Follow the Prophet

By Linda Magleby

“Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets” (Amos 3:7).

When George Albert Smith (1870–1951) was the President of the Church, he taught Church members to donate work, food, and clothing to help feed and clothe others. After World War II left many people starving in Europe, President Smith went to the president of the United States and asked for help to send food and clothing to these people. Because members of the Church had produced food and donated clothing under a welfare program, the Church had enough to help those in need. The United States government agreed to send the food and clothing, which helped many people in Europe.

The members of the Church followed the prophet and willingly donated work, food, and clothing. When a time of terrible need came, the Church was prepared to help. Many people in Europe were blessed because members of the Church followed the prophet.

We are blessed to have a living prophet. Our prophet teaches us to dress modestly and to read, watch, and listen only to things that are pleasing to Heavenly Father. When we do these things, we are protected from many of the harmful things of the world. Our prophet teaches us to be friendly and kind to everyone. Jesus tells us that when we are kind and serve others, we are serving Him. The prophet encourages us to read the scriptures. In the scriptures we learn about Heavenly Father and Jesus. We learn that when we keep the commandments, we will be blessed. The prophet teaches us what Heavenly Father wants us to do. When we follow the prophet, Heavenly Father will bless us.

Prophet Figures

To make prophet figures, paste page F4 onto heavy paper. Cut out the figures, and glue each to a stick. Use the figures to tell stories about each prophet or to sing “Follow the Prophet” (Children’s Songbook, pp. 110–11).

Illustrated by Beth M. Whittaker

Adam
Enoch
Noah
Abraham
Moses
Samuel
Jonah
Daniel

Note: If you do not wish to remove pages from the magazine, this activity may be copied, traced, or printed from the Internet at www.lds.org. For English, click on “Gospel Library.” For other languages, click on the world map.

Sharing Time Ideas

Invite three or four ward members to participate in a panel discussion (see Teaching, No Greater Call [1999], 175–76) about the prophets who have influenced them. Give them samples of the questions you will ask ahead of time, such as: Which prophet from the scriptures inspires you? What does this prophet teach you? Who were some of the latter-day prophets during your lifetime? Share an experience of listening to one of these prophets and knowing what Heavenly Father wanted you to do. Share something from this past general conference that the prophet has asked us to do. Allow time at the end of the discussion for the children to ask questions or share any feelings or experiences they have had in their families with following the prophet. Testify that you know that the prophet speaks for the Lord.
Post the My Gospel Standards poster on the board. From the last general conference issue of the Liahona (Nov. 2005), choose four talks given by the prophet or apostles. Tell the name of the speaker, display his picture, and teach principles from those talks. Invite the children to match the principle to one of My Gospel Standards, if possible. Have the children pass a beanbag as they sing a song or hymn about prophets. Stop the music occasionally, and invite the child with the beanbag to share one thing he or she can do to live the principles taught in the conference talks. Encourage the children to listen to general conference.

Illustrated by Beth M. Whittaker