{Sharing Time} “If Ye Have Faith Ye Hope For Things Which Are Not Seen, Which Are True” (Alma 32:21)
Sharing Time Idea from 2014 Sharing Time Outline
IDENTIFY THE DOCTRINE(memorizing a scripture): Write on the board “If ye have faith ye hope for things which are not seen, which are true.” Have the children read it aloud together several times, and then erase all but the first letter of each word. Ask the children to recite it again. Erase the letters one at a time until the children can repeat the scripture from memory.
ENCOURAGE UNDERSTANDING(hearing a scripture story): Ask the children to describe how they know when it is nighttime. Show a picture of Samuel the Lamanite and explain that he prophesied that on the night Jesus Christ would be born, the sun would go down but it would not get dark. Invite the children to retell the events from Helaman 16 and 3 Nephi 1:1–13 (you may want to ask a few children in advance to be prepared to share this story). Ask the children to recite the scripture they memorized, and ask them how the Nephite believers showed faith. Ask the children what they think happened to the believers. Invite a child to read 3 Nephi 1:15, 19. Testify of the importance of faith.
Sharing Time Idea from Little LDS Ideas
{Here is an idea I have shared before. Read through it and change it up to fit your needs. The beginning is a little long, but the activity would be a great one! Parts of this idea came from The Friend; Jan. 1999; Sharing Time: Faith in Jesus Christ }
Idea
What does it mean to have faith? Alma says that “if ye have faith ye hope for things which are not seen, which are true” (Alma 32:21). We have faith when we believe and trust in something that is real and true even though we have not seen it for ourselves.
What does it mean to have faith in Jesus Christ? To have faith in Jesus Christ means that although we have not seen Him, we believe that He lives and loves us and that we trust Him. When we read the scriptures, we can learn about Him. When we listen to the prophets, we can understand what we can do to follow Him. When we pray in faith for help to choose the right, we can know that our prayers will be answered. When we listen to the whisperings of the Holy Ghost, we can feel Him close to us and know that He loves us.
Show the children some seeds. Ask the children if anyone knows what they are. Then ask them the 3 questions from the outline: “What can these seeds become?” “How do you know these seeds will grow?” “What must we do to make them grow?” Discuss the seeds and how they grow with the children. Then explain to the children that Faith is like a seed. You could ask the children how Faith is like a seed.
How does our faith in Jesus Christ grow? Alma tells us that the word of God is like a seed. We show our faith when we plant a seed in the earth. We then nurture it by keeping the weeds away, by giving it water and plant food, and by making sure that it has sunshine. If it is a good seed, it will begin to swell and grow.
When we believe in the teachings of Jesus Christ, we plant true words of God in our hearts. We nurture this kind of seed by praying, by listening to the prophets, by keeping the commandments, and by responding to the promptings of the Holy Ghost. As we do this, the seed of truth will grow within our hearts. Then we will know that Jesus Christ is happy with our efforts.
Alma says that if we continue to nourish the word of God by our faith, it will grow as large as a tree and bring forth fruit. This means that our faith in Jesus Christ will grow strong and bring blessings for us and for others. What joy that brings! We have faith in Jesus Christ when we believe Him, trust Him, obey Him, and follow Him.
Help the children memorize Alma 32:21: “If ye have faith ye hope for things which are not seen, which are true.”
After the children have memorized the scripture show a picture of Samuel the Lamanite and explain that he prophesied that on the night Jesus Christ would be born, the sun would go down but it would not get dark. Tell the story to the children and discuss it.
Activity
Assemble some gardening aids (small bag of fertilizer, trowel, watering can, picture of sun, etc.), and put them into a box or bag. Have children pick an item and tell one thing we can do to nurture the word of God by our faith in Jesus Christ (believe, keep the commandments, pray, etc.). Label each item with a word suggested by the child. Display pictures of trees in various stages. Help the children realize that this is an ongoing process.
**Another idea: you could attach pictures to each gardening tool for Jr. Primary and scripture references for Sr. Primary that talk about the different ways we can nurture/help our seed grow (Prayer, Scriptures, Baptism, etc.). Have the children tell you what the picture is and then discuss how that helps our seed to grow and have the older children find the scripture and read it and then tell you what it is.
I hope you enjoy my Faith Sharing time idea for this week. I would love to hear how it goes or any changes you make.
Thanks so much for stopping by. Have a wonderful day & a great Sharing Time!
