Life's Journey To Perfection: Family Home Evening on Preparing To Get the Most Out of General Conference

I hope and pray that you can use these ideas as a guideline and adjust them to the needs of your own specific family. Our prophet President Monson says, "We cannot afford to neglect this heaven-inspired program. It can bring spiritual growth to each member of the family, helping him or her to withstand the temptations which are everywhere. The lessons learned in the home are those that last the longest." On Lds.org there are resources available in helping to make your Family Home Evenings successful, here is a link to that site on Family Home Evenings.

For tonight's Family Home Evening the topic in which I have chosen is: Preparing to Get the Most Out of General Conference I am so excited for the upcoming General Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints! It seems like each time it rolls around I get even more excited to hear the words of our church leaders. I've been trying to think about how to get my children excited and help them to get the most out of conference. I decided that Family Home Evening was the perfect time to do such a thing. So, here we go...

Preparation: Before Family Home Evening Read and Study, the following articles: "FIRST PRESIDENCY MESSAGE-General Conference—No Ordinary Blessing" BY PRESIDENT DIETER F. UCHTDORF, Second Counselor in the First Presidency; "FIRST PRESIDENCY MESSAGE-Why Do We Need Prophets?" BY PRESIDENT DIETER F. UCHTDORF, Second Counselor in the First Presidency; "Preparing Our Children for General Conference" March 2009 Ensign Magazine;

Before, Family Home Evening hide some kind of treasure (this could be a treat, a picture, a little sang, etc.). Make sure you hide it in a place that would be difficult for someone to find without receiving instructions to find it. Create a Map or a set of instructions that your family could use to find the treasure. A fun way to do this to tear a large square shape from a brown paper sack, write the directions to the treasure on it, and crinkle it up. Un-crinkle it and you have a treasure map.

Welcome everyone to Family Night

Sing: "Follow The Prophet" Children's Songbook pg 110 (with pointing out verse 9)

Have a member of the family member say the prayer

Discuss any family business

Follow-up with last weeks FHE.

Introduce this weeks Topic: Preparing To Get the Most Out of General Conference

Scripture: Read and Mark: D&C 21:4-7

Article of Faith: #3 "We believe that through the Atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel." Repeat this Article of Faith as a Family. Help each family member to understand the meaning. Help each family member memorize the Article of Faith.

Family Home Evening Instruction:
Begin, Family Home Evening by telling you family that their is a treasure hidden somewhere in the house, ask them to go and find it. Do Not Give Them Any Further Instructions. When they struggle to find the treasure, ask them if it would be easier if there was a map or some sort of instructions. The reply hopefully will be, "Yes". Show your family the map. Explain that on it are instructions that will help guide them towards their desired treasure. Allow the family members to follow the map to find the treasure.

When the treasure is found, ask your family if it was easier once they recieved the directions to the treasure? Explain that in our lives here on earth our desired treasure is that of being able to return to live eternally with our Father in Heaven some day. Explain that our Heavenly Father knew that it would be difficult to do this without instructions and guidance, so he has given us things to help direct us towards our treasure of Eternal life. One of those the way we receive guidance is from living prophets in these latter-days. Explain how blessed we truly are that we have a prophet that receives revelation from our Heavenly Father! This revelation is specific for us at this time. It is the instruction and guidance we need to help us return safely to our Heavenly Father.

Read: "First Presidency Message: Why Do We Need Prophets?" by BY PRESIDENT DIETER F. UCHTDORF, Second Counselor in the First Presidency. Found in the March 2012 Liahona Magazine (A good idea could be to split-up the paragraphs and have each family member read, helping younger children who can't read yet)

"Why Do We Need Prophets?
Because Heavenly Father loves His children, He has not left them to walk through this mortal life without direction and guidance. The teachings of our Heavenly Father are not the ordinary, predictable, run-of-the-mill kind you can pick up in paperback at the local bookstore. They are the wisdom of an all-powerful, all-knowing celestial Being who loves His children. Encompassed in His words is the secret of the ages—the key to happiness in this life and in the world to come.

Heavenly Father reveals this wisdom to His children on earth through His servants the prophets (see Amos 3:7). From the days of Adam, God has spoken to His children through appointed oracles who are charged with revealing His will and counsel to others. Prophets are inspired teachers and are always special witnesses of Jesus Christ (see D&C 107:23). Prophets speak not only to the people of their time, but they also speak to people throughout all time. Their voices echo through the centuries as a testament of God’s will to His children.

Today is not different from ages past. The Lord does not love the people of our day any less than in past times. One of the glorious messages of the Restoration of the Church of Jesus Christ is that God continues to speak to His children! He is not hidden in the heavens but speaks today as He did in ancient days.

Much of what the Lord reveals to His prophets is intended to prevent sorrow for us as individuals and as societies. When God speaks, He does so to teach, inspire, refine, and warn His children. When individuals and societies ignore their Heavenly Father’s instructions, they do so at the risk of trial, torment, and toil.

God loves all His children. That is why He pleads so earnestly with us through His prophets. Just as we want what is best for our loved ones, Heavenly Father wants what is best for us. That is why His instructions are so crucial and sometimes so urgent. That is why He has not abandoned us today but continues to reveal His will to us through His prophets. Our fate and the fate of our world hinge on our hearing and heeding the revealed word of God to His children.

God’s priceless instructions to humankind are found in the Bible, the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants, and the Pearl of Great Price. In addition, the Lord speaks to us through His servants, as He will again at the upcoming general conference.

To all who wonder if such a thing can be—who might ask, “Is it possible that God speaks to us today?”—with all my heart I invite you to “come and see” (John 1:46). Read the word of God as found in the scriptures. Listen to general conference with an ear willing to hear the voice of God given through His latter-day prophets. Come, hear, and see with your heart! For if you seek “with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, [God] will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost” (Moroni 10:4). By and through this power, I know that Jesus Christ lives and directs His Church through a living prophet, even President Thomas S. Monson.

Brothers and sisters, God does speak to us today. And He desires that all His children listen to and heed His voice. As we do so, the Lord will bless and uphold us greatly, both in this life and through the worlds to come."

Explain that now that we know why we need prophets, let's discuss ways we can prepare ourselves to receive this needed guidance from the prophets.

Using the below printable, "General Conference Concepts", discuss ways you can use these concepts to receive spiritual guidance during conference.

Give each family member a piece of paper, notebook or you could use the "Answers to Questions" printable below. Help each family member come up with a question that they have, in which they would like to receive an answer to during conference. Help them fill out their paper. Ask them that throughout the week they should pray and think about that question. Then, ask them that during conference they listen intently for their answer. Have them record any answers or inspirations they receive on their piece of paper.
***A good idea would be that the Monday following General Conference have a Family Home Evening where these answers and any testimonies on the experience of Conference can be shared***

Play this short video: "General Conference: Strengthening Faith and Testimony"

Explain that once we receive and listen to the guidance it is important to live by those teachings!

Bear testimonies on preparing to receive personal revelation from General Conference.

Close with a Family Prayer.

Free Printables: Best way to print printables is to click on the image and save it to your computer. You will then be able to print the image from your computer.

General Conference Concepts