Lesson 3

In the premortal realm, spirit sons and daughters knew and worshipped God as their Eternal Father and accepted His plan by which His children could obtain a physical body and gain earthly experience to progress toward perfection and ultimately realize their divine destiny as heirs of eternal life.

Read before the lesson

The Origin of Man by the First Presidency of theChurch

“Ye Are the Templeof God”  by President Boyd K. Packer

 Song

I am a Child of God p.2

Lyrics

1. 1. I am a child of God,

And he has sent me here,

Has given me an earthly home

With parents kind and dear.

2. 2. I am a child of God,

And so my needs are great;

Help me to understand his words

Before it grows too late.

3. 3. I am a child of God.

Rich blessings are in store;

If I but learn to do his will,

I'll live with him once more.

4. 4. I am a child of God.

His promises are sure;

Celestial glory shall be mine

If I can but endure.

5. Chorus

Lead me, guide me, walk beside me,

Help me find the way.

Teach me all that I must do

To live with him someday.

Scripture

Moses 3:7

“And I, the Lord God, formed man from the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul, the first flesh upon the earth, the first man also; nevertheless, all things were before created; but spiritually were they created and made according to my word”

Lesson

Draw out an outline of a body on white tissue paper (make sure you can see through it) Tell the kids that before they came to this life they did not have bodies, they only had spirits. Once they grasp that lay a normal white piece of paper down under the spirit one and make sure it has details to it. Ask them if they know how they gained a body. If they can’t answer help them out. Explain briefly what happened in the pre-mortal world and share with them that not everyone was able to get a body due to the choices that they made.

Explain to them that Heavenly Father gave them a body so that we could all become more like him. Have them give some examples of ways they can become more like Heavenly Father and Jesus. And ask them what they hope to become, or what Heavenly Father wants them to become.

Have each of the children stand in front of a mirror and have them look at themselves. Ask them what they see. Tell them what you see, children with limitless potential. Ask them what they think Heavenly Father sees. If they cannot come up with a good answer help them out.

Tell them that they can be whoever they want to be. And that they can do whatever they want to, but it is up to us to seek the Lords help if we want to be the best that we can be.

The scholar C.S.Lewis said in Mere Christianity “The command Be Ye perfect is not idealistic gas. Nor is it a command to do the impossible. He is going to make us into creatures that can obey that command.  He said (in the Bible) that we were “gods” and He is going to make good His words. If we let Him- for we can prevent Him, if we choose- He will make the feeblest and filthiest of us into a god or goddess, a dazzling, radiant, immortal creature, pulsating all through with such energy and joy and wisdom and love as we can not now imagine, a bright stainless mirror which reflects back to God perfectly (though, of course on a smaller scale) His own boundless power and delight and goodness. The process will be long and in parts very painful, but that is what we are in for. Nothing less. He meant what He said.”

End with your testimony on our Heavenly Parents and how we can get back to them.

Game

Choose an activity that will best suite your family

1.      Play Simon Says

2.      Have each child figure out what they want to do when they grow up and have them act it out, have the other kids try and guess what they want to be.

3.      Draw pictures of what you think it looked like before we came to earth, or after we are resurrected.

Treats

Cookie Ice cream sandwiches  - take 2 chocolate chip cookies (or your favorite kind) and put some vanilla ice cream in the middle of them to make a sandwich.  Explain to them that the ice cream is the spirit that our bodies are holding.

Follow up throughout the week

Think about who your Heavenly Father wants you to become. Go throughout the week being that person. Treat your children with the same attitude. See them as your Heavenly Father sees them, and treat them the way he would treat them.