Family Home Evening for Ether 6-11

 Continue Teaching

Last week we learned about how the Brother of Jared pleaded with the Lord, and He didn’t confound his language, his brother’s language, and the languages of some of their other friends and family members. This week, we are learning about when the Lord commanded them to cross the ocean and go to the Promised Land. The same Promised Land that Lehi and his family were commanded to go to.

The Lord told the Brother of Jared to make some barges, or nut shaped boats that were “tight, like unto a dish,” meaning no water would be able to get into them. The Brother of Jared had a couple concerns when building these barges, and just like we can do when we have concerns, the Brother of Jared prayed to the Lord. As we read what he said to the Lord, find the 3 things that the Brother of Jared was concerned about. This is what he said:

Read Ether 2:19

19 And behold, O Lord, in them there is no light; whither shall we steer? And also we shall perish, for in them we cannot breathe, save it is the air which is in them; therefore we shall perish.

The Lord answered his 3 concerns in this way

How will we breathe? Read Ether 2:20

20 And the Lord said unto the brother of Jared: Behold, thou shalt make a hole in the top, and also in the bottom; and when thou shalt suffer for air thou shalt unstop the hole and receive air. And if it be so that the water come in upon thee, behold, ye shall stop the hole, that ye may not perish in the flood.

How will we steer? Read Ether 2:24

24 For behold, ye shall be as a whale in the midst of the sea; for the mountain waves shall dash upon you. Nevertheless, I will bring you up again out of the depths of the sea; for the winds have gone forth out of my mouth, and also the rains and the floods have I sent forth.

How do we get light? Read Ether 2:25

25 And behold, I prepare you against these things; for ye cannot cross this great deep save I prepare you against the waves of the sea, and the winds which have gone forth, and the floods which shall come. Therefore what will ye that I should prepare for you that ye may have light when ye are swallowed up in the depths of the sea?

Teach

This set of scriptures is amazing, because it demonstrates in one story three different ways that the Lord answers our prayers. 

1. Sometimes the Lord answers our questions and blesses us with guidance on what to do, such as telling the Brother of Jared to put air holes in the top and bottom of the boat and adding a plug to keep the water out.

2.  Sometimes He blesses us by solving our problems for us, just like He guided the barges across the ocean. 

3. Finally, sometimes the Lord wants us to bring a solution to Him, and He works through our problems with us. As He did with getting light in the barges.

The Brother of Jared went and got 16 stones, 2 for each of the 8 barges, and he heated them until they were so hot that they became transparent or see through, like glass. He took these stones back to where he prayed to the Lord and said:

Read Ether 3:4

4 And I know, O Lord, that thou hast all power, and can do whatsoever thou wilt for the benefit of man; therefore touch these stones, O Lord, with thy finger, and prepare them that they may shine forth in darkness; and they shall shine forth unto us in the vessels which we have prepared, that we may have light while we shall cross the sea.

Teach

When the Lord reached forth His finger and touched the stones, they glowed like a bright lamp, without using fire. So they were able to cross the ocean with light, air, and being steered by the power of the Lord.

They spent 344 days in their barges or boats. At times, they were scared, because the waves were so big and their boats were thrown all over, but they sang praises to God and never complained. When they arrived on the shores of the promised land, here is what happened:

Read Ether 6:12

12 And they did land upon the shore of the promised land. And when they had set their feet upon the shores of the promised land they bowed themselves down upon the face of the land, and did humble themselves before the Lord, and did shed tears of joy before the Lord, because of the multitude of his tender mercies over them.

Discuss 

What are some tender mercies that you have received from the Lord? As you recognize these, remember to thank Him for the small and big things that He blesses you with everyday.

Watch

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Family Home Evening for Ether 1-5

 Teach

One of the things that Mormon told Moroni to do was to finish abridging the Book of Ether. The Book of Ether was found by the people of Limhi, and translated by the power of God through Mosiah. You can read about when they were found in Mosiah 21:26-27.

The Book of Ether actually took place before Lehi left Jerusalem with his family. Ether begins at the time of the Tower of Babel. This is a time when all the people were so wicked that God confounded the languages. Meaning He made it so everyone spoke a different language so that nobody could understand each other.

In Ether, we read about how the Brother of Jared asked Jared to plead with the Lord not to confound their languages and the languages of their close friends.

Activity

To help children understand why this was so difficult. If you speak another language (or use Google Translate for a decent translation), use this foreign language to ask your children to complete a simple task. If possible, give the same directions in a few different languages.

Discuss

After the activity we just did, why do you think the Brother of Jared didn’t want their languages changed?

Teach

When Jared prayed to God, here is what happened.

Read or Summarize Ether 1:35 and 37

35 And it came to pass that the brother of Jared did cry unto the Lord, and the Lord had compassion upon Jared; therefore he did not confound the language of Jared; and Jared and his brother were not confounded.

37 And it came to pass that the brother of Jared did cry unto the Lord, and the Lord had compassion upon their friends and their families also, that they were not confounded.

Discuss

How did God respond to Jared’s prayer? How do you think He responds to yours? 

Share your testimonies of times when God showed you compassion.

Watch

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Family Home Evening for Mormon 7-9

 Teach

Moroni was the son of Mormon. This is the same Moroni that we refer to as “Angel Moroni,” that is blowing a trumpet on the tops of many temple spires. He is also the same Moroni who appeared to Joseph Smith and told him where the gold plates were buried and gave him instructions on how to receive them.

When Moroni was a mortal man, he was the last Nephite on the earth. He watched all of the Nephites get destroyed, including his own father, Mormon, the captain of the Nephites. This is how he felt, in his own words.

Read or Summarize Mormon 8:1-4

1 Behold I, Moroni, do finish the record of my father, Mormon. Behold, I have but few things to write, which things I have been commanded by my father.

2 And now it came to pass that after the great and tremendous battle at Cumorah, behold, the Nephites who had escaped into the country southward were hunted by the Lamanites, until they were all destroyed.

3 And my father also was killed by them, and I even remain alone to write the sad tale of the destruction of my people. But behold, they are gone, and I fulfil the commandment of my father. And whether they will slay me, I know not.

4 Therefore I will write and hide up the records in the earth; and whither I go it mattereth not.

Teach

Moroni wrote the last bits of things his father asked him to, before his death. Moroni watched his people, the Nephites get chased down and killed by the Lamanites, and he barely had the tools needed to finish the Book of Mormon. He had no idea what would happen to him, but he didn’t care, as long as he could just fulfill what Heavenly Father needed him to do. He wrote:

Read or Summarize Mormon 8:5-7

5 Behold, my father hath made this record, and he hath written the intent thereof. And behold, I would write it also if I had room upon the plates, but I have not; and ore I have none, for I am alone. My father hath been slain in battle, and all my kinsfolk, and I have not friends nor whither to go; and how long the Lord will suffer that I may live I know not.

6 Behold, four hundred years have passed away since the coming of our Lord and Savior.

Teach

It had finally happened. The destruction of the Nephites was prophesied from the very beginning of the Book of Mormon. Now we learned how it happened. It was only 400 years from the birth of Jesus Christ. This was only about 364 years after the Resurrected Jesus Christ walked among them, taught them, and blessed them. These people’s great grandparents most likely were among the children who were called and personally blessed by Jesus Christ. 

As his father, Mormon, abridged the Book of Mormon, he taught Moroni all of the words of the prophets that we’ve read about this year. Imagine the pain and the sorrow that he felt as he realized that he was alone.

Discuss

 If you were in this situation, how would you feel? What would you write if there was only a little bit of space left for you to write on the Gold Plates?

Teach

Instead of feeling sorry for himself, Moroni decided to give advice to us. The Lord showed him our day, and he wanted to warn us and teach us of the importance and goodness of God. He wrote:

Mormon 8:34-35

34 Behold, the Lord hath shown unto me great and marvelous things concerning that which must shortly come, at that day when these things shall come forth among you.

35 Behold, I speak unto you as if ye were present, and yet ye are not. But behold, Jesus Christ hath shown you unto me, and I know your doing.

Teach

When we go through hard things and feel alone in our sufferings, we can be like Moroni and teach others about Heavenly Father’s Great Plan of Happiness that includes the Atonement of Jesus Christ. We can feel better as we serve others.

Watch

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Family Home Evening for Mormon 1-6

 Discuss

Today, we are going to learn more about the Book of Mormon prophet, named Mormon. He has his own book in the Book of Mormon that he wrote, and he helped Heavenly Father and Jesus by taking all of the words that the other Book of Mormon prophets wrote, finding the important information, and putting it together into the Book that we read, known as the Book of Mormon. Because Mormon followed Jesus Christ, he was given opportunities to serve and bless others, and his obedience continues to serve and bless others, every time someone reads the Book of Mormon.

By the time he was only about 10 years old, Mormon was remarkably different from the people around him. As you read the following verses, look for ways that Mormon’s faith in Jesus Christ made him unique and gave him opportunities to serve and bless others.

Read

Mormon 1:1-3

1 And now I, Mormon, make a record of the things which I have both seen and heard, and call it the Book of Mormon.

2 And about the time that Ammaron hid up the records unto the Lord, he came unto me, (I being about ten years of age, and I began to be learned somewhat after the manner of the learning of my people) and Ammaron said unto me: I perceive that thou art a sober child, and art quick to observe;

3 Therefore, when ye are about twenty and four years old I would that ye should remember the things that ye have observed concerning this people; and when ye are of that age go to the land Antum, unto a hill which shall be called Shim; and there have I deposited unto the Lord all the sacred engravings concerning this people.

He continued to be different as he grew up in the wicked, Nephite nation. Most of the people were so wicked, that they didn’t turn to God for help anymore, but not Mormon.

Mormon 1:15-16

15-years-old

15 And I, being fifteen years of age and being somewhat of a sober mind, therefore I was visited of the Lord, and tasted and knew of the goodness of Jesus.

By the time Mormon was 16-years-old, the Lamanites began to try to completely destroy the Nephites. Though he was young, he had a huge responsibility.

16-years-old

Mormon 2:2

2 Therefore it came to pass that in my sixteenth year I did go forth at the head of an army of the Nephites, against the Lamanites; therefore three hundred and twenty and six years had passed away.

By his late twenties to early thirties, Mormon and his son, Moroni, were the last of the Nephites to believe in God and follow His commandments. Though they refused to listen, Mormon loved the people so much, he refused to give up on them.

Late Twenties-Early Thirties 

Mormon 3:2-3, 12

2 And it came to pass that the Lord did say unto me: Cry unto this people—Repent ye, and come unto me, and be ye baptized, and build up again my church, and ye shall be spared.

3 And I did cry unto this people, but it was in vain; and they did not realize that it was the Lord that had spared them, and granted unto them a chance for repentance. And behold they did harden their hearts against the Lord their God.

12 Behold, I had led them, notwithstanding their wickedness I had led them many times to battle, and had loved them, according to the love of God which was in me, with all my heart; and my soul had been poured out in prayer unto my God all the day long for them; nevertheless, it was without faith, because of the hardness of their hearts.

Discuss

You live in a world much like Mormon did. What can you do to serve others and show them the same love of God that Mormon showed his people?

Watch

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