Preach My Gospel, Lesson 4, Heading 1Obedience

Obedience
Preparation: Get a marble, a plate and a bowl for the object lesson. Print and cut out

pictures to use with stories, if desired. Study 1 Nephi 3-5.

Opening Song: Choose the Right Way

~God gives us commandments for our benefit. They are instructions from a loving Father in Heaven to help us have happy lives. The whole next lesson in Preach My Gospel is about commandments from Heavenly
Father. We will learn about 1 or 2 each week. Tonight we will talk about why it is wonderful to obey Heavenly Fathers commandments. (Tell the following true story in your own words). Once there were three boys who liked to go hiking with their dad. Dad always said he knew the mountains like the back of his own hand. He had grown up walking the same paths with his own dad. When we come around this bend, youll see a little waterfall, Dad might tell the boys. Or, Be really quiet here, and youll be able to hear the wind whistle up in the cliffs. He always seemed to know just what to watch or listen for. When the brothers did what Dad told them, they always found something new to love about the mountains. But sometimes they just wanted to run, and Dad let them do it when it was safe. One summer day they were excited to reach the top of the traila high meadow filled with fresh green grass and flowers of just about every color. And so they took off running through the trees at top speed. They wanted to burst onto that meadow like jackrabbits. Stop when you get to the meadow, Dad called after them. Ill meet you there. They ran ahead, each trying to get in front of the others. The boys stopped a moment while their eyes got used to the light. Then they took off again, forgetting Dads instruction. They ran in circles through the deep grass, jumping and dodging, whooping and hollering and tagging each other. Then the oldest son had an idea. Lets race all the way across the meadow! The younger brothers hesitated. They couldnt see the far side of the clearing because a grassy hill obscured their view. But he told them, I think this is the same meadow we came to last summer. They gathered back at the trees, and he called out, Ready! Set! GO! They all ran as fast as they could, enjoying the wind in their faces. STOP! a voice bellowed like thunder behind them. All three boys stopped immediately. They turned and saw Dad running toward them from the edge of the

meadow. Come back here beside me, Dad called, more gently this time. The boys obeyed. Now, everybody hold hands, he said. They walked together across the meadow, hand in hand. As they topped the little hill, Dad suddenly stopped. Just a few paces ahead of them, a sheer cliff dropped down at least 20 or 30 feet. If they had been running, there was no way they could have seen it in time to stop. The boys were amazed to see how close they had come to falling down that cliff. The oldest one said softly, We could have died. Dad said, Well, maybe. Im sure glad you stopped running, even though I didnt have time to explain. Sometimes we have to obey first and ask questions later! Especially when someone else knows whats coming, and you dont, the oldest son said. Dad smiled. Sometimes youll get instructions and not know why right away. But if you trust the person the instructions came from, obey anyway. Later youll understand why. Object lesson. Place the marble on the plate and rotate the plate in a circular motion. Slowly increase the speed of the rotation and attempt to keep the marble on the plate. This will become increasingly hard and the marble will eventually careen off the plate. Now place the marble in the bowl and rotate the bowl in a circular motion. Slowly increase the speed of the rotation while keeping the marble in the bowl. The sides of the bowl permit you to increase the speed of the marble without losing control. The plate does not have boundaries. However, without boundaries we, like the marble, may spin out of control. Heavenly Fathers commandments are like the sides of the bowl. They help us to know how to have happy lives and to be safe from the dangers of temptation. Pres. James E. Faust said, Obedience leads to true freedom.

~Obedience to the commandments shows our love for God. He blesses us as we strive to obey His commandments.
The scriptures have many stories about people who were blessed when they were obedient. Can anyone think of one to share? One of my favorites is when the Lord told Lehi to send his sons back to Jerusalem for the brass plates. (Tell the story in your own words, using the flannel board pictures, and emphasize the blessings received by Lehis family as a result of having the brass plates.) Read 1 Nephi 5:21. Bear testimony of the importance of obedience and how it has blessed your life with happiness and safety.

Sources: The Book of Mormon Preach My Gospel

Obedience, sugardoodle.net Stop!, Ana Nelson Shaw, Friend, June 2005 Nephi Obtains the Plates, Friend, March 1992 , 11