Assess Your Learning 8

3 Nephi 8–Mormon 6

Reflecting on and assessing your spiritual learning can help you draw closer to the Savior. This lesson is intended to help you evaluate the goals you have set and the growth you have experienced during your recent study of 3 Nephi 8 through Mormon 6.

Give students time to reflect. Allow time for students to remember and reflect on what they have learned. Ask questions or provide activities to help students search their memories for feelings. You can invite moments of silence by asking students to think, feel, and write.

Student preparation: Invite students to come ready to share what they have learned or ways they have grown spiritually over the past few weeks. It may be helpful to have students review their study journal or notes in their scriptures.

Possible Learning Activities

Preflight checks

President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, then of the First Presidency, shared an important lesson he learned from his time as a pilot:

In piloting an airplane, you learn quickly that your flight path depends greatly on how you handle challenging external influences such as wind and weather. Even more important, however, are the decisions you make in response to those external influences. … In order to make those decisions correctly, it helps to know what your actual position is. (Dieter F. Uchtdorf, “As You Embark upon This New Era,” BYU Speeches, Apr. 23, 2009, 4)

• Why is it important for a pilot to know his or her actual position before making any decisions?

• How does the example of a pilot identifying his or her actual position relate to improving yourself spiritually?

Before reviewing specific topics you have learned in seminary, consider what has stood out to you more generally. The following questions could help. Consider recording your answers in your study journal.

Consider displaying the following questions. After time to write, invite students to share their answers with the class.

• What have you learned from your recent studies that has been most impactful?

• What changes have you noticed in your feelings and attitudes lately?

• What are some ways you have applied what you have been learning?

In this lesson, students will have the opportunity to explain the doctrine of Christ, assess the impact their study of 3 Nephi has had on their feelings about Jesus Christ, and reflect on how they are participating in the gathering of Israel. If necessary, adapt the activities in this lesson to help your students assess themselves on items that were emphasized during your class’s study of 3 Nephi through Mormon 6.

Explaining the doctrine of Christ

This part of the lesson is intended to give students an opportunity to explain the doctrine of Christ using His teachings from 3 Nephi 11:31–39 and 3 Nephi 27:13–22.

You might remember that shortly after the resurrected Savior first appeared to the Nephites, He shared important truths about what we must do to receive the blessings of eternal life (see 3 Nephi 11:31–39 and 3 Nephi 27:13–22). We often refer to these teachings as “the doctrine of Christ” (2 Nephi 31:21). You will have an opportunity to explain the Savior’s teachings in your own words by using the following scenario:

Consider putting students into pairs to work through the following scenario. After the first partner answers the question, you might invite the students who have not yet shared to find a new partner to share their response with so it does not feel repetitious.

Imagine you have a friend, Josh, who has become interested in the Church. Although he feels good about what he is learning, he does not see the need to be baptized.

• Which verses from the Book of Mormon might you use to help Josh understand the doctrine of Jesus Christ? (If you are not sure where to start, you might look at 3 Nephi 11:31–39 or 3 Nephi 27:13–22.)

• How do you think the Savior’s teachings in these verses could help address Josh’s concern?

Reflect on your feelings about Jesus Christ

This part of the lesson is intended to give students an opportunity to reflect on how their feelings for the Savior have been impacted by what they learned about Him during their study of 3 Nephi.

The scriptures are a valuable resource for us to learn more about Jesus Christ’s character. In several lessons, starting with 3 Nephi 8–10, you were invited to make a list of things you learned about Jesus Christ as He ministered to the Nephites after His Resurrection. You may also have had some experiences in which you imagined being present as the Savior ministered to the Nephites. Reflecting on your notes or on some of the moments you visualized, can help you feel love for and from the Savior.

If you created the list mentioned in the previous paragraph as a class, it may be helpful to display it so students can refer to it during this activity.

Take a few minutes to review your list in your study journal, looking for what you learned about Christ that may impact your feelings about Him. Alternatively, you could review the chapter headings or scriptures you marked in your study of 3 Nephi with the same thing in mind.

• What are some of the most significant things you have learned or felt about Jesus Christ as you studied His ministry to the Nephites? Why?

After students have had time to think about and write responses to these questions, you could divide students into small groups to share what they wrote. This could also be a good opportunity to invite volunteers to share with the class their testimony about what they have learned and felt about Jesus Christ.

Participating in the gathering of Israel

This part of the lesson is designed to help students think about how they are or could be participating in the gathering of Israel.

As you studied 3 Nephi 15–16; 20–22; and 25, you learned about the Lord’s desire to gather Israel. You may have made plans to help someone come closer to Jesus Christ and to participate in temple or family history work.

If you invited students to create plans to help gather Israel as you studied the chapters mentioned in the previous paragraph, give them time to review their plans.

For students who have not yet made plans, it might be helpful to draw a circle on the board. The inside of the circle could represent those who have been gathered to Israel. Invite students to write inside the circle the different ways that youth can assist the Lord in gathering Israel. An example might include sharing teachings from the Book of Mormon with others, whether in person, through social media, or by other means.

Take a minute to review the plans you may have recently made to help participate in the gathering of Israel.

Use some or all of the following questions to help assess your progress with your plans:

• What have you done to act on your plans?

• What did you learn from acting on your plans? How did you grow?

• What do you still want to do to take part in gathering Israel?