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Take a sock ( an old one preferably one you don't care about getting real muddy), soak the sock in mud, get it real dirty and then put it in a plastic bag. Take it to your class and during your lesson ask someone if they would mind putting on a sock (of course they haven't seen the sock yet), someone will volunteer.
Then take out the muddy sock from the bag and ask them to put it on their clean foot. Hopefully no one will want to do this.
Liken this to the holy spirit not wanting to dwell in an unclean body. How can you put your foot in a dirty sock and expect it to feel ok? You can't ask the spirit to dwell in an unclean body, it absolutely will not.
Source: http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Flats/4746/lessons.html
Alma 7:21 And he doth not dwell in unholy temples; neither can filthiness or anything which is unclean be received into the kingdom of God; therefore I say unto you the time shall come, yea, and it shall be at the last day, that he who is filthy shall remain in his filthiness.
1 Corinthians 3:16 Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?
Scoop out a handful of mud and ask "What would you do if a friend ran up with his arms full of mud? Do you move closer and hold out your arms and accept all that mud? Or do you say, 'No, thanks. I don't want that mud.' " And keep on walking?
The mud is like gossip or angry words or sarcasm or cutting remarks or criticism. People who dish this mud out of their mouths are wanting to give it to you. Do you have to take it? Or can you refuse? Of course, you have the choice to refuse. You don't have to take offense, or get angry. You can choose to not let the other person's angry words rub off on you.
This lesson also applies to pornography, bad music, bad language, taking the Lord's name in vain, dirty jokes, drug use, in fact, nearly any kind of sin.
Source: http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Flats/4746/lessons.html, some additions by Jenny Smith
Get two envelopes; put a picture of the temple on one envelope.
Put cut-outs (paper dolls? magazine people?) of family members in each envelope.
Seal shut the envelope with the temple picture.
All the while, talk about the one family going to the temple and the other not going. Then dump both envelopes containing families upside down. The family in the envelope that was not sealed will fall out all over the place. The family in the sealed envelope, will be all together. Source: http://www.eprimary.dk/ - (visit the Primary Object lessons section)
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Have your class or family stand at the bottom of a staircase and you are at the top. Challenge any one of them to find a way to get to the top of the stairs without touching the stairs or the rails or the walls. Tell them there is a solution. If no one figures it out, then go to the bottom and have someone piggy back on you and carry them up the stairs.
The lesson in this could be several different things. Teamwork, service, doing for others what they can't do for themselves, our missions in life are to help and lift others.
The other message is the mission of Jesus, how he is the one to carry us up the stairs, we can't do it ourselves. That's what grace is; what the atonement is.
Some scripture references you can use with this lesson are 2 Sam. 22:49 ...thou also hast lifted me up on high above them that rose up against me: thou hast delivered me from the violent man.
Ps. 3:3 But thou, O LORD, art a shield for me; my glory, and the lifter up of mine head.
Psalms 30:1 I WILL extol thee, O LORD; for thou hast lifted me up, and hast not made my foes to rejoice over me.
Alma 36:3 ...I do know that whosoever shall put their trust in God shall be supported in their trials, and their troubles, and their afflictions, and shall be lifted up at the last day.
And another saying that could be used:
Quaker Proverb: Thee lift me, and me lift thee, and together we'll ascend to heaven.
Source: Focus on the Family, some additions by Jenny
Have one child stand at one end of the room and another at the other end. Then ask those seated how we can link the two without either of them moving? The way is for each of the children to link arms and then they can link the two children, to link those gone before by doing their work in the present.
Source: http://www.eprimary.dk/ - (visit the Primary Object lessons section)
Show the class or family a new plot of ground that has just been dug up and prepared to be planted and ask: If this ground were left alone for a year just like it is right now, what would it look like? Would it have flowers and vegetables or would it have weeds and grass?
The new ground represents each one of us. We must actively sow seeds of service, unselfishness, forgiveness, courtesy, kindness and actively dig up and remove the ever-present weeds of contention, selfishness, and pursuit of worldly pleasures. We must work hard to weed out bad influences, just like the gardener must work hard to have a beautiful flower garden or to grow abundant vegetables.
A good handout for this object lesson would be a package of flower seeds or a small trowel.
Source: http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Flats/4746/lessons.html, some additions by Jenny Smith
Demonstrate what sustaining a church leader means.I saw a great demonstration done at a Regional Workshop.
Sister Myers had a Bishop come up and put his hands out.
She had a pile of hymnbooks to represent his responsibilities.
Every time she said one of his responsibilities, she put a book in his hands.
His arms started to get tired really fast.
Then she had three Primary leaders
(representing a presidency) come up and put their hands under his to help support the books (giving him support in his calling)
The load was much easier to bear and together they could take on more books.(responsibilities).
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This could be switched to where the children could come up and be the supports and tell what they could do to support (sustain) whomever you have being the church leader.
Things that they could do could be ~ help keep the buildings clean, be an example and a missionary to others, prepare to now to some day enter the temple, help in Primary when asked, etc... (Dana H)
Source: http://www.eprimary.dk/ - (visit the Primary Object lessons section)
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Place an empty chair in the middle of the room and then discuss how one good way to avoid gossiping is to imagine the person who you are talking about is sitting in that chair. Ask yourself:
If you can't answer yes to all of these questions, then you should talk about something else.
This lesson can also be likened to name calling or taking the Lord's name in vain. Source: http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Flats/4746/lessons.html, some additions by Jenny Smith
Show your hands and offer to shake hands with anyone.
Show the bar of soap and ask:
Let me demonstrate. First, wash your hands in the water only.
Show your hands and ask:
Next wash your hands again using just a little hand soap. Show your hands again and ask:
Last, wash again using lots of soap, both hand and dish detergent, along with the scrub brush.
Now show your hands and ask:
Repentance is a beautiful cleansing process which takes a lot of hard work and the proper steps.
Variation: display the soap and discuss
Presentation: Soap is a practical household necessity. Soap is cleansing. For physical cleanliness, soap must be applied frequently.
Lesson Application: Repentance is a practical principle of the gospel. Repentance is cleansing. Spiritual cleanliness requires constant repentance. Source: http://www.eprimary.dk/ - (visit the Primary Object lessons section)
Relate the following story: There once was a little boy with a bad temper. His father gave him a bag of nails and told him that every time he lost his temper, to hammer a nail in the back fence. The first day the boy had driven 37 nails into the fence. After a while, the boy discovered it was easier to hold his temper than to drive those nails into the fence.
Finally the day came when the boy didn’t lose his temper at all. He told his father about it and the father suggested that the boy now pull out one nail for each day that he was able to hold his temper.
The days passed and the young boy was finally able to tell his father that all the nails were gone. The father took his son by the hand and led him to the fence saying, "You have done well, my son, but look at the holes in the fence. The fence will never be the same. When you say things in anger, they leave a scar just like this one. You can put a knife in a man and draw it out, it won't matter how many times you say 'I’m sorry,' the wound is still there." A verbal wound is as bad as a physical one and can leave devastating damage. Without the healing power of the Atonement, the damage would be permanent. You can demonstrate this object lesson by inviting a student to hammer a nail into the wood, and then removing it. Pass the damaged wood around the class to show the scars left. This lesson can also be likened to gossip or name calling.
Source: http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Flats/4746/lessons.html, some additions by Jenny Smith
