“Mine House Is a House of Order”

By Cheryl Esplin

Organize yourselves; prepare every needful thing; and establish a house, even a house of prayer, a house of fasting, a house of faith, a house of learning, a house of glory, a house of order, a house of God (D&C 88:119).

The Lord said, “Mine house is a house of order” (D&C 132:8). The temple is the Lord’s house, but our homes can be a house of order too. A house of order is a home where we try to do as Jesus taught. It is a home where we can feel love and peace.

Heavenly Father has given parents the responsibility to teach and care for their children with love and kindness. He has given children the responsibility to obey and honor their parents. Heavenly Father wants every member of the family to work together to make his or her home a happy, peaceful place where the Spirit can be.

Elder Glenn L. Pace of the Seventy told how his youngest daughter helped their family do things the Lord’s way. He said: “She was the one who reminded us to have family prayer. She was the one who tried to get us excited about family home evening. She devised treasure hunts; she fixed treats; she would do anything to try to get the family excited about having family home evening” (“Friend to Friend,” Friend, Feb. l997, 7).

Activity

Remove page 14 from the magazine, and mount it on heavy paper. Cut out the puzzle pieces. Read Doctrine and Covenants 88:119, and then put the puzzle together in the correct word order, matching the verse.

When you have completed the puzzle, say the scripture several times and try to memorize it. Think about things that you can do to help your family have a home like Heavenly Father wants you to have—a home where you can feel love and peace, a home where you can feel His Spirit.

Illustration by Thomas S. Child

Organize yourselves;

prepare every needful thing;

and establish a house,

even a house of prayer,

a house of fasting,

a house of faith,

a house of learning,

a house of glory,

a house of order,

a house of God.

Sharing Time Ideas

March Theme: Family members have important responsibilities. (Note: All songs are from Children’s Songbook unless otherwise noted; GAK = Gospel Art Picture Kit, TNGC = Teaching, No Greater Call.)

Fathers preside over, provide for, and protect the family with love. Show shoes that represent different responsibilities of a father (athletic shoes, casual shoes, Sunday shoes, work shoes, and slippers). To show that fathers have many responsibilities, have children stand in the shoes they think are best for a father to wear when exercising, going home teaching, going to church, going to work building roads, and comforting a child in the middle of the night. Teach and discuss the responsibilities of a father found in paragraph 7 of “The Family: A Proclamation to the World” (Ensign, Nov. 1995, 102). Sing the second verse of “The Family Is of God” (Friend, Oct. 2008, 28–29).

Have children role-play while you tell the story of Nephi, emphasizing the influence and role of his father, Lehi (see 1 Nephi 1; 2). Beforehand, make name tags for the children to wear that represent characters in the account. Involve as many children as possible. Bear testimony that one of the most important responsibilities a father has is to lead his family. Encourage the children to write a note expressing their love for their fathers and to put it in one of his shoes.
Mothers nurture the family. Have several older children come to Primary prepared to sing the first verse of “The Dearest Names” (p. 208). Every time they come to the word mother, they should whisper it into a different child’s ear. At the end of the song, have those children whisper it to the children on both sides of them. Ask the children to raise their hands if they know what sharing time is about. Teach the responsibilities of a mother as found in “The Family: A Proclamation to the World,” paragraph 7. Help the children understand that nurture means “to help grow and develop.” Beforehand, write on pieces of paper some things a mother does to nurture her family. Put the papers in a container. (Examples: making dinner, rocking a baby, giving a hug, reading to a child, and so on.) Have children take turns choosing a paper and pantomiming the action while the others guess what it is. Bear testimony of the influence of mothers.
I will obey my parents. Invite a Primary leader to tell about a time she obeyed her parents. Have her share the consequences. Have the children turn to Colossians 3:20. Explain that this verse was written by Paul, who was an Apostle of Jesus Christ. Before reading the verse together, tell the children to look for answers to these questions: To whom is Paul speaking? What does Paul tell them to do? Read the scripture, and ask for responses. Then ask: What are some of the ways obeying your parents has helped you stay safe or helped you choose the right? Sing “Quickly I’ll Obey” (p. 197). Toss a beanbag to several children, and ask them to tell one thing their parents ask them to do that they could obey. Testify of the importance of obeying parents.
I have many family members who can help me. Play the following guessing game. Make labels that say “grandfather,” “grandmother,” “uncle,” “aunt,” and “cousin.” Choose an older child to wear a label on his or her back. Show the label to the Primary, except for that child. Tell the child that the label represents a member of a family. Have the children give the child clues to guess which label he or she is wearing. (Examples: I live in your grandmother’s house. Or, I am your grandmother’s son. Or, I am your mother’s brother.) Repeat for each label. Teach that grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins are all part of our family and that Heavenly Father planned for us to support and help each other. Invite the children to think of times when an extended family member helped or supported their families. Ask the children to think of an extended family member they could help in some way. Help them make a sack puppet to represent this person (see “Puppets,” TNGC, 176–77). Have the children sing “I Have a Family Tree” (p. 199) using their puppets. Ask a few children to show their puppets and tell what they can do to help that person. Have the children take their puppets home as a reminder to discuss with their parents what they felt they could do to help a family member.
Song presentation: “My Eternal Family” (2009 Outline for Sharing Time and the Children’s Sacrament Meeting Presentation). Have the children listen to the music a few times. Then play the music again, and have the children tap out the rhythm of the melody notes by lightly tapping their fist into the palm of their other hand to represent hammering like a builder. Find pictures that represent key words of the first verse (see Primary 1 picture packet). Tape or glue each picture to a box. Write the key word on the opposite side of the box. First teach the song by showing the key words. When the children learn a phrase, stack the box as if you are building a house with blocks. When the children can sing the verse all the way through using the key words, put all of the boxes randomly ordered in a line with the pictures facing forward. Sing each phrase, and let the children choose a picture they think matches the phrase. If it matches, have a child put the box back in place to build a house with the picture side showing. Every time the children sing the words “I am a builder,” have them tap their fists to the rhythm.

Teach the second verse by cutting a picture of a family into puzzle pieces. On the back of each piece write a key word from each phrase of the second verse. Teach the phrase using the key word. When the children know the phrase, put the piece on the board to show the picture side. Repeat with each piece until they have completed the puzzle of the family. Teach the chorus.
Friend references: “Alma the Younger Repents,” Sept. 1991, 18–21; “A Happy Home,” May 2004, 14–16; “A Mother’s Influence,” Apr. 2007, 8–9; “Heavenly Father Answers Prayers,” Oct. 2003, 8–9; “Important People,” Apr. 2002, 8–9; “Stop!” June 2005, 46–48; “Ben Obeys,” Oct. 2006, 30–32; “The Silo,” Sept. 2003, 30–32; “A Dress for Primary,” Jan. 2004, 42–44; “A Letter to Grandma,” Oct. 2005, 4–6; “Sammy’s Sabbath Dilemma,” Apr. 2006, 34–35. Additional reference: “On Top of Old Mossy,” New Era, Mar. 2005, 26–28.