Deseret Book

Packet #070305

Family Home Evening Materials

Theme: 3rd Article of Faith

5 tips for successful Family Home Evenings

1. Pray. Pray about the needs of your family as you consider topics for home evenings, and pray as you prepare. 3. Involvement. Involve everyone in the family; help little children take part.

2. Prioritize. Make Family Home Evening a priority; learn to say no to other activities. 4. Commitment. Be committed and be consistent. Set a designated time and stick to it. Holding Family Home Evening on a weekly basis takes dedication and planning on the part of all family members. 5. Relax and enjoy it. The most important thing your children will remember is the spirit they feel in your family home evenings and activities. Be sure the atmosphere is one of love, understanding, and enjoyment.

3rd Article of Faith

Thought: You should learn while you are young that while the Atonement of Christ applies to humanity in general, the influence of it is individual, very personal, and very useful. Even to you beginners, an understanding of the Atonement is of immediate and very practical value in everyday life.
(Boyd K. Packer, Washed Clean, Ensign, May 1997, 9.)

Purpose: To help our family understand the Third Article of Faith. Song: He Sent His Son Childrens Songbook, p. 34.

Scripture: We believe that through the Atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel.
(Article of Faith 1:3)

Show your family an eraser. Ask them to suppose that at the beginning of each school year each student was given an eraser to use. When a mistake was made, the eraser would be used to correct it instead of writing over it or crossing it out. This would allow the student to correct the error and learn from it. It would not be important how much of the eraser was left at the end of the year. What would matter would be that it was used each time it was needed. Therefore, even a student who made many errors could finish the year successfully. Explain that as children of God we have been given an eraser to take care of our mistakes. It is repentance. It is important that we dont cover up or ignore our shortcomings. We must use the process of repentance to correct the errors in our lives. In the end it will not matter how often we have had to rely on repentance. What will matter is whether we did repent every time it was needed. By doing this we can finish this earth life successfully.
(Beth Lefgren and Jennifer Jackson, More Power Tools for Teaching, [Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1991], p. 61.)

Object Lesson:

Story:

Cant We Ever Be Friends Again?

(Stephen E. Robinson)

When my son Michael was six or seven, he did something I thought was wrong. He is my only son, and I want him to be better than his dad was. So when he slipped up, I sent him to his room with the instructions, Dont you dare come out until I come and get you! And then I forgot. Some hours later, as I was watching television, I heard his door open and tentative footsteps coming down the hall. I slapped my forehead and ran to meet him. There he

was with swollen eyes and tears on his cheeks. He looked up at menot quite sure he should have come outand said, Dad, cant we ever be friends again? I melted and pulled him to me. Hes my boy, and I love him. We all do things that disappoint our Father in Heaven, that separate us from his presence, his Spirit. There are times when we get sent to our rooms, spiritually though not physically. When that happens, we sometimes lift up our eyes and say, O Father, cant we ever be friends again? The answer, found in all the scriptures, is a resounding Yesthrough the atonement of Christ.
(The Gift of the Atonement, [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2002], p.133.)

Activity:
Divide the Third Article of Faith into small phrases and copy each phrase onto a different strip of lightweight cardboard. Hand the phrases out to different family members. Have them put the strips in order and read the Article of Faith out loud.
(Shauna Mooney Kawasaki, Sunday Sampler III: We Believe, [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1994], p. 4.)

Extras:

Show a picture of Christ in Gethsemane and Christ on the cross. Recount the things that happened in these places. Review how Jesus Christ paid for our sins and died for us. Show a picture of a sacrament tray. Review how taking the sacrament helps us renew our covenants. Write a thank-you note to the Savior. Tell what youll do this week to show Him how grateful you are for His sacrifice for us.

Refreshment
Fruit Cocktail Cake
(Anne Marie Oborn)

A favorite from Idahothe fastest cake youll ever make. Cake 2 c. flour 2 tsp. baking soda 1 tsp. salt 1 12 c. sugar 1 (16-oz.) can fruit cocktail 1 tsp. vanilla

Sauce 14 c. butter 12 c. sugar 14 c. canned milk

To make cake, grease and flour an oblong (9x13-inch) baking pan; preheat oven to 350 F. Mix all ingredients together in mixing bowl and pour batter into baking pan. Bake for about 40 minutes. Pour butter sauce over hot cake. To make sauce, mix ingredients in small saucepan and bring to a boil; then pour over hot cake. Serve with French vanilla ice cream. Serves 12.
(Elaine Cannon, Five-Star Recipes from Well-Known Latter-day Saints, [Salt Lake City: Eagle Gate, 2002], p. 229.)

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