Roses that are grown in a hot-house are very beautiful but their scent is weak. Why is that?
Hothouse roses don't have to develop a heavy scent to attract bees in order to flourish. They are fed, watered, and watched over by the gardener, all in ideal conditions.
Outdoor roses face much harsher conditions: wind, rain, cold, heat, and bugs. Outside, roses must develop the strong rose scent in order to attract the bees. Roses raised out of doors are both beautiful to see and to smell.
If we lived under perfect conditions with no temptation or adversity, we would not develop our "scents" as best as we might have, had we been strengthened through adversity.
It is those who are tempered in the heat of the Lord's oven of adversity who develop a beautiful "scent". They bring joy and gladness to all around them and are beautiful spiritually.
Source: http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Flats/4746/lessons.html
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Dr Adrian Rogers gave a Focus on the Family devotional and this story is from that devotional:
A minister was giving a sermon that was several hours long. There was a small break for the audience to get up and walk around at bit. The minister knew many of the people in the audience and he went down to talk to some of the people at the front. He was talking to a man whose wife had left the room for a few minutes. The minister asked the husband if that was his wife's bible, and asked if he could look at it. The minister took the bible and put a $5 bill inside then told the husband that in a few minutes he would be asking for a volunteer and he would call on the wife. The husband was to make sure the wife brought up her bible, but not to tell her that she was going to be chosen.
So the sermon got started again and after a few minutes the minister asked for a volunteer from the audience and then pointed out the wife and asked her to come forward. The husband told her to bring her bible because she might need it. The minister then says, "Do you believe I am a man of God?" "Yes" "Do you know me as a friend and trust me?" "Yes" "Do you think that I would lie to you?" "No, of course not" "If I gave you a very simple task, that you could accomplish right up here with me, would you do it?" "sure" "OK. Give me $5 [right now]"
The wife looks at him strangely and gives a questioning gesture. "Just let me go get my purse." "But I said you could do this simple task right up here. Don't you trust me? Would I lie to you?" "But I don't have $5" This conversation goes on for a few more lines and then the minister asks the wife to give him the bible. He opens it and shows her the $5 bill. She says, "How did that get in there?" "I put it there."
Adapt the example to your class, or tell it in your own words, then you can go on to sight some scriptures that show us that God will never give us a task that he has not already given us the talents and ability to accomplish. We may not see them at first, but he has put them there and we must ask for his help and strength in doing his will.
Jenny says: I think you could set this object lesson up by watching for a student to leave the class to go to the bathroom and place the $5 in her scriptures or purse, contact a student's parents to get them to help you, or pass out hymn books or scriptures to those who need them with the $5 already in them (just make sure you don't need the scriptures or hymnal BEFORE you give the lesson! ) God qualifies the called.
See also 1 Nephi 3:7
Source: http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Flats/4746/lessons.html, additions by Jenny Smith
Ask someone to stand and play a specific church hymn on the instrument. (Be sure to pick someone who doesn't know how to play it.)
When they reply that they can't, then ask them how they could learn to do so. The answer is to read and study its manual and learn about how to play the instrument, then practice playing it everyday using the instructions from the manual (hold up the instructions for playing the instrument).
The same applies to being in tune to the Spirit. In order to be so, we must first learn how to recognize it by reading "the manual" (hold up the scriptures), then "practice" daily by following the manual's instructions.
Adapt this object lesson to the interests of your class: This lesson could also be taught with a laptop or PDA, and its manual; or a model airplane and its instructions; or a puzzle with out showing the picture of the final result. Ask a student who can't code to write a computer program that will tally up tithing records for all the members of the Church, or ask someone to put the model airplane together; or to the puzzle together without seeing the completed picture first. It's not impossible, but can be done if you (hold up the manual or a picture of the completed puzzle) read the instructions.
The same applies to being in tune to the Spirit. In order to be so, we must first learn how to recognize it by reading "the manual" (hold up the scriptures), then "practice" daily by following the manual's instructions. Had another thought--how about using a map and asking the class to plot the most direct course to a location on it.
Source: http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Flats/4746/lessons.html, some additions by Jenny Smith
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Each of us are made up of two parts: a body and a spirit. You can see a body and feel it and it can move and talk and do all those wonderful things. You can't see a spirit, but it is also there.
Can you see radio waves coming into your radio? Can you see music waves coming out of a piano?
Instruct the children to blow into their hands--can they see the air? No, but we know all those things are there.
This glove represents your body and my hand is your spirit. (Put the glove on the hand)
Your body has to have a spirit inside, or it wouldn't be alive and able to move around. When it is time to die then the spirit leaves the body and goes back to be with God, who created our spirits. (Take off the glove)
The body is not alive anymore, but the person that we know and love still exists but as a spirit. We can't see spirits, but we know they are there. The body stays right here on earth until it is time for the resurrection. What is that? It is when your spirit is joined again to your body. (Put the glove on again)
After a person is resurrected, the spirit and body will always stay together and never be separated again!
It is sad when people we love die, because it means that we won't see them for a long time. When Jesus was resurrected, he made it possible for us to be resurrected too. We know we will see our friends and family because Jesus was resurrected.
Source: http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Flats/4746/lessons.html, with some changes by Jenny Smith
The teacher used ice cream scoops to teach an object lesson. He had two sizes of ice cream scoops and asked "If I were serving up some ice cream, which scoop would you want me to use?" Of course, everyone wanted the big scoop.
He then explained that when we serve others, we are offering service to Christ and expressing our love and commitment to him. Holding up the two scoops, he asked "Would you like to serve Christ just a little or a whole lot?"
You can also ask "How would you like your children to be served? How do our children/youth/home teachees deserve to be served? How can you serve with a bigger scoop?"
Source: http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Flats/4746/lessons5.html, additions by Jenny Smith
Take your class or family outside and give one person the magnifying glass and another person the normal glass. See who can burn a hole in the paper. The lesson could take many direction after this:
In order to get quickly to the heart of a problem with a solution, you have to have concentrated effort. Magnifying your calling means giving real concentration and the result is magnified power, or, look what unusual powers glass can have when it is concentrated in that one spot . That is what can happen when a group works together to solve a problem. If they are all working together. If its not a concentrated effort, then there is no power. Our ability to focus our teaching power depends on the tools we use.
(This could be part of a leadership training exercise on using the scriptures more frequently during our lessons -- reading directly from the scriptures magnifies the material taught)
Source: http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Flats/4746/lessons.html, additions by Jenny Smith
Offer one or two strands of spaghetti to someone in class and have them try to break it. Obviously it is easy, then offer them a package of spaghetti and have them try to break it. Much more difficult, if at all possible. Strength in numbers.
This object lesson can also be illustrated with a bundle of sticks.
Could also use Alma 48:10 : "And in their weakest fortifications he did place the greater number of men; and thus he did fortify and strengthen the land which was possessed by the Nephites."
Source: http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Flats/4746/lessons.html, Jenny Smith
Here's an an awesome object lesson that I use with my kids at camp - all you need is a can of fruit or vegetables, and take the label off...add a dent or two also. It's amazing what and how much the younger ones can come up with!
Put the can in the middle of the group and let the group examine it. Ask them to describe the can. Some may say that it's shiny, that it has dents, and that it has no label. Then ask how this relates to people.
Dents - of course, because we aren't perfect and we all have some sort of short falling.
The reflection...we reflect what people say about us. Some may say we're really good at something, and others not good and often we'll do just that.
Then the label. We don't want to label people. Only God knows whats on the inside, yet as people we know how to look on the outside. We need to train ourselves to look on the inside. On that same note, we need to get to know people and people need to open themselves up in order to really get to know what's inside. A whole different road can be taken in discussing what labels we have had, why we don't like them, etc.
Some cans may have a price tag on them, and one can touch on putting value on people needs to only be done if we really value them (because sometimes people don't get high value, when they really are). Everyone notices something different when they see the can. The outside is damaged, but the inside might taste good--we don't know because we can't see it. etc. What really matters about this can is what's inside. Is it delicious or disgusting? Who can help us to know? How are we like the can?
This is a really cool object lesson, something we can get from our kitchen cupboard. Great for group discussion and learning about relationships and judging. Source: http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Flats/4746/lessons4.html
