Follow the Prophet

By Sheila E. Wilson

“What I the Lord have spoken, I have spoken, … whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same” (D&C 1:38).

Because Heavenly Father wants you to return to live with Him, He has called prophets to teach and guide you. When you listen to the prophet, you are listening to the person our Father in Heaven has called to represent and speak for Him.

President Gordon B. Hinckley has asked us to strengthen our families (see “Thanks to the Lord for His Blessings,” Liahona, July 1999, 104–5). He tells us that if we will look for the good in one another, there will be happiness in our homes. There will be less quarreling. There will be more forgiveness and happiness!

Many years ago 11-year-old Cori sat in front of the television listening to general conference. When she was younger, she drew pictures, but today she was listening closely for the things the prophet wanted her to do. President Ezra Taft Benson (1899–1994) asked everyone to read the scriptures, go to the temple, spend more time with their families on Sunday, and have family home evening. Cori knew that if she followed the prophet, she could help make her family stronger. Today Cori knows that following the prophet’s counsel increased her family’s love for one another and for Jesus Christ.

Jesus said, “Come, follow me” (Luke 18:22). When you follow the prophet, you are following Jesus Christ.

General Conference Activity

During each session of conference, listen for a talk given by a member of the First Presidency or one of the Apostles. In the left side of each box on page F4, write what you learned from him and then draw a picture of it. In the right side, write what you will do to follow his counsel and draw a picture of it. If you don’t have a conference broadcast or magazine, look through this issue of the Liahona (see, for example, pp. 2–7 and F2–3). Fill in the boxes with what you have learned.

General Conference Messages

Saturday Morning Session
Speaker
What I learned:
What I will do to follow his counsel:

Saturday Afternoon Session
Speaker
What I learned:
What I will do to follow his counsel:

Sunday Morning Session
Speaker
What I learned:
What I will do to follow his counsel:

Sunday Afternoon Session
Speaker
What I learned:
What I will do to follow his counsel:

Sharing Time Ideas

Read aloud D&C 1:38. Read together and role-play (see Teaching, No Greater Call [1999], 178) the account in Josh. 6:6–16, 20. You will need children to portray Joshua, the seven priests (with rolled-up paper for ram’s horns), and the children of Israel. Rather than shout, sing a song or hymn while the children stand and represent the wall around Jericho. Have the children sit down to represent the wall falling down. Give a choral reading (see Teaching, No Greater Call, 163). Have “Joshua” say, “Choose you this day whom ye will serve; … but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord” (Josh. 24:15). Have everyone respond with a choral reading of Josh. 24:24 . Bear testimony that our families will be strengthened as we serve the Lord.
Ask a child to leave the room while you hide a picture of a home. Invite the child back in, and ask him or her to go “home.” Tell the child there is someone who can help. Turn off the lights, give a child a flashlight, and have him or her guide the “lost child” to the “home” by shining the light on the floor. Our latter-day prophets have taught the importance of families. Just as the flashlight helped light the way to the home, our prophet’s counsel becomes the tool we need to strengthen our families. Cut a picture of a family into puzzle pieces, and write counsel from our prophets on each piece. (See recent conference issues and “Come Listen to a Prophet’s Voice.”) Then attach the pieces to tools used for building (screwdriver, measuring tape, and so on). Divide the Primary into groups, and have each group choose a tool. Ask the groups to discuss how the prophet’s counsel can be a tool to build our families and be prepared to (a) say what they can do to follow the counsel and (b) suggest a song or hymn that reinforces the counsel. Have them place their puzzle pieces on the board, and report and sing.