Help for Teaching Alma 23-29 (June 29-July 5)
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It’s time to meet the Anti-Nephi-Lehies in Come, Follow Me Alma 23-29 “They ‘Never Did Fall Away’” (June 29- July 5). There are a lot of great lessons about repentance and forgiveness in these chapters. Remember to watch the video that pops up on this page for more details and insights.
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Ammon and his brothers are still missionaries in the land of the Lamanites. Seven lands or cities are converted to the Lord. The people in these lands desire a new name to set themselves apart and now called themselves the Anti-Nephi-Lehies. Even the new king is called Anti-Nephi-Lehi. The Anit-Nephi-Lehies bury their weapons of war as part of their repentance and conversion. The other Lamanites are angry about their conversion and slaughter about 1,000 of them without any resistance. More Lamanites are converted as a result. They move to Jershon among the Nephites for protection. Ammon and Alma both rejoice in the Lord and the success of their missionary labors. Some principles you can learn from these chapters include:
Lasting discipleship is apart of conversion (Alma 23-24)
Blessings follow those who accept the gospel (Alma 23:1-5)
Conversion changes lives (Alma 23-25; 27)
God is merciful (Alma 24:7-19; 26:17-22)
The Lord blesses His missionaries (Alma 26)
Eternal happiness comes from righteousness (Alma 28)
Sharing the gospel brings joy (Alma 29)
Remember to listen to my video for more details and explanations. I’ll cover the highlights below.
Conversion, Repentance, and Lasting Discipleship (Alma 23-35; 27)
A huge lesson we learn from the Book of Mormon is the gospel is for everyone. It will take work but we can be clean again. Look in Alma 23 and Alma 24:6-27 for evidence of the Anti-Nephi-Lehies repentance and conversion.
To repent means we are completely removing the sin from our lives as well as the temptation! The Anti-Nephi-Lehies didn’t just stop killing others, they took the temptation and buried it deep within the earth. Go through your house and remove any necessary temptations or put up safeguards so they aren’t a temptation anymore. Clean up your watchlist, playlist, room, etc. What positive things can you replace those things with? How are we becoming lasting disciples?
Get out the pudding, chocolate sandwich cookies, and plastic mini swords! Bury your swords deep into the pudding cup as you talk about what they might represent for your family. Enjoy the fun treat while watching the Book of Mormon videos for this chapter.
- These sword toothpicks are a blast. You'll be able to use these again as we move into the war chapters plus get them out for your Independence Day meal. You can tie them in with my Title of Liberty lesson. UPDATE: We got our swords and are having lots of fun with them. Legos have adopted swords and plans are being made by my children. Ha, ha. They are definitely looking forward to this lesson.
Religious Freedom (Alma 23; 28)
The Lamanites are given religious freedom! That’s huge! The sons of Mosiah and their companions still faced many hardships but they also had great success. Seven lands or cities are converted to the gospel. Design your own church building- ancient or modern- and share it with your family.
Watch Elder David A. Bednar’s message during the Religious Freedom Annual Review. His remarks start at 32:25 but I’m sure the rest of it can be enlightening as well. This is such a great example of how we need to continually fight for religious freedom and protect it. What can you do? What is religious freedom? How do others try to take it away? How do we give it up sometimes? How do we keep religion essential in our lives?
The Nephites grant protection and safety to the Anti-Nephi-Lehies in the Land of Jershon. I love how Alma prepared the people to be open to protecting this group of Lamanites by being a missionary to the Nephites. What are you willing to do so others can have religious freedom?
Pits of Despair and Real Joy (Alma 26; 29)
Even Ammon and his brothers faced what I call, a pit of despair (see Alma 26:27). Life is hard. Missionary work is hard! The sons of Mosiah taught for 14 years! It’s what we do when we reach that pit of despair that makes all the difference. Build a bridge over your pit of despair. Grab some popsicle sticks and glue to construct your bridge. Use a bowl for your pit of despair. Grab a toy car to test your bridge out when you are done. You can also put something rewarding on the other side of the pit as an incentive. What helped you? Was it frustrating? Did it seem impossible at some point? Why did you keep going? Who can help you when you reach a point of despair in your life? What will help you overcome it? What symbolism can you draw from this activity?
See last week’s helps for additional missionary games. How have you done this past week? What joy have you experienced as you’ve tried harder to be a missionary?
I love Alma 26 and 29 because of the joy that is so apparent. Yes, there are hardships but the joy that is available is amazing. It swallows up all that pain and sorrow because it is so much more. Remember how we need opposites so we can appreciate the good? So true here! Real joy comes from righteous desires and that includes missionary work. The sons of Mosiah were willing to go preach to save a FEW souls. The joy in helping one person would be worth it. Imagine how much their hearts swelled because of the thousands that were converted! As you read chapters 26 and 29, look for those things that they are happy about. Then use my color by number and assign one reason per color you have to rejoice.
Read some missionary stories from those sharing the gospel during this pandemic. How have you seen the missionaries adapt to the extra obstacles in your area? Watch the video from Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf about how we can embrace the future of missionary work. There is also this one he shared on social media. How are the missionaries finding joy in the work now?
“And Thus We See” (Alma 28:13-14)
Mormon points out a lesson he wants us to learn at the end of chapter 28. What are some of the lessons you have learned in your study of the Book of Mormon this year? Invite your family to fill in their viewer strip and take turns looking at each others’ through the spyglass.
You can find recommended videos to go with the lessons on ChurchofJesusChrist.org. They usually load up one month at a time so if it’s not there yet, wait until July. There are usually General Conference talks included with the videos if you are looking for additional things to study.
Remember, the Ensign is also a great resource. Use the digital version to access the weekly additional articles and activity pages.
For additional things to study, see my recommendations of the best Book of Mormon Resources.
- The Red Headed Hostess lesson packet includes coloring pages, collectible cards, bedtime stories, and more. Hers focuses on the burying of weapons and sharing the gospel this week.
- Remember through July 5, David Bowman is giving free access to his videos, DRAWN IN. Check them out and see if it's worthwhile for you. If you love them, use my affiliate promo code CKN10 to get 10% off a year membership.
- Love Pray Teach has a fun tic tac toe game this week as well as a puzzle, coloring page, and more.
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