Lesson 6

Heavenly Father and Jesus Love Me

Purpose

To help each child feel that Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ love each of us.

Preparation

1. Prayerfully study Mark 10:13–16; John 3:16; and 3 Nephi 17:11–12, 21–24.

2. Materials needed:

   1. A Bible and a Book of Mormon.

   2. A small mirror.

   3. Picture 1-1, The World (62196); picture 1-3, Jesus the Christ (Gospel Art Picture Kit 240; 62572); picture 1-4, The First Vision (Gospel Art Picture Kit 403; 62470); picture 1-19, Christ and the Children (Gospel Art Picture Kit 216; 62467); picture 1-20, Jesus Blessing the Nephite Children.

3. Make the necessary preparations for any Enrichment Activities you want to use.

Learning Activities

Invite a child to give the opening prayer.

Attention Activity

Shake each child’s hand. Say each child’s name and tell each one something you like about him or her.

Ask each child to name someone who loves him or her and tell what that person does that makes him or her feel loved.

Explain that this lesson is about two people who love us all. They gave us this beautiful earth and the gospel and the Church.

• Who are these two people who love everybody? (Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.)

Story

Show picture 1-4, The First Vision. Have the children help you tell the story of what is happening in the picture.

• Do you remember who the people in this picture are?

• What are they doing?

Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ give us blessings

Remind the children that before we came to earth, we lived with Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. They planned for us to come to earth so we could learn and grow. They know us and care about us.

Display picture 1-1, The World.

• What did Heavenly Father ask Jesus Christ to create for us?

Explain that Heavenly Father had Jesus create the earth and everything on it. Help the children understand that Heavenly Father and Jesus planned all the things we need to live and be happy. These things remind us of their love for us.

• What things remind you of Heavenly Father’s and Jesus’ love for you? (Answers may include such things as family, friends, the Church, plants, and animals.)

Song

Sing or say the words to “My Heavenly Father Loves Me” (Children’s Songbook, p. 228), using the actions indicated below. Then ask the children to stand and sing the song with you.

Whenever I hear (place hands to ears) the song of a bird (open and close fingers like a bird’s beak)

Or look (look up) at the blue, blue sky (raise arm in arching motion),Whenever I feel the rain on my face (make raindrop motions with fingers)

Or the wind as it rushes by (move both hands in back and forth motion),

Whenever I touch a velvet rose (pretend to touch or smell flower)

Or walk by our lilac tree (walk in place),

I’m glad that I live in this beautiful world

Heavenly Father created for me (outstretch hands and arms).

Display picture 1-3, Jesus the Christ.

• Who is this?

• Who is Jesus’ father?

Read the first part of John 3:16 (through Son) and explain that the greatest blessing Heavenly Father has ever given us was to send Jesus Christ to the earth.

Jesus showed his love for children

Story

Show picture 1-19, Christ and the Children. Tell the story of Jesus blessing the children, as found in Mark 10:13–16.

Point out that Jesus took time to love and bless the children even though some of his followers thought he shouldn’t be bothered by children.

• What did Jesus do when the children came? (See Mark 10:16.)

• How do you think the children felt about Jesus?

Song

With the children, sing or say the words to “Jesus Loved the Little Children” (Children’s Songbook, p. 59).

Jesus loved the little children,

Little ones like me.

He would bless and help them

And take them on his knee.

Story

Show picture 1-20, Jesus Blessing the Nephite Children. Explain that after Jesus died, he visited the people in America. America was far away from where Jesus lived on earth.

Tell the story of Jesus blessing the Nephite children, as found in 3 Nephi 17:11–12, 21–24. Explain that Jesus blessed each child individually.

• How did Jesus show his love for the children?

• How do you know Jesus loves you?

Activity

Recite the following verse with the children several times, doing the actions indicated:

Jesus Loves All Children

Jesus loves all children (hold arms out),

The little ones still small (use hand to indicate knee-high child),

The baby in the cradle (form cradle with arms),

The ones so big and tall (raise hands high over head).

(From Finger Fun for Little Folk by Thea Cannon. © 1949 by the Standard Publishing Company, Cincinnati, Ohio. Used by permission.)

Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ love each of us

Help the children understand how important each of them is to Heavenly Father and Jesus. Explain that Heavenly Father and Jesus love each of us and know us by name.

Activity

Hold up a mirror and have the children come up one at a time. As each child comes up and looks in the mirror, say, “This is (child’s name), and Heavenly Father and Jesus love (child’s name) very much.”

Testimony

Bear your testimony that Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ live and that they love each of us. Share your feelings of gratitude for the many blessings Heavenly Father and Jesus have given you.

Enrichment Activities

Choose some of these activities to use during the lesson.

1. Sing or say the words to “Jesus Is Our Loving Friend” (Children’s Songbook, p. 58). Give each child a copy of the handout “Jesus Is Our Loving Friend” (at the end of the lesson), and let the children color their handouts.

   

2. Sing or say the words to “I Know My Father Lives” (Children’s Songbook, p. 5) or “I Feel My Savior’s Love” (Children’s Songbook, p. 74).

3. Show pictures of things Heavenly Father and Jesus have given us, such as a temple, animals, flowers, families, food, friends, homes, a meetinghouse, or the scriptures. (Pictures can be obtained from the meetinghouse library, the Gospel Art Picture Kit, or Church magazines.) Help the children understand that Heavenly Father and Jesus have given us these things because they love us.

4. Bring an object, such as an empty beverage bottle, that can spin like a pointer. Seat the children in a circle on the floor and place the bottle in the middle of the circle. Spin the bottle on the floor. When it points to a child, that child should name something that Heavenly Father and Jesus have given us that shows their love for us. Help each child think of an answer when it is his or her turn. After a child responds, let him or her spin the bottle so it points to another child.

5. Prepare a box or bag containing several items that are necessary for us to live on earth, such as food, water, or clothes. Explain that Heavenly Father and Jesus planned this earth for us to live on. Explain that the box or bag contains some of the things we need to live on the earth. Give the children clues about one item until they guess what it is. When they guess it, remove that item from the box or bag. Continue the game until the children have guessed all of the items.

6. Make a badge that says Heavenly Father and Jesus Love Me for each child to wear or take home. You might tape a badge on each child or attach string to the badge and hang it around the child’s neck. You may want to hide the badges under the children’s chairs before class and let the children look for them.

Additional Activities for Younger Children

1. Help the children say the words and do the actions to the following verse:

   If you’re very, very tall (stretch and reach arms up),

   There’s a place at church for you.

   If you’re very, very small (crouch down),

   There’s a place at church for you.

   Tall (stretch up)

   Small (crouch down)

   Tall (stretch up)

   Small (crouch down)

   Heavenly Father and Jesus love us all.

2. Say the following verse and help the children do the actions indicated:

   Heavenly Father Knows Me

   Heavenly Father knows me (point to self)

   And what I like to do.

   He knows my name and where I live (make a roof by touching fingers of both hands).

   I know he loves me, too (cross arms and put hands on shoulders in hug).

   He knows what makes me happy (put fingers on smiling mouth).

   He knows what makes me sad (put fingers on down-turned mouth).

   I know he wants to help me (point to self),

   And that’s what makes me glad!