Family Home Evening for 1 Kings 11-19

 Read 1 Kings 19:11-12- As you read, you could play sounds of a mudslide, earthquake, and fire to distract from and block the reader’s voice.

11 ​And he said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the ​​Lord​​. And, behold, the ​​Lord​​ passed by, and a great and strong wind rent ​​the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the ​​Lord​​; ​but​ the ​​Lord​​ ​was​ not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; ​but​ the ​​Lord​​ ​was​ not in the earthquake:

​​​12 ​And after the earthquake a fire; ​but​ the ​​Lord​​ ​was​ not in the fire: and after the fire a ​​​still​ small ​​​voice​.

Discuss

What things can your family do to be able to hear the Still Small Voice better in your life? What does Satan do to try and distract us from listening?

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Family Home Evening for 2 Samuel 5-7; 11-12; 1 Kings 3; 8; 11

 In Samuel we read about 2 kings, Saul and David. Last week, we learned about how Saul allowed David to fight Goliath, and David defeated him. Saul was very impressed by David’s strength and brain, and so he made him a leader in his army. Saul began to become stubborn and rebellious. He also became jealous of David and tried to kill him. After Saul died, David became king. Read the following scripture passages to compare the two kings.

Saul	David
1 Samuel 15: 11 It repenteth me that I have set up Saul to be king: for he is turned back from following me, and hath not performed my commandments	1 Samuel 18:14 And David behaved himself wisely in all his ways; and the Lord was with him.
1 Samuel 15:22-23 … Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams. For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the Lord, he hath also rejected thee from being king.	2 Samuel 5:10&12 And David went on, and grew great, and the Lord God of hosts was with him. And David perceived that the Lord had established him king over Israel, and that he had exalted his kingdom for his people Israel’s sake.
1 Samuel 15:28 And Samuel said unto him, The Lord hath rent the kingdom of Israel from thee this day, and hath given it to a neighbour of thine, that is better than thou .	2 Samuel 3:18 Now then do it: for the Lord hath spoken of David, saying, By the hand of my servant David I will save my people Israel out of the hand of the Philistines, and out of the hand of all their enemies.
1 Samuel 28:6-7 And when Saul inquired of the Lord, the Lord answered him not, neither by dreams, nor by Urim, nor by prophets. Then said Saul unto his servants, Seek me a woman that hath a familiar spirit, that I may go to her, and inquire of her. And his servants said to him, Behold, there is a woman that hath a familiar spirit at En-dor.	2 Samuel 2:1 And it came to pass after this, that David inquired of the Lord, saying, Shall I go up into any of the cities of Judah? And the Lord said unto him, Go up. And David said, Whither shall I go up? And he said, Unto Hebron.

As you can see, David was a king that looked to the Lord for guidance and direction, and Saul lost his kingdom, because he turned away from the Lord and relied on his own strength. Because of his obedience, Heavenly Father blessed David’s posterity. Now read 2 Samuel 7:16 “ ​And thine ​​​house​ and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee: thy ​​​throne​ shall be established for ever.” When the Lord told David, “Thy throne shall be established forever,” He was referring to a future king in David’s family line who would reign forever: Jesus Christ. 

Discuss

Why are you grateful that Jesus Christ is your Eternal King?

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Family Home Evening for 1 Samuel 8-10; 13; 15-18

 Narrator: The Philistines and the Israelites were in a war over the land.

Goliath was a Philistine. He was 6 cubits and a span tall. That means that he was between 8 and a half and 9 and a half feet tall. He had lots of armor and a sword and a shield. He even had a guy with a shield that stood in front of him. Goliath told The Israelites that if any of them could kill him, then all of the Philistines would become servants to the Israelites, but if he killed any of them in the battle, then the Israelites would have to be servants to the Philistines. None of the Israelites wanted to fight him.

One of the Ephraimites, Jesse, had eight sons. The 3 oldest sons went to war, and the youngest, David, was left home to take care of the sheep. One day, Jesse asked David to do something for him.

Jesse: Take this food to your brothers and take this cheese to the Captain. 

David: Okay.

Narrator: When he arrived, he was talking with his brothers and heard Goliath say

Goliath: Israelites, choose you a man, and let him come fight me. If he can kill me then we will be your servants: but if I kill him, then you will serve us. Give me a man, that we may fight together.

David: Who is this man that thinks he is stronger than God? He is big and strong, but God is on our side.

Narrator: David’s oldest brother, Elab, answered him and said

Elab: What are you really doing here? Did you just want to come see the battle? You think you are so tough. Who is watching the sheep? You are just a kid.

Narrator: David said the same thing to other men in the camp. Word got to the leader of the army, who also happened to be King Saul. Saul asked to see David, and he said

David: Nobody has to worry about fighting Goliath, because I will do it. Who is this guy who thinks that he can beat the armies of God?

Saul: How are you going to fight that big man? You are just a kid!

David: I take care of my Dad’s sheep, and one day a bear and lion came and tried to take two sheep. I killed the bear and the lion and took the sheep out of their mouths. I will do the same to Goliath.

Narrator: Saul decided to let David try, so he gave him the same kind of armor that Goliath had, but David said

David: This is too heavy. I don’t know how to use a sword, because I have never fought in a war before. I just want to use my sling and these 5 smooth stones. God delivered me from the lion and the bear, and I know that He will deliver me from Goliath too.

Narrator: Then David went to Goliath and said

David: You have a sword, spear, and shield, but I have God on my side. He will help me beat you, and I will win this battle. Everyone here will know that the Lord doesn’t use a sword and spear, but because I have faith in Him, He will give me the strength I need.

Narrator: David put his hand in his bag, and took out a stone, and slang it, and smote the Philistine in his forehead, the stone sunk into his forehead; and he fell upon his face to the earth. So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and with a stone, and smote the Philistine, and slew him; but there was no sword in the hand of David. So David picked up Goliath’s sword and smote off his head.

Discuss

Think about the tools that Goliath had to battle with. Think about what David had. Sometimes, we have things in our life that seem big, scary, and almost impossible to defeat. What tools has God given us to battle the “Goliaths” in our lives?

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Family Home Evening for Ruth, Samuel 1-3

 Read or Summarize 1 Samuel 1

(Our summary)

Elkanah had 2 wives, Hannah and Peninnah. Peninnah was able to have children, but Hannah could not. Sometimes, people made Hannah feel bad because she couldn’t have any children. Hannah stopped eating and cried a lot. Hannah prayed to Heavenly Father and begged Him for a son. She promised God that if she could have a son, she would give him unto the Lord and he would serve God all of the days of his life. Eli, a priest in the temple, witnessed Hannah’s prayer. She was saying her prayer in her heart, so only her lips moved. Eli asked her if she was drunk. Hannah replied that she was very sad, but that she was not drunk. She told him that she was pouring her soul before the Lord. (Remember this statement, because we will talk about it more later). Eli told her that if she would have peace, God would answer her prayer. 

After Hannah’s prayer, she was happy again, and began to eat. God blessed Hannah with a son, she named Samuel. When Samuel was a toddler, Hannah sent him to the temple to begin serving God. 

Discuss

When Eli approached Hannah, he asked her if she was drunk. In 1 Samuel 1:15, we read, “And Hannah answered and said, no, my lord I am a woman of a sorrowful spirit: I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but have poured out my soul before the Lord.” What do you think she meant by “poured out my soul before the Lord”?

Activity

Get a pitcher of water, and a bowl. Tell your children that the water in the pitcher represents their deepest desires and needs. The bowl represents the blessings that come from prayers. Even though Heavenly Father already knows what you need and want, Heavenly Father loves it when you ask Him in sincere prayer for it. (Pour a little water into the bowl) if you only give a little bit of trust and a little bit of sincerity to the Lord, do you think He’ll be able to bless you with as much? He might be able to bless you with some things, but if you are not willing to give your whole soul to the Lord, you will not be ready to receive all of the blessings that the Lord can give you. (Pour the rest of the water.) As you can see, when you pour your whole soul unto the Lord and let Heavenly Father know that you trust Him with your prayers and your deepest feelings, He is able to fill your life with the blessings that you seek, and with more than you can imagine. Did you know that when Hannah poured her whole soul to the Lord and promised to give her son to Him, Heavenly Father blessed her with Samuel, and after Samuel was born, Hannah kept her promise by giving him to the Lord, the Lord blessed Hannah with five more children?

Discussion

How can we change our family and personal prayers to more of a pouring out of our souls before the Lord? 

Possible Answers

• Think about what you say- Ponder about the things that you truly want or need. Ponder on the faith that you have that these prayers will be answered.

• Remember that you are speaking to Heavenly Father- Prayers are not just something you say so that you could start your day, eat, go to bed, or leave the house. Heavenly Father is your father. Be excited to talk to Him. Share with Him how you feel. Share with Him what makes you happy, what makes you sad, and/or something you really need or want.

• When you pray, remember to kneel down or sit still, fold your arms, close your eyes and bow your head. It is easier to offer a sincere prayer when you are reverent and aren’t distracted by other things and/or other people.

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