“Scripture Story Time,” Friend, May 2024, 30–31.
Scripture Story Time
“Does anyone have a book they want me to read today?” Mr. Otoo asked.
This story happened in Ghana.
“It’s reading time,” Mr. Otoo said.
Nyameye sat up straight. Reading time was fun!
Every day at school, their teacher read a book out loud to the class. Sometimes he read about animals. Sometimes he read about people in other countries. And sometimes he asked the class if they had a book they wanted him to read.
“Does anyone have a book they want me to read today?” Mr. Otoo asked.
Nyameye raised his hand. “I do!” He reached into his bag and pulled out his favorite book. It was a Book of Mormon storybook! He brought it to read after school while he waited for his mother to pick him up. Seeing the pictures helped him understand the scripture stories.
Mr. Otoo smiled when he saw the big book. “We won’t have time to read all of it. Is there a certain part you’d like me to read?”
“Yes,” Nyameye said. He flipped through the pages until he found his favorite story. “Could you read this one, please? It’s called ‘Lehi’s Dream.’”
“What is this story about?” Mr. Otoo asked.
“It’s about a prophet who had a vision. He saw a beautiful tree with delicious fruit.” Nyameye pointed to a picture of the tree. “He wanted his family to eat the fruit with him. Will you read it?” Nyameye handed his teacher the book.
“Of course,” Mr. Otoo said. Then he started reading out loud. He read about the narrow path leading to the tree. He read about the iron rod. And he read about keeping the commandments.
Nyameye’s friend Selorm raised his hand. “What kind of tree was it?” he asked Nyameye.
“I don’t know,” Nyameye said. “But the fruit was so good. It must be even better than a mango tree!” Then Nyameye stopped to think. “At church, I learned that the fruit stands for God’s love. So it makes sense that it was so tasty and special!”
When class was over, Nyameye sat outside to wait for his mother. He pulled out his Book of Mormon storybook to read some more.
“That was a cool story,” Selorm said. He sat next to Nyameye. “Can I read another one with you?”
“Yes!” Nyameye turned to another story. They read about Abinadi and King Noah.
More of their classmates came to listen. When they had questions, Nyameye answered them. He even asked them questions to quiz them about the stories they read!
Soon Nyameye saw his mother walking toward them. “Thanks for reading with me,” he said to the other kids. He closed the book and smiled. He was happy his friends liked his favorite stories as much as he did.
Illustration by Zhen Liu