June 9 - Priesthood Responsibilities

At the beginning of class, we shared our good news from the week--birthday parties, sleepovers, sporting events, beating personal records, etc.  As part of that, I also shared some chocolate that I brought back from France for the students.  They loved the chocolate, but they had some strong opinions about whether the chocolate was worth the expense!

This week, we focused on understanding the basics about the Priesthood.  We broke into groups, and each group read a passage from the scriptures:

Connor & Scott - Doctrine & Covenants 84:33-44
Emily, Isabel, & Maile - Doctrine & Covenants 20:46-59
Jaxon & Justin - Doctrine & Covenants 121:34-46

We then used these scriptures as a springboard for discussing the duties of different priesthood offices, the oath and covenant of the priesthood, and the sacred obligation to adhere to principles of righteousness.

I then asked the students if they had any personal experiences with the priesthood that they'd like to relate.

We closed with a video depicting a story about an 18-year-old who was prepared to exercise the priesthood when spiritually prompted:

Scott - Sanctify Yourselves

Carter also sent me his video, but since he wasn't able to be in class today, we'll wait to hear from him next week along with a couple other students!

Speaking of next week... I'm preparing a special Father's Day lesson about the priesthood that I'm really looking forward to.  To make the discussion more relevant, I'd love if each student could do a little preparation beforehand.  Please ask your parents about your name:

• Where did your name come from?
• Are you named after anyone or anything in particular?  Why?
• What is the significance or meaning of your name?
• Why did your parents choose your name for you?
• How does your name reflect your heritage?
• How does your name demonstrate your parents' hopes for you and your life?

Anything you can find out along these lines will be so helpful for our discussion!

References

Thomas S. Monson. Photo by Brian Tibbets. Used under Wikimedia Commons License. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Thomas_S_Monson.jpg on 6/12/2013.

June 2 - Prophets and the Priesthood

We finished up our prophet presentations.  Each of the students did a marvelous job researching the prophets' lives, sharing their discoveries, and discussing the prophets' messages and testimonies!  They were resourceful in getting information from scriptures, biographies and other church literature, church websites, Internet search engines, and Wikipedia.

To conclude our discussion of prophets, I shared some insights from President Spencer W. Kimball's life, including his diminutive stature, his love of sports, his battle with throat cancer though he'd never smoked or used tobacco in his life, and his struggle to accept his calling as an apostle:

"On 8 July 1943, while having lunch at home, Kimball received a telephone call from J. Reuben Clark, then the first counselor to church president Heber J. Grant, notifying him that he had been called to fill one of the vacancies. Kimball was initially so shocked by the call that he asked Clark's permission to ponder it for several days before coming to Salt Lake City to meet with him in person as part of a previously scheduled family trip. After the phone call, Kimball's desire to accept the calling was overwhelmed by feelings of self-doubt and incompetence. Kimball's wife recounted that, although he was not prone to tears, he afterward lay on the floor of their home and wept uncontrollably as she tried to comfort him.

"The following week, Kimball and his wife went as planned to Boulder, Colorado, to visit their oldest son, Spencer LeVan, and his family. Unable to sleep and having begun to fast, Kimball around midnight began climbing a nearby mountain to seek solace from his intense emotional struggle with his own feelings of inadequacy and doubt. He later wrote of the experience, 'How I prayed! How I suffered! How I wept! How I struggled!' After falling asleep on the mountain shortly after sunrise, Kimball recorded dreaming of his grandfather Heber C. Kimball and his life, and found that it had brought peace to his worries. He later wrote: 'My tears were dry, my soul was at peace. A calm feeling of assurance came over me, doubt and questionings subdued...and I felt nearer my Lord than ever at any time in my life.'

"Kimball traveled to Salt Lake City, where he met with David O. McKay, then second counselor to Grant. McKay assured Kimball of his call to the apostleship, and Kimball formally accepted. The news was released immediately, and Kimball was sustained by the LDS membership at the October 1943 General Conference. He was ordained an apostle and added to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in the Salt Lake Temple on 7 October 1943, by Heber J. Grant." ("Spencer W. Kimball", wikipedia.org)

Then, I introduced the new topic for this month: Priesthood and Priesthood Keys, and we closed with a couple of inspiring stories:

Emily - Dare to Stand Alone
Maile - Hearing His Voice 

These videos were great, and I really appreciate Emily and Maile for remembering and for their willingness to go first!  I also can't wait to see what the other students share!

References

Spencer W. Kimball. Photo by Brigham Young University. Dept. of Religious Education; Brigham Young University. In public domain. Originally from Harold B. Lee Library, Digital Collections, Religious Education Image Archive. Courtesy of LDS Church Archives. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Spencer_W._Kimball.JPG on 6/2/13.

"Spencer W. Kimball: Called to the Quorum of the Twelve (1943)". Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spencer_w_kimball on 6/12/13.