story for this game.
(one of the missionaries taught us this game and we have now passed it on to the next set of missionaries.) everyone has a sign.   like a finger mustache, bunny ears, pulling your hair, scratching your chin, something with your hands. It should be something you can do quickly.   one person in the middle closes their eyes and turns three times.   the people around the outside start the game while "it" turns.   That just gives everyone a chance to get going without “it” seeing. the first person makes their own sign and then another person's sign. that person makes their own sign to accept the turn. Then they make the sign of another person.   the person in the center tries to catch the person who has the sign.   so if the person has not accepted the sign yet, the person who sent it is still has it.   another version is if you send "it"out of the room and everyone makes up their sign and the person in the middle tries to guess someones sign.   the person whose sign they guess correctly is it. This gets crazy. You can sit or stand. It's better to stand, I think, so you can all move a little easier and see the other people.


STICK PULL
this is just a favorite game of joseph smith.
usually, two people sit opposite of each other, they grab a stick and try to pull the other person over.  we didn't have stick so they just held hands.   my younger two ganged up on the missionaries but it was lots of fun.


NINJA.
I failed to get spiritual thought for this one. I told the kids they could play it if they come up with something spiritual for it, didn’t but played it anyway because they all like it so much.
i don't get it cuz i'm old.  but the missionaries had played before and all of my kids thought it was great.   the little blonde curls didn't play by the rules, surprise surprise.   bow to each other.   pose like a ninja.   step or attack each move.   so the first steps or makes a new ninja pose that tries to hit the other person's hand.  you can move your hand/arm or step back to avoid the attack.  it's looks like robot ninjas and i love watching them.   its hilarious!


we'll have to do this again when it's warmer and can play outside.   one of the neighbors showed up and played with us.   the missionaries gave a short lesson and we had treats, (of course).   any other fun games?   ldssplash had a lot of other fun games as well.   they tried gospel says but it didn't go very far.    i think the curly toddler had something to do with that.   


Update-
We have now done another round of missionary monday. They did get to play the scavenger hunt outside. I gave them a positive propulsion book and a puzzle object lesson that we worked on and talked about during dinner. All worked out wonderfully again and was extremely fun! This last time we had four missionaries over instead of two. The increase in people was great.

update jan 2014
this time, we used the articles of faith for our scavenger hunt.   i have to keep reminding them that they have a time limit and it is not a race.   the scavenger hunt gives me time to get food started.  i always have to remind them to really think out of the box and get more than one thing for each scripture.   whatever is the same from the other team, doesn't count.  

we learned a new game this time.  
WASH THE DISHES
to play this game, you need a piece of paper and pencil.   decide on an order, we just used how people were sitting around the table.   the first person writes down a number and everyone in turn tries to guess it.    they are told higher or lower as they go.   the first person to guess the number is the washer.   the next person in line writes down a number.   the guessing continues until you find a new washer and the old washer becomes the drier.   this rotation in and out continues with the drier going out or putting away until all the dishes are done.   this was lots of fun but we had to keep everyone guessing.   some of them decided they wouldn't guess very fast to keep their turn from coming up or they would just guess up and down one number at t time.   stinkers.   i had to implement some rules.   the number had to be a whole number between 1 and 100.   no fractions or decimals, no numbers like 827,340,827,350,928,309,470,374 and no negative numbers.   if you have math geeks in the group, you may need to specify more rules.

 http://ldssplash.com/fhe/fhe_games/family_home_evening_games.htm

Jelly Doughnut

"The Jelly Doughnut" is a modern day parable.   I heard it from a missionary a few years ago.   My telling is no where near as good as the rendition the elder gave in sacrament meeting, but I hope that you can get the meaning out of it.   

Bro. Nichols was a great seminary teacher.   He worked to bring the spirit into every class and encourage unity within the kids.  Of course, in every group there are always those who are outsiders.   In this particular group, the outsider was Jason.   He arrived alone, sat alone, and left alone.   In between, he rarely spoke and was rarely spoken to.  

One Friday, Bro. Nichols stopped Jason as the class was leaving.   "Jason, your in pretty good shape, aren't you?" he asked.   
"I guess."  was the simple reply.
"I know you work with your dad on the weekends.   It's some heavy labor you guys do.   You could do 10 push-ups easily, couldn't you?"  Bro. Nichols asked.   
"Sure" replied Jason, with a shrug.   
"How about 100, just 10 at a time?" Bro. Nichols plied further.
"Yeah, I could do that"
"How about 300, 10 at a time?"
Jason's interest was peaked "How long would I have to do them?"
"An hour, I know you can do it" Bro. Nichols assured him.
"What's this all about?   Why am I doing push-ups?"
" I need you to help me out in class, I'd really appreciate it."
"Okay" said Jason


Monday, a large bakery box greeted the class as they entered the room.   The kids were barely able to contain themselves as the smell of doughnuts had filled the class.   Everyone quickly took their seats as napkins began to be passed out.   The first jelly doughnut was lifted from the box.   Jason proceeded to do 10 push-ups.   The doughnut was placed on the desk.   Obvious wonder passed over the class.   Another doughnut was lifted from the box, ten more push-ups, and another happy student received their treat.   First, doughnuts for no reason and then push-ups for no reason? 
The confused class began asking what was going on as the treats continued to be passed out.   Brother Nichols simply said that Jason was doing push-ups so that they could have their doughnuts.   This answer was not acceptable to the football jock, Brian, who was next to receive his doughnut.   
"I don't need Jason to do push-ups for me!   I'm doing my own."
"You can't do your own, Jason has to do them for you."
Jason was already working on a set of push-ups for Brian.  
"I don't want one then."
"Okay, that's your choice.   But you still get one." said Bro. Nichols and he placed the doughnut on Brian's desk.
Brian threw his doughnut in the trash with contempt.
Now, as the strange situation continued, there was less eating and more questions.   Jason was going more slowly, a few extra breaths between sets.   One of the girls asked if she could help Jason.   It was the first show of compassion that he'd ever received from his classmates.   It spurred him on.   Following her lead some began to voice sporadic support.   Others followed Brian's lead and vainly refused the gift.   
Half way through the class, Jason was beginning to sweat.   The supporters were more abundant now and the refusals were less.
Students began leaving their seats to stand and give encouragement where Jason began to struggle.
20 desks with doughnuts, few of them with students in them.   Students were actually cheering on the outsider.
250 push-ups done, sheer determination on Jason's face.
Even Brian and his followers had joined the encouraging on lookers.
By push-up 300, Jason's arms burned, so did every heart.
Tears flowed as Bro. Nichols explained that Jesus Christ gave all for the most precious gift ever given.   
Understanding crossed Brian's face when it was explained that we are free to chose.   We receive that gift, even if we throw it away.   No one else can earn it for us, we can not earn it for ourselves.   Salvation comes only from the one chosen by The Father.
Christ is always there, his Atonement is done, all is payed.   We chose our path, near him or far removed.   We chose what to do with our gift.  Throw it away all together, partake of a just a portion, or use it to it's fullest.   




This parable has been a strong influence for me.   One of the missionaries told me that it was actually done in his ward as a combined mutual night.   He testified of the strong spirit brought to that night by this activity.