Come, Follow Me
How do the things I say affect me and those around me?

How do the things I say affect me and those around me?

Prepare Yourself Spiritually

How we communicate reflects our understanding of who we are as children of God. Our language can either uplift and encourage others, or it can hurt and offend them. When we use uplifting language, we invite the Holy Ghost to be with us.

Resources to Help You Prepare

These resources are to help you prepare for the “Learn together” section of the meeting.

Questions to Ponder before You Teach

How does the language you use reflect your understanding of who you are? How have you used words to inspire, teach, comfort, and communicate? How have the world’s standards of appropriate language changed during your lifetime?

Does the language the young men use uplift and encourage, or does it hurt and offend others? How can the young men encourage others around them to use language that invites the Spirit?

What can the young men do to prepare to learn? For example, they could read a talk, watch a video, or study a scripture related to this doctrine.

Teaching in the Savior’s Way

In every setting, the Savior was our example and mentor. He taught His followers to pray by praying with them. He taught them to love and serve by the way He loved and served them. He taught them how to teach His gospel by the way He taught. As you prepare to teach, think of how the Lord communicated and how we can communicate in a way that uplifts and encourages others and invites the companionship of the Holy Ghost.

Meeting Outline

1. Counsel Together and Share Experiences

Led by a member of the quorum presidency; approximately 5–10 minutes

Lead a discussion about items such as the following:

  • Our quorum: Who is missing today? What visits do we need to make? Who should we invite to an upcoming activity? Who needs our help and prayers?

  • Our duties: What assignments do we need to make? What assignments have we fulfilled? How have we invited others to come unto Christ, and how can we invite others now?

  • Our lives: Remind the quorum of the discussion from the last meeting. What experiences have we had with applying what we learned? What experiences have we had in the past few weeks that strengthened our testimonies of the gospel?

If possible, discuss these items beforehand in a quorum presidency meeting.

2. Learn Together

Led by a leader or teacher or a member of the quorum; approximately 25–35 minutes

After studying the above resources and following the inspiration of the Spirit, you may select one or more of the activities below to help quorum members understand the doctrine.

  • Ask half of the quorum to read the story of the canoes in Sister Jean B. Bingham’s talk “I Will Bring the Light of the Gospel into My Home.” Ask the other half to read the story of the young man who was teased as a teenager. Then let each group teach the other what they learned from their story about the effect our words can have on others. Invite the young men to think of someone they admire and make plans to express their admiration to that person.

  • Write on the board If a man can control his tongue, he can control . Invite the young men to search James 3:2–10 and fill in the blank. Assign each young man to read one of the analogies used by James (horse bit, verses 2–3; ship, verse 4; forest fire, verses 5–6; poison, verses 7–8; pure fountain, verses 10–11). Invite the young men to prepare to teach the rest of the quorum what their analogy teaches about controlling their speech. Invite them to share what they can do to control their speech.

  • A few days in advance, invite the young men to bring to quorum meeting their favorite inspirational quotation. Ask each young man to share his quotation and explain the influence it has had on his life. Invite the quorum to find examples in the scriptures that illustrate the powerful positive influence our words can have on others (for example, Captain Moroni and the title of liberty [see Alma 46:11–22], the Savior and the woman taken in adultery [see John 8:1–11], or Abinadi and Alma [see Alma 5:9–12]). What do these examples teach the young men about the power their words can have on others?

  • Show one of the videos in this outline, and ask the young men to share what they learn from the video. Invite them to ponder what they can do to influence others to communicate in ways that invite the Spirit of the Lord. For example, how might they help a friend who has a habit of using bad language? Or how can they use electronic communication to uplift and encourage others? Invite them to look for answers as they read “Language” in For the Strength of Youth. Ask them to share their ideas.

  • Invite the young men to read 1 Nephi 5:1–7 and share what they learn from the examples of Sariah and Lehi about how our words affect ourselves and others. Ask them to read Elder W. Craig Zwick’s comments about this account in his talk “What Are You Thinking?” What further insights do the young men gain from this talk? Encourage them to share ways they can follow Lehi’s example in their interactions with family members and others.

3. Plan to Act

Led by a member of the quorum presidency; approximately 5–10 minutes

  • Ask the young men to discuss any feelings or impressions they had during the meeting. What was meaningful to them? Is there something they can do personally or as a quorum to apply what they have learned?

  • Give the young men a few minutes to record what they will do in the coming weeks to act on their impressions. Invite them to share their ideas.

  • Remind the young men that they will have the opportunity to share their experiences at the beginning of the next meeting.

Related Youth Activities

Plan a Mutual activity that will help the young men apply what they learned in this lesson.