“June 29–July 5. Alma 23–29: They ‘Never Did Fall Away,’” Come, Follow Me—For Primary: Book of Mormon 2020 (2020)
“June 29–July 5. Alma 23–29,” Come, Follow Me—For Primary: 2020
Anti-Nephi-Lehies Bury Their Weapons of War, by Jody Livingston
June 29–July 5
Alma 23–29
They “Never Did Fall Away”
Prayerfully study Alma 23–29, seeking inspiration about what the children need and how to help them.
Record Your Impressions
Invite Sharing
Draw a happy face on a piece of paper, and allow individual children to hold it. As they hold the paper, invite them to name something they are learning from the Book of Mormon that brings them joy.
Teach the Doctrine: Younger Children
I am blessed when I keep my promises.
What did you learn in your study of Alma 24:6–24 that can help the children understand the importance of keeping a righteous promise?
Possible Activities
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Read some verses or phrases from Alma 24:6–24 to teach the children about the Anti-Nephi-Lehies, the promise they made, and how they kept the promise. You could also use the picture in this week’s outline in Come, Follow Me—For Individuals and Families or “Chapter 26: The People of Ammon” (Book of Mormon Stories, 73–74, or the corresponding video on ChurchofJesusChrist.org).
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Describe how the Anti-Nephi-Lehies kept their promise by burying their weapons. Invite the children to draw a sword and then pretend to dig a hole and bury their sword. Help the children think of promises they make. Why is it important to keep promises? Explain that when we are baptized, we make promises with God and He makes promises with us. These are called covenants. Testify that we are blessed when we keep our promises with God.
The gospel brings me joy, and I can share this joy with others.
Ammon, who helped to teach the gospel to the Anti-Nephi-Lehies, received great joy from preaching the gospel. Alma, who also taught the gospel to many people, received this same joy. We can experience similar joy when we share our testimonies with others.
Possible Activities
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Select a few phrases from Alma 26 or 29 that speak of joy, and read them to the children (see, for example, Alma 26:11, 13 or Alma 29:13–14). Invite the children to stand every time they hear the words “joy” or “rejoice.” Help the children understand that sharing the gospel made Alma and Ammon happy. Share an experience when sharing the gospel brought you joy.
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Invite the children to draw pictures of things that bring them joy. Invite each child to give his or her drawing to another classmate and explain it. Point out that when something brings us joy—such as the gospel—our joy grows when we share it.
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Give a child a copy of the Book of Mormon, and let him or her practice sharing it with another class member. Encourage the children to explain how they feel about the Book of Mormon. Why do we share the Book of Mormon with others?
I can help my friends live the gospel.
The Nephites protected the Anti-Nephi-Lehies from their enemies and helped them keep the covenants they had made with the Lord.
Possible Activities
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Tell the children the story of the Anti-Nephi-Lehies making a promise not to fight anymore (see Alma 27:20–30). Explain that because of the Anti-Nephi-Lehies’ promise, they could not defend themselves from their enemies. Read Alma 27:23, and explain that their friends among the Nephites chose to protect the Anti-Nephi-Lehies so they could keep their promise. How can we help our friends keep their promises? Tell about a time when a friend helped you keep your promises with God.
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Role-play with the children situations in which they can, in a kind way, help others choose the right. For example, what can we say to a friend who wants to lie or be mean?
Teach the Doctrine: Older Children
Covenants are promises I make with God and He makes with me.
The Anti-Nephi-Lehies buried their weapons and promised never to kill again. Similarly, the children you teach can keep their covenants.
Possible Activities
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Give all the children small rocks, and invite them to write the word covenant on their rock. Explain that a covenant is a promise between Heavenly Father and His children. How do our covenants make us strong or “firm” like a rock? (Alma 24:19). Read together Alma 24:16–25 to learn what covenant the people of Ammon made and how they honored their covenant. Invite the children to take the rocks home as a reminder to keep their covenants.
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Read with the children Alma 24:16–19, and discuss what the Anti-Nephi-Lehies did to show God they had repented. What did they covenant not to do? Explain that the covenants we make are “a testimony to God” that we want to follow God’s commandments (verse 18). What covenants have the children made?
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Invite the children to draw pictures of the Anti-Nephi-Lehies’ weapons. Then invite them to write, on the back of the weapons, something they feel they should change in order to follow Jesus Christ more fully. Let them pretend to bury their weapons and make a plan to act on what they wrote.
Alma 24:7–10; 26:23–34; 27:27–30
Because Heavenly Father is merciful, we can repent and change.
Recently the children have been learning about Alma, Ammon, and the Anti-Nephi-Lehies. How can you use these accounts to illustrate that Heavenly Father is merciful to those who sincerely repent?
Possible Activities
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Write Before and After on the board. Ask some of the children to read the following verses to find out what the Lamanites were like before Ammon and his brothers taught them: Alma 17:14–15; 26:23–24. Ask other children to read the following verses to find out how the Lamanites changed: Alma 26:31–34; 27:27–30. Invite the children to list under the headings what they found. Then invite them to discover, in Alma 24:7–10, how these Lamanites were able to change so completely. Bear your testimony of God’s power to forgive us and help us repent and change.
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Invite the children to read together Alma 26:21–22, looking for the blessings that come to those who repent. Invite the children to describe some of these blessings in their own words.
The gospel brings me joy, and I can share this joy with others.
These chapters are full of examples of the joy that comes from living and sharing the gospel. How can you use Alma 26 and 29 to inspire the children to seek this joy?
Possible Activities
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Help the children find the words “joy” and “rejoice” in Alma 26 and 29. Read together some of the verses they find, and discuss what these verses teach about joy. What brought Ammon and Alma joy? Share an experience when you felt joy from living or sharing the gospel, or invite the children to share their own experiences.
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Invite two children to face each other and see who can make the other child smile first. What are some ways we can spread joy to others? How does sharing the gospel spread joy? Help the children think of ways they can share the joy of the gospel with their friends and families.
Encourage Learning at Home
Invite the children to keep their promises as the Anti-Nephi-Lehies did.
Improving Our Teaching
Learn a scripture. Select a scripture phrase or short passage that you think could help the children in your class, and help them memorize it. Visual aids and hand gestures can also help.