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TEACHING ACTIVITIES   LESSON #1 MURMURING ABOUT MANNA (Numbers 11)   TRUTH: Ingratitude can turn blessings into burdens.   FIRE IN THE BONES: The power of this lesson lies in its ability to change our student’s perceptions which can quietly but literally change someone’s life. Many people in this world are unhappy not because their lives are bad, but because they’ve started to see their blessings as problems. The truth of this lesson can help lighten the loads that our studen

TEACHING ACTIVITIES   LESSON #1 THE TABERNACLE-A PATH TO HIS PRESENCE (Exodus 25-40)   TRUTH: The temple teaches me, step by step, how to return to God’s presence.   FIRE IN THE BONES: For the fire in the bones, ponder your own connection with the House of the Lord.  The temple is a place that is meant to teach us. It reveals. It guides. It’s a “House of Learning”. This lesson can help give our students a lens to see their temple experiences in a new light. And that makes me

TEACHING ACTIVITIES   LESSON #1 A PECULIAR PEOPLE (Exodus 19-20)   TRUTH: Living God’s commandments makes me different—and that’s a good thing.   FIRE IN THE BONES: This can be a very impactful lesson, especially for youth, who are still trying to figure out who they are and where they belong. They’re feeling the pull to fit in, not to stand out. With this lesson we get to introduce a different way of seeing themselves—to help them understand that being different isn’t a soci

TEACHING ACTIVITIES   LESSON #1 PILLARS AND PATHS (Exodus 14)   TRUTH: WHEN I am pursued by my enemies, when I feel entangled, or shut in, IF I fear not, hold my peace, and move forward in faith, looking to the prophet, THEN the Lord can protect me from my enemies and open a path through my obstacles.   FIRE IN THE BONES: This lesson covers one of the most well-known and fascinating miracles of all scripture: the parting of the Red Sea. However, I’m not sure we always stop to

ECHOES OF EASTER-OLD TESTAMENT STORIES THAT POINT TO CHRIST   TRUTH: Long before Jesus Christ was born, the Lord was already teaching about His Atonement and Resurrection through the symbols, stories, and prophecies of the Old Testament.   FIRE IN THE BONES: I’m excited about teaching this lesson because it gives us a chance to take a step back and look at the big picture behind the Old Testament. One of the most powerful realizations we can have in this year’s study is that

TEACHING ACTIVITIES   LESSON #1 THE PURPOSE OF THE PLAGUES (Exodus 7-10)   TRUTH: God is greater than the “gods” of this world, and I can trust Him and his power more than anything the world can offer.   FIRE IN THE BONES: I get excited to teach this lesson because the plagues part of the Exodus story don’t get much application attention. Yes, it’s dramatic, yes, it’s interesting, but there’s a purpose in the plagues. For us! The story is in there to teach us as the reader a

TEACHING ACTIVITIES   LESSON #1 THE WOMEN WHO SAVED MOSES (Exodus 1-2)   TRUTH: Before Moses could deliver Israel, God used courageous women to deliver Moses.   FIRE IN THE BONES: I get the fire in the bones for this lesson as I consider the influence that many righteous women have had in my life. This is an opportunity for us to honor their influence, examples, and sacrifices. Your class may walk in that day thinking that they are going to have a lesson about Moses. I mean,

LESSON #1 FEAST OR FAMINE: WISDOM IN THE GOOD TIMES (GENESIS  41)   TRUTH: Wise disciples prepare in seasons of plenty so they can remain steady in seasons of scarcity.   FIRE IN THE BONES: For some fire in the bones for teaching this principle. Keep in mind that this lesson could just inspire your students to start preparing now for possible difficult situations in their future. People don’t always understand just how quickly circumstances can change and this lesson can help

Teaching Activities NOTE: So as I explained in the Insight video, rather than splitting Joseph’s story strictly by the Come Follow Me designated chapters, I prefer to teach it in two parts. That lets us see Joseph’s life as one cohesive narrative, while still focusing this week on the early events and next week on what follows. And that’s because Joseph’s life is one of the most principle-rich stories in scripture, and it’s worth slowing down to see the bigger picture. LES

Teaching Activities   NOTE And right off the bat here, I have to say that this was a really tough week to put together. The reason being that back in 2022, this lesson was split it into two separate lessons, but this time they are combining them into one. So, there are entire lesson ideas in these chapters that I love and that could easily carry a class on their own, but I had to choose what felt most essential, most relatable, and most likely to bless the widest range of tea

TEACHING ACTIVITIES   LESSON #1 AGAINST HOPE, BELIEVE IN HOPE-THE ENDURANCE TEST (Genesis 12-21)   TRUTH: If I continue to trust God with hope when His promises seem delayed, then He will fulfill them in His time and way.   FIRE IN THE BONES: Now this lesson is going to be incredibly relevant to almost everyone because this is how God often works with his children while in mortality. We are all going to have endurance tests of faith in life. In fact, many of your students are

TEACHING ACTIVITIES   LESSON #1 THIS PROMISE IS YOURS ALSO (ABRAHAM 1-2)   TRUTH: God has great blessings and promises for the seed of Abraham—but they come with a sacred responsibility to bless the world without becoming like it.   FIRE IN THE BONES: A fire in the bones gets sparked in my heart for this lesson as I consider how fundamental the Abrahamic covenant is in understanding who the children of Israel are in the Old and New Testaments, and who WE are as part of God’s

Teaching Activities   LESSON #1 DON’T MISS THE BOAT (Genesis 6-7, Moses 8)   TRUTH: If we hearken to God, then He will provide a way for us and our families to rise above a corrupt world.   FIRE IN THE BONES: I find great relevance in this very, very ancient story. I’m sure that many of our students feel concern about trying to raise faithful families in a loud, confusing, and spiritually corrosive world.  Noah lived in a world like that, but God helped him to escape. Help yo

TEACHING ACTIVITIES Moses 7   LESSON #1 Building a People, Not a Place (Moses 7:1-27)   TRUTH: Zion is not a place first; it is a blessed people, built by unity, righteousness, and compassion.   FIRE IN THE BONES: I get a fire in the bones when I realize that this is a chance to inspire in my students a builder’s mentality. In the restored Church of Jesus Christ we are endeavoring to create a covenant community. So this lesson is a kind of invitation to become part of somethi

NOTE: And this is an interesting week because we basically only have one chapter to study. I really don’t do anything with Genesis 5 since it gives us so little compared to what Moses 6 gives us. Now, because of that, I always like to include a lesson from last week’s chapters this week, an additional lesson from a short 5 verse story from Moses 5. There was so much we had to look at last week that I felt this particular lesson would fit better into this weeks’ time frame. An

Teaching Activities   LESSON #1 The Greatest Magician: Avoiding the Adversary’s Tricks and Traps (Moses 4)   TRUTH: Satan deceives through lies, shifted focus, and rebellion, but God’s truth helps me see through his tricks.   FIRE IN THE BONES: The relevance of this lesson is what gives me a fire in the bones for teaching it. The temptations described here are not distant or abstract. We’ve all felt them. The story of Adam and Eve is the human story, and we’re meant to recogn

Teaching Activities   LESSON #1 IT IS GOOD-THE QUIET TESTIMONY OF CREATION (Moses 2, Abraham 4, Genesis 1)   TRUTH: Because the earth is good, I can enjoy it, care for it, and see it as evidence of God and His plan.   FIRE IN THE BONES: The purpose of this lesson is to help your students recognize the hand and love of God in the created world around them and how we should see and treat it. As someone who loves the outdoors, this is a truth that is near and dear to my heart. H

TEACHING ACTIVITIES LESSON #1 NOTHING OR EVERYTHING: THE TRUTH ABOUT OUR WORTH (MOSES 1:1-11, 27-39) TRUTH: I may be small in comparison to God’s creations—but I matter infinitely to Him. FIRE IN THE BONES: And this is a guiding principle for me in all my teaching, especially with these most distant of writings from our time. We must look for the most relevant of truths as we teach. So with this lesson, keep in mind that most people don’t wake up worried about ancient history

Watch the Insight Video on YouTube at: https://youtu.be/kh5V6GGqB1g Watch the Teaching Activities Video on YouTube at: https://youtu.be/O5S18_sEz-0 INSIGHTS   The first thing I like to do at the beginning of any new year of scripture study is to help my students get excited about studying that particular standard work. So this year, what do we have to look forward to in studying the Old Testament? In short? A lot. I LOVE teaching the Old Testament. In fact, if you pressed me

Watch the Insight Video on YouTube at: https://youtu.be/dACY7kkV9Uk Watch the Teaching Activities Video on YouTube at: https://youtu.be/eBI8lAyTiKo To purchase slides or handouts, go to: https://www.etsy.com/shop/TeachingWithPower INSIGHTS   For this week’s lesson, we’ll be taking a look at the document entitled “The Family: A Proclamation to the World”. This is not an official canonized part of the Doctrine and Covenants, but you know what, I think it should be. And I keep