Love for Jesus

Objective: Family members will have an opportunity to express their love for the Savior, Jesus Christ.

Suggested Hymns and Songs:

"Do What Is Right" Hymns, no. 27
"Come, We That Love the Lord" Hymns,  no. 25
"I Want to Live the Gospel"
"Jesus Loved the Little Children"
"Jesus Said Love Every One"

Scriptures:

"If ye love me, keep my commandments." - John 14:15

"Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me." - Matthew 25:40

Lesson:

A Debt of Love

Ask the members of your family to imagine the events in the following incident as you describe them. Use your imagination to make the details fit your own family.

The Rescue

The Carr family was vacationing in a recreational area near a large, beautiful lake.

On the first morning of their stay, the family rented a motorboat and went fishing. It was a beautiful morning. Mountains covered with pine trees rose around the sparkling blue lake and were reflected in the water. Toward noon, the sun was quickly hidden behind black clouds, and almost without warning, it began to rain. Hastily, the father pulled in the lines and prepared to return to shore, but the wind whipped the water into high waves, tossing the light boat in all directions. Suddenly, an especially strong gust of wind capsized the boat. Somehow, the parents and three children managed to help each other and catch hold of the overturned boat.

They hung on helplessly as the boat drifted further and further from shore. Through the rain, the father saw a large boat approaching them. Soon the whole family saw it. It withstood the waves and maneuvered so that everyone was able to climb onto it safely.

After the first great relief of being saved, the family began to question the young man who brought the boat. They learned that the young man's father owned a lodge on the lake's shore. Knowing that sudden, severe storms came up frequently on the lake, causing great danger to small boats, the man had purchased a strong motor boat and kept it standing b at all times to help people in difficult situations.

Ask your family to try to imagine how they would have felt toward this young man and his father, who had rescued the family from danger. Let different members of the family express how they think they might feel.

This story can help each family member understand how he should feel, to a small degree, toward a real father and son who saved him from a fate worse than being drowned in a lake. Ask: Can our family name this real Father and Son?

We sometimes fail to feel a deep, personal gratitude for our Savior, who was send by his Father to save us, because we do not visualize clearly or fully understand the great peril from which he saved us.

Discussion:

Our weaknesses and mistakes (of which we are all guilty) would shut out each and every one of us from the presence of our Father in Heaven. Jacob, the brother of Nephi, stated that we would "be shut out from the presence of our God, and . . . remain with the father of all lies, in misery, like unto himself" (2 Nephi 9:9).

But we are saved from this because our Savior, Jesus Christ, rescued us by suffering and dying to atone for our sings. Help each family member feel the great debt of love that he personally owes to the Savior.

Expressing Love and Gratitude to Jesus:

Some of the most beautiful words ever written have been written to express deep, personal love and gratitude for Jesus and his mission. You may enjoy reading together some of the following examples of such writing:

1. Psalm 23. You could read this while each person thinks of Jesus his shepherd.
2. Isaiah 9:6 and 53:3-12. These are prophecies of Isaiah, who, in beautiful language and with a deep feeling of love, foretold the mission of Jesus.
3. "I Stand All Amazed" Hymns, no. 80. Read or sing this hymn (you may also use other hymns about Jesus that express love for him).
4. President Joseph F. Smith said this about Jesus: "Christ was a Master in the art of healing . . . What a comfort his life is to those in sorrow! How instinctively our thoughts turn to Him! How prone we are to go to Him for consolation! He is truly the great Healer of the afflictions of others."

After the readings you have chosen, have your family write down their own feelings about Jesus and what he has done for each of them personally. This could be a list or a statement that also contains expression of thanks and praise. As a group, your family may wish to write a statement that also contains expressions of thanks and praise. As a group, your family may wish to write a statement or make a list with each member contributing his own ideas. (This could also be done orally, with each person telling how he feels about Jesus.)

Planning a Way to Show Love for Jesus:

Read John 14:15 and Matthew 25:40, which tell of two important ways that we can show love for Jesus.

Explain that Jesus has shown, and continually shows, love for each of us. This is an opportunity for each person to do something specific to show his love for the Savior--something that is a real act of love because it will take time and effort. Each family member should be free to make his own plans or to join with other family members in a group project.

If some family members choose to show love for Jesus by trying to keep one of his commandments better, discuss specific ways this could be done, such as:

1. Praying regularly with more thought and feeling
2. Attending church meetings, especially sacrament meeting, more regularly
3. Being more attentive and reverent during the sacrament
4. Paying tithing, not as a duty, but with love and gratitude

Also, discuss ways you can show love for Jesus by performing an act of kindness, such as:

1. Helping parents perform household chores thoroughly and willingly
2. Doing secretly at least on kind act every day for a family member
3. Being friendly to a person who needs friends
4. Sharing the gospel with a nonmember friend
5. Helping a widow or elderly couple with yard work
6. Visiting a shut-in or inviting him home for dinner
7. Making cookies or other treats for neighbors
8. Inviting a nonmember family to your house for family home evening (on a night other than Monday) or to meet with the missionaries, if appropriate

These are only a few examples of ways we can show more love for Jesus. The best ideas will come from your own family members. Encourage each person to think of the way he might express his appreciation to the Lord for all He has done and to make his own plans to express his gratitude. Ask each family member to copy either John 14:15 or Matthew 25:40, whichever best fits his or her plans, and have him or her place it where he or she can see it often to remind him or her to show love for our Savior, Jesus Christ.

Additional Suggestions for Families with Young Children:

Begin the lesson by sharing a small treat, such as a cookie or a piece of candy, with each child. Explain that giving something to a person is one way to show you love him. Explain that you gave each child a treat because you love each one.

Ask: What are some other ways we can show someone we love them? (By doing things for them, smiling at them, and saying kind things to them).

Tell your children that your family is going to take time to show love for a very special person--our Savior, Jesus Christ. (Show a picture of Jesus.)

Ask: Why do you think we should show Jesus we love Him? (Accept any answers given. This will be an opportunity for you to tell your little children why you love Jesus. Your sincere feelings will help the children to feel gratitude for Jesus and His mission.)

Singing songs about Jesus will help the children to think about Him in a loving way. Sing any songs about Jesus that your children know. Have them pick the ones they like best. Encourage them to think about the words as they sing. End with the song "Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam."

After the song, explain to the children that when they are sunbeams and make their friends and family members happy, they make Jesus happy, too, and He knows they love Him.

Ask: What are some of the things we can do to be sunbeams for Jesus? As different ways are suggested, the children may enjoy acting them out. Following are some examples of how this could be done:

1. By smiling (children smile at each other)
2. By picking up toys (children pretend to put away toys)
3. By smiling and being patient when you can't be first and have to wait (children smile and sit quietly)
4. By hanging up clothes (children pretend to hang up clothes)
5. By coming willingly when called (children smile and pretend to walk)

Give each child one or two sheets of paper, and ask him to draw pictures of some of the ways he would like to be a sunbeam and show Jesus that he loves Him. Accept and enjoy each child's efforts. Remember that no matter how simple it seems to you, it will have meaning for him. Hang these pictures where they will be seen often.

During the week, talk with the children at mealtimes about ways they have shown love for Jesus by being sunbeams and by actually making their pictures come true.