And It Was Night, by Benjamin McPherson

June 10–16

Matthew 26; Mark 14; Luke 22; John 18

“Not as I Will, but as Thou Wilt”

As you read Matthew 26; Mark 14; Luke 22; and John 18, look for principles that you feel the children need to understand.

Record Your Impressions

Invite Sharing

Show pictures of the events in these chapters, such as Gospel Art Book, nos. 54, 55, and 56, and invite the children to tell what is happening in the pictures.

Teach the Doctrine

Younger Children

Mark 14:22–25; Luke 22:19–20

The sacrament helps me think about Jesus.

Help the children understand that partaking of the sacrament is a chance to think about Jesus.

Possible Activities

• Summarize the account of Jesus introducing the sacrament. You might use “Chapter 49: The First Sacrament,” New Testament Stories, 124–26, or the corresponding video (LDS.org). See also the video “Sacrament” (LDS.org). Help the children understand that we remember Jesus during the sacrament.

• Ask children if they know what the sacramental bread and water represent. Explain that these emblems help us remember that Jesus died for us and rose from the dead. Display a piece of bread and a cup of water while you help the children memorize the phrase “In remembrance of [Him]” (Luke 22:19).

• Ask the children to close their eyes and think of someone they love, and then invite them to tell you about that person. Ask them to close their eyes again, think of the Savior, and then share things they know about Him. Encourage them to think about Jesus during the sacrament each week.

• Invite the children to demonstrate what they can do to remember Jesus and be reverent during the sacrament.

• Help the children make the booklet described on this week’s activity page. Suggest that they use it to help them think about Jesus during the sacrament.

• Help the children search some Church magazines for pictures of Jesus and create a collage they can look at during sacrament meeting.

Matthew 26:36–46

Jesus suffered for me because He loves me.

Consider how you can help the children feel Jesus’s love for them as you discuss the account of His suffering in Gethsemane.

Possible Activities

• Invite the children to think of a time when they felt sad or hurt. As appropriate, invite a few children to share. Show the picture in this week’s outline in Come, Follow Me—For Individuals and Families. Explain that Jesus, in some way that we do not fully understand, felt all the pain and sadness that everyone has ever felt. This means that He can help us feel better when we feel sad, hurt, or upset.

• Sing “I Feel My Savior’s Love,” Children’s Songbook, 74–75, with the children. Invite them to share ways in which they have felt Jesus’s love.

Christ Praying in the Garden of Gethsemane, by Hermann Clementz

Teach the Doctrine

Older Children

Mark 14:22–24

The sacrament helps me remember Jesus Christ and His sacrifice for me.

How can you help the children have a more meaningful experience with the sacrament?

Possible Activities

• Invite the children to take turns reading the verses in Mark 14:22–24 (see also Joseph Smith Translation, Mark 14:20–24 [in the Bible appendix]) and Doctrine and Covenants 20:75–79. What words and ideas are similar in the two passages?

• Ask the children what they do to help them think about Jesus during the sacrament. Help them find scriptures or words from sacrament hymns that they could read during the sacrament, and then list them on a card that the children can refer to the next time they take the sacrament. Sing a few of these songs with the children (see Hymns, nos. 169–97).

• Write key phrases from the sacrament prayers on the board, and help the children memorize them. What do these phrases mean? Why are we grateful that we get to renew our baptismal covenants every week?

• Invite an Aaronic Priesthood holder to tell the children about his experience preparing, blessing, or passing the sacrament. What helps him prepare to do this? How does he feel as he does it? How do the bread and water remind him of the Savior?

• Ask children who have been baptized to share what they remember about their baptisms. How did they feel? What covenants did they make? (see Mosiah 18:8–10). Tell them that every week when we partake of the sacrament, it can be like being baptized again—we can be forgiven of our sins, and we renew our covenants.

Matthew 26:36–42

In Gethsemane, Jesus Christ took upon Himself my sin and pain.

Knowing about what Jesus did for us in Gethsemane can help the children repent of their sins and turn to the Savior when they experience difficult trials.

Possible Activities

• Invite the children to read Matthew 26:36–42, looking for words or phrases that describe how Jesus felt in Gethsemane. What was Jesus experiencing that caused Him to feel this way? Give the children the opportunity to share their feelings about Jesus and His sacrifice for us.

• Invite the children to share a time when they were sad or in pain. Ask them if they know anyone who has felt the same thing. Explain that in Gethsemane, Jesus felt all the pain and sadness that everyone has ever felt. He did this so He could comfort us when we need it (see Alma 7:11–12).

• Give a child a stick that is longer than the width of the classroom doorway, and ask him or her to hold it horizontally and try to walk through the door. Explain that the stick represents our sins, which keep us from entering God’s kingdom. Take the stick away to demonstrate that Jesus took upon Himself our sins so that we can be forgiven when we repent.

Luke 22:39–44

I can follow Jesus’s example by being obedient to Heavenly Father.

Jesus showed obedience to the Father when He said, “Not my will, but thine, be done” (Luke 22:42). How can you help the children learn from Jesus’s example?

Possible Activities

• Memorize with the children the phrase “Not my will, but thine, be done” (Luke 22:42) and discuss what it means. What can we do to obey Heavenly Father’s will?

• Help the children identify some commandments they have obeyed. Ask: What blessings did you receive by being obedient to Heavenly Father, even when it was hard? Invite them to share their experiences and testimonies.

Luke 22:41–43

I can receive help when I pray.

When Jesus prayed in Gethsemane, an angel appeared to strengthen Him. Do the children you teach understand that they too can pray to Heavenly Father for strength?

Possible Activities

• Tell the story of Luke 22:41–43 to the children (perhaps by using “Chapter 51: Jesus Suffers in the Garden of Gethsemane,” New Testament Stories, 129–32, or the corresponding video on LDS.org). Explain that when Jesus prayed, Heavenly Father sent an angel to strengthen Him. Who does Heavenly Father send to strengthen us?

• Display the image of the angel comforting Christ in this week’s outline in Come, Follow Me—For Individuals and Families, and share an experience in which you felt strengthened by Heavenly Father.

Encourage Learning at Home

Invite the children to share with their families what they will do during the sacrament to remember Jesus.

Improving Our Teaching

Bear testimony to your class. A testimony can be as simple as “I know that Heavenly Father loves each of you” or “I feel good inside as I learn about Jesus Christ.”