Items needed
- rocks
- apples
- bowl half full of rocks
Lesson
Put all the rocks in the bowl.
Ask two people to fill the bowl with the apples. They will see that they can only fill the bowl with the apples if they first take the rocks out of the bowl.
Follow with one or both of these lessons:
1. Read and mark Alma 22:15 together. It says: "And it came to pass that after Aaron had expounded these things unto him, the king said: What shall I do that I may have this eternal life of which thou hast spoken? Yea, what shall I do that I may be born of God, having this wicked spirit rooted out of my breast, and receive his Spirit, that I may be filled with joy, that I may not be cast off at the last day? Behold, said he, I will give up all that I possess, yea, I will forsake my kingdom, that I may receive this great joy."
Explain that this verse contains the words of a king who repented for rebelling against the Lord. The king offered to give up his kingdom and all his possessions in order to receive the Spirit of God (the Holy Ghost). What did the king really need to give up to feel the Spirit? (See Alma 22:18.)
Just as the rocks needed to come out of the bowl before the bowl could be filled with apples, the wickedness in the king needed to leave before the king could be filled with the Holy Ghost. What do we need to do to be filled with the Holy Ghost? (We need to rid ourselves of unrighteous thoughts and actions.)
2. How can sincere fasting be one way to "empty" ourselves of unrighteousness so we can be filled with the Holy Ghost? Even though our stomachs are empty when we fast, we can be filled with the Holy Ghost. Being hungry for food when we fast is not wrong, especially if it reminds us to “hunger and thirst after righteousness, [so we can] be filled with the Holy Ghost? (3 Nephi 12:6 - And blessed are all they who do hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled with the Holy Ghost.)
From - Lesson 10: Fasting--ﾔHungry or Full?, Preparing for Exaltation: Teacher's Manual
