Love Your Enemies FHE Lesson

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Love Your Enemies FHE Lesson

LessonbyMeredithOldroyd,DigitizedbyLaraGoold Materials needed: Scriptures

Purpose: To help the family understand what Jesus meant when he said to love our enemies and do good to them that hate you.

Scripture: “Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them that despitefully use you, and persecute you.” Matthew 5:44 and 3 Nephi 12:44

Opening song(s) and prayer: “Kindness Begins With Me,” Children’s Songbook, page 145

Lesson: Ask—How do you feel about someone who says nice things to your and treats you kindly? Is it easy to like people who are nice to us? How do you feel about someone who tells lies about you? Or won’t play with you anymore? It is a little harder to like those people, isn’t it? Have any of you ever had some of these experiences? Listen—to their responses, but don’t lecture or judge. Teach—Jesus taught a wonderful sermon, that we call the Sermon on the Mount, to his followers. (SHOW PICTURE OF THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT). He taught this same sermon to the Nephites in America after he was resurrected. Read Matthew 5:44. Ask—What is Jesus saying? Should we do mean things to people who do mean things to us? How might we apply this scripture in our everyday life? Discuss—Even though it may be really hard sometimes, when we return good for evil, we are following Jesus’ example. Show picture of Jesus being mocked—Jesus was always very loving and kind to those around him even when they did not treat him nicely. Soldiers took Jesus and beat him with whips. They made fun of Jesus. They made a crown of thorns and put it on his head. The thorns hurt his head and made him bleed. The soldiers put a purple robe on Jesus and mockingly bowed before him calling him the king of the Jews. They laughed at him and spit on him. Then they nailed his hands and feet to a cross and left him there to die. This was not fair. He never did anything wrong. Everything he ever did was to help other people, but he did not complain, yell, or fight back. The scriptures say that “Jesus held his peace” (Matthew 26:63) and forgave them all freely. “Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.” (Luke 23:34)


Show picture of happy Jesus . Jesus is the strongest, most courageous person who has ever lived. It takes much more courage and strength to NOT fight back or try to hurt others when we feel wronged that it does to just fight back. This does not mean that we ignore bad situations and don’t try to make them better. If someone hurts you or creates a dangerous situation, you do NOT need to let them keep hurting you. But instead of just trying to hurt them back, we can usually think of a way to fix the problem that will help everyone. When we feel wronged we can stop, think, and pray about the best way to solve the problem. Heavenly Father loves us and he will help us. The Umpire Blew It—(this lesson probably wouldn’t be understood by small children or those not interested in sports, but would be a great real-life application story for children whose understanding and/or attention span is ready)—Read (or briefly retell) the story and use the enclosed visual aids. Real Life Situations—Distribute the good and evil signs (each person needs one of each) and explain the following: I have given each of you a puppet that says GOOD on one side and EVIL on the other side (or two different puppets). We are going to hear some situations. I want you to decide if the second person is returning good or evil to the first person. If it is good, show the good side of your puppet. If they react with evil, show the evil side. If it is evil, we are going to repeat what Jesus said, “Do good to them that hate you.” Then we will think of how the second person could return good instead. (You could also act out the situations if your children like being dramatic.) Bear your testimony about the blessings of loving your enemies. Talk about how much better you feel inside when you let go of the anger and hurt and go forward in kindness and love.

Enrichment: Based on the ages and attention spans of your children, choose one or more of the following enrichment activities to enhance the message of the lesson. Enrichment activities do not necessarily need to be completed on the same night as the lesson. We often use them as reinforcement/reminders during the week. Conciliatory Treats: If there is a neighbor or friend who has recently offended you, make treats and a nice note and bring it to them as a peace offering. Children seeing parents putting aside their negative/retaliatory feelings (and talking appropriately about what they’re doing) will do more than 100 lessons ever could at teaching them this often difficult concept.

Quotes: Cut out the quotes on page 14, mount them onto pretty paper and hang them up around the house.

Closing song: “I’m Trying to Be Like Jesus,” Children’s Songbook, page 78

Closing Prayer:

Refreshments: see below for a fun treat recipe.


Lion House Lemon Bars from http://recipeshoebox.blogspot.com

Ingredients:

Crust: 1/2 cup butter 1/4 cup powdered sugar 1 cup flour Filling: 2 eggs 2 Tbs. flour 1 cup sugar 2 Tbs. lemon juice grated rind of half lemon For crust: Cream butter, sugar and flour. Spread in an 8x8" pan and bake at 350° for 15-20 minutes (or until golden). While crust is baking prepare next layer. For filling: Beat eggs slightly and add sugar, flour, lemon juice, and rind. Mix well and pour over hot crust after it come from oven. Now bake for 15-20 minutes at 350° or until golden brown and set. Remove from oven and sprinkle lightly with powdered sugar. Cool slightly before serving. When doubled this recipe fits just perfectly into a 9x13" pan. Enjoy!


Sermon on the Mount


Christ being mocked and crucified:


Happy Jesus


The Umpire Blew It—by Bob Goedde, Friend, Jun 1994, 36 (For younger children, pre-read and briefly retell the story)

“I was safe, and the stupid umpire called me out,” Billy seethed. “That would’ve been the first home run I’ve ever hit.” “Lighten up, Billy,” his friend Eric said. “You’ll hit another one someday. Besides, you ought to be happy we won.” “But I can’t believe he called me out. It wasn’t even close.” “You’re lucky he didn’t throw you out of the game. Come on, it’s almost time for the other game to start.” “Give me a few minutes, and I’ll be ready.” Billy walked slowly to the parking lot. He sat for a moment in the privacy of his mom’s car and closed his eyes. “Dear Heavenly Father,” he prayed, “help me get over my anger. I know it’s not right to be hateful. Help me to not think bad of the umpire.” The play was still vivid in Billy’s mind. The ball had exploded off his bat, splitting the right and center fielders. “Tag all the bases!” the coach bellowed over the cheers of the crowd. Billy never hesitated as he raced around the bases. As he approached home plate, he could hear the coach screaming, “Get down! Slide!” As he went into a headfirst slide, everything seemed to happen in slow motion. He saw the ball go into the catcher’s mitt. He saw his hand skim across home plate. He felt the catcher tag his left shoulder, clearly after he touched the plate. “You’re out!” Billy pounded the dirt with both fists. Then he jumped up and screamed at the umpire. Eric was right—the umpire could easily have thrown him out of the game. Rejoining Eric at the diamond, Billy muttered, “Well, at least these guys have a good umpire—Dad’s calling their game.” For as long as Billy could remember, his dad had been an umpire. He had no doubt his dad was the best umpire in the league. “Boy, some of the parents at our game were really getting upset about the call on you,” said Eric. “Yeah,” said Billy. “I was too. Did you notice how fast the umpire left after the game was over?” He spotted his mom in the bleachers, and the two boys went up and sat beside her. “Where have you boys been?” she asked. “The game’s about to begin.” “We went for a walk so he could blow off a little steam,” Eric said. “I thought that you were safe,” Billy’s mom told him, “but your antics were uncalled for. The umpires have a tough job; they’re not always going to make the right call. We’ll discuss your actions later.” “Dad always makes the right call,” Billy mumbled to himself. The game was 1–0 going into the bottom of the sixth. The Eagles were behind and down to their last out. The crowd was on its feet. Charlie Gibson, the best hitter in the league, stepped to the plate. Billy was a little surprised that the Aces didn’t walk him. Crack! The ball sailed over the left fielder’s head. “Tag ’em all, tag ’em all,” screamed Charlie’s coach. Charlie rounded third and raced towards home. The left fielder threw the ball to the shortstop; the shortstop fired it to home plate. “Get down! Slide! Slide!” yelled the batter on deck. Charlie’s foot touched home plate at the same instant the catcher tagged him. Amid the swirling dust, Billy could see his dad waiting to make the call. Billy saw Dad raise a clinched fist above his head. Down came the fist as he shouted, “You’re out!” Charlie was outraged. He jumped up and started screaming at the umpire. The game was over, and Billy’s dad tried to leave the field. A number of fans were yelling angrily at him. “You’re worthless!” “How can you make an idiotic call like that?” “That’s the worst call I’ve ever seen!”


Some parents had run down to the fence to scream at Billy’s dad. Fortunately a policeman was nearby and escorted him to his car. Billy’s mom decided to wait until the crowd calmed down before leaving. Billy saw Charlie walking toward the bleachers. “You were safe, son,” said Charlie’s mom. Charlie threw his glove down in disgust. “That stupid idiot lost the game for us and cost me a home run! That’s the third time we’ve had that bum this year, and he’s been horrible every time.” “Did you hear what he called Dad?” Billy said to his morn. “We have to do something.” “What do you want to do?” she asked. “These people are terribly upset. If you say something, you’re liable to cause a fight.” After the crowd thinned out, Billy and his mom went to the car. On the way home, Billy’s mom pulled into a service station. As she was pumping gas into the car, Billy noticed a man at another pump. It was the umpire of his ball game. As Billy watched, a couple of small children poked their heads out a window of the man’s car and laughed. The man laughed back at them. He’s just like any other person, Billy realized with a start. In fact, he’s a lot like Dad. He began to feel guilty for acting as he had. “Mom, if I apologize to the umpire, will we still have a discussion when we get home?” “If you apologize,” said Billy’s mom, “we won’t need to discuss anything.” As Billy walked toward the man’s car, he realized that Heavenly Father had answered his prayer to remove the anger from his heart. He hoped Charlie would offer the same prayer too. [illustrations] Illustrated by Dale Kilbourn

Discussion ideas: Would you be angry when the umpire called you out? Or when your friends aren’t being nice to you? Being angry is a normal feeling and we all feel that way sometimes. What we choose to do with our anger is really important. What was Billy’s response to someone who had wronged him? What did Billy realize about the umpire at the gas station?

We are all God’s children and he wants us to learn to get along with many different kinds of people. After Billy realized that he was wrong and that he felt bad, what did he do? Heavenly Father prepared a way for Billy to repent. Billy could then offer a prayer of thanks to Heavenly Father for helping him repent and changing his heart.


The Umpire Blew It—


The Umpire Blew It--


The Umpire Blew It--


Good and Evil signs to use with the “Real Life Situations”— Print, cut, and mount onto Popsicle sticks. You can make these double sided where one side says, “Good” and the other side says, “Evil”. Or you can make them into two separate signs. Each person will need their own good and evil sign.


Real Life Situations—read each scenario and solution. Hold up the good or evil sign depending on how the person reacted to the negative thing done to them. If they had chosen evil, think of a positive thing that could have been done instead to better follow the example of Jesus.

Scenario #1—One of your friends has made up a mean story about you that isn’t true and is telling everyone in class that it is true. You are upset and hurt and want to tell everyone about that time last year when she wet her pants on vacation. You decide to calmly tell the friend that your feelings are hurt and that you’re sad that they’re making up stories about you. You then tell her that you hope you can still be friends and invite her to come swimming with you.

Scenario #2—A boy in your class took your hat and mittens and says that they’re his. Your teacher won’t let you go outside for recess without your warm clothes. You are mad that he took them and mad that your mom forgot to write your name on them. You go home and tell your mom what happened. Mom makes a scarf that matches the hat and mittens that the boy took and together you go over and give him the matching scarf. You wear last year’s hat and mittens and feel happy that someone else is warm.

Scenario #3—You left your bike lying out and your neighbor ran over it when he was pulling into his driveway. Your dad says that the bike is too ruined to be fixed and that it’s too expensive to buy a new one. Even though you left it out, you’re still really mad at your neighbor. You decide that since he ran over your bike that you’re going to ruin his flowers. You go over and run them over with your toy cars.

Scenario #4—It was a classmate’s birthday today and he brought really yummy looking treats to share with the class. When he came to you he picked out the smallest, crumbliest treat and handed it to you with a mean smile on his face. You feel upset and start formulating a plan for revenge when it’s your birthday next month. You go home and pray about your angry feelings and decide that instead of seeking revenge that you will give him the biggest and best treat for your birthday.

Scenario #5—There’s a girl in your primary class that just won’t let you have a moment of peace. She’s always poking you and whispering in your ear and today you got in trouble and you hadn’t even said a word.

You go home and write her a mean note telling her that you’re tired of her always sitting by you and talking. You tell her that you don’t want to be her friend.

Scenario #6—You are new at school and there is a mean girl who is telling everyone not to be your friend. She won’t let you sit by her and she tells everyone you’re dumb.

You go home and talk to your parents about how lonely and sad you’re feeling. Together you pray for the girl and decide to be as kind as possible. You bring an extra snack to share with her and invite her to jump rope with you at recess. She still is being mean, but you keep praying for her and being nice to her. Pretty soon the other children notice what a kind person you are and you make lots of friends.


Quotes: Cut out and hang up around your house to remind you of the lesson through the week.

“Somehow forgiveness, with love and

tolerance, accomplishes miracles that

can happen in no other way.”

~Gordon B. Hinckley~

"May God help us to be a little kinder, showing forth greater forbearance, to be more forgiving, more willing to walk the second mile, to reach down and lift up those who may have sinned but have brought forth the fruits of repentance, to lay aside old grudges and nurture them no more."

~Gordon B. Hinckley~

But I say unto you, love your

enemies, bless them that

curse you, do good to them

that hate you, and pray for

them which despitefully

persecute you.

Matthew 5:44

Documents

Love Your Enemies FHE Lesson