Powerfully Teaching Your Children Gospel Principles Lesson Plan: Seek Praiseworthy Media Objectives: Emphasize that we should seek Jesus Christ and all praiseworthy things. Talk about what the symbols of Lehi s dream teach us about avoiding bad media. Reinforces Principle of: Choosing wisely Each lesson contains 5 timed activities: (Choose the activities that fit your family s schedule. Additional resources are provided as extra time may be available.) Reverence Time: Song, prayer, scripture and video clip Lesson Time: Lesson summary and points to ponder Story Time: Story Activity Time: Object lesson or activity Treat Time: Prayer, theme related recipe & music video
Approximate Time: 5 minutes Sing Together: If The Savior Stood Beside Me, New Era, Aug 2007, by Sally DeFord If you wish to have an online music file to accompany you visit: http://www.defordmusic.com/ifthesaviorstoodbesideme.htm (Note: Navigate to the MP3 Accompaniment Track) Prayer: Scripture Time: The Articles of Faith 1:13 13. We believe in being honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and in doing good to all men; indeed, we may say that we follow the admonition of Paul We believe all things, we hope all things, we have endured many things, and hope to be able to endure all things. If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy, we seek after these things. (See also 1 Cor. 13:6-7) Video Clip: Watch chapter 9 from the animated Complete Learning System, The Tree of Life DVD. (Video clip is also provided for viewing online.)
Approximate Time: 10 minutes (For younger children, it may be helpful to summarize the following ideas): Lesson Summary: What are media? (Discuss ideas.) Media is a word for all the ways we are informed and entertained. Media includes books, music, TV, movies, magazines, websites and more. What do you think Lehi s dream can teach us about media use? (Discuss ideas.) The symbols of Lehi s dream (1 Nephi 8) can teach us much about the effects of media. Our media use can lead us away from the iron rod by defiling us like a fountain of filthy water. Media can also deceive us like a dark mist and appear desirable instead of ugly. Sometimes our media habits lull us into laziness and we neglect our relationship with God. As we hold fast to the iron rod by trusting in the Lord, we become His workmanship to do the good things He would have us do (Eph. 2:10). The Choices we make in media can be symbolic of the choices we make in life. If we do not make good choices, the media can devastate our families and pull our children away from the narrow gospel path.... To be strong and happy families need to be nourished by the truths depicted in the thirteenth article of faith buy a belief in being honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and in doing good to all men [A of F 1:13]. M. Russell Ballard, Ensign, Nov 2003 Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved. In what ways can use of bad media pull us from the gospel path? (Discuss ideas.) Jesus taught us that it is not what goes into us that defiles us, but what comes out from our heart and actions (Matt 15:11). Buying refrigerator full of good food will not make us healthy; We must use them wisely and in conjunction with other healthy choices. Good media choices do not make us holy. It is Jesus Christ s atonement and the work of the Spirit. However, if we consume a diet of filthy media our hearts and actions will be affected negatively. One of the most subtle risks is to numb us to our need for Jesus Christ and a continual relationship with Him. The media have a great potential to teach, inspire, inform, and entertain, but they may also corrupt, degrade, and pervert. They have the power to influence profoundly for good or evil all aspects of our values and feelings, as well as our behavior. We are affected by what we choose to expose ourselves to. Victor B. Cline, Ensign, Apr 1984 Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved.
Points to Ponder: What does the iron rod symbolize? (Discuss ideas.) And it came to pass that I beheld that the rod of iron, which my father had seen, was the word of God, which led to the fountain of living waters, or to the tree of life; which waters are a representation of the love of God; and I also beheld that the tree of life was a representation of the love of God. (1 Nephi 11:25) Where do we find the word of God? (Discuss ideas.) The word of God is preserved in the scriptures and taught by living prophets. Ultimately the Word of God is Jesus Christ of whom scriptures and prophets testify. Jesus draws us to Himself (John 12:32) and as we knock in faith He opens the door to us (Matt 7:7). There has always been a desperate need for the steady and reassuring voice of a living prophet of God: one who will speak the mind and will of God in showing the way to spiritual safety and personal peace and happiness.... A characteristic of prophets throughout the ages is that, regardless of the consequences, they have had the strength to speak the words of God with plainness and boldness.... The greatest security of members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints comes from learning to listen to and obey the words and commandments that the Lord has given through living prophets. Robert D. Hales, Ensign, May 1995 Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved. What have the Prophets taught us in regards to media? (Discuss ideas.) As we avoid bad influences we must also be actively seeking out good things and rejoicing in the truth. Don t be afraid to walk out of a movie, turn off a television set, or change a radio station if what s being presented does not meet your Heavenly Father s standards. In short, if you have any question about whether a particular movie, book, or other form of entertainment is appropriate, don t see it, don t read it, don t participate. Thomas S. Monson, New Era, Oct 2008 Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved. We need to support programs and products that are positive and uplifting. M. Russell Ballard, Ensign, Nov 2003 Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved. Movies, television programs, and video recordings that are both suggestive and lewd. Magazines and books that are obscene and pornographic. We counsel you not to pollute your minds with such degrading matter, for the mind through which this filth passes is never the same afterwards. Don t see R-rated movies or vulgar videos or participate in any entertainment that is immoral, suggestive, or pornographic. Ezra Taft Benson, Ensign, May 1986 Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved. Quote: People know they should not watch R- or X-rated movies, and yet time after time I hear them say, Well it s only rated R because it s violent. What difference does it make why it is rated R? The fact is, a prophet of God has said not to go to R-rated movies. That ought to be good enough. Cree-L Kofford, Ensign, Jul 1998 Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved.
Approximate Time: 2 minutes Melissa cringed when she heard the Lord s name used in vain and then again when a violent scene unfolded before her eyes. Do you care if I get myself a drink of water? Melissa whispered to Stacy. I ll get it for you, Stacy offered. Melissa hesitated for just a second. Um, I, uh, think I need to use the rest room, too! she said before rushing from the room. Melissa sat on the edge of the tub for what seemed a very long time trying hard to erase the words and images from her head. Mrs. Hansen knocked softly on the bathroom door. Melissa, are you sick? she asked. Melissa jumped up and turned on the faucet. I m washing my hands. I ll be right out. What am I going to do? I just can t go back in there and finish watching that movie, Melissa mumbled to herself. I guess I could say I m sick and need to go home, she thought, but that would be lying. Melissa turned off the faucet and while she slowly dried her hands she began to hum the words to the song If the Savior Stood Beside Me and she knew what she needed to do. Hi, Melissa, Mrs. Hansen said, looking up from the pizza dough she was rolling. Are you okay? Melissa bashfully nodded. Mrs. Hansen smiled. Let s go and set that movie back a few chapters, she said, wiping her hands on a paper towel. I m sure the other girls won t mind! Can I stay in here and help you make the pizza instead? Melissa asked. I, uh, it s just that I don t watch that kind of movie, Melissa said apologetically. Mrs. Hansen looked puzzled. What? she asked. You don t watch what kind of movie? Movies with swearing and violence and other bad stuff. Mrs. Hansen hurried into the family room and hit the eject button on the DVD player.
Stacy s face turned a pale green color and she looked like she was going to be sick. Mrs. Hansen held up the DVD cover and the ejected DVD. Stacy, didn t you notice that this DVD has a different title than the cover? Well, they re both about King Arthur, Stacy blurted. But, one is a Disney movie and the other one is rated R! Mrs. Hansen exclaimed. You know we don t watch this kind of movie. Stacy hung her head. It s not all Stacy s fault, Corrine quietly said. None of us have ever seen an R-rated movie, Stephanie confessed. I guess we were all curious, except Melissa. Mrs. Hansen took a deep breath to help calm herself down. I m sorry girls. It s my fault, too, she said. I should have been paying closer attention. I think we should take a few minutes and talk a little bit about why the Prophet has asked us not to watch R-rated movies. After they talked, Mrs. Hansen asked the girls to try an experiment. Now, everyone close your eyes, she said. Now, try to get the images from the movie out of your mind, she said. Each of the girl s confessed that no matter how hard they tried the bad images kept coming back. Satan is very cunning, Mrs. Hansen explained. He knows that if he can get us to let trash into our minds it s really, really hard for us to get it back out again. Stacy had an idea. Mom, do you think if we watched one of my scripture videos it would help get the bad images out of our heads? I think that would be a good place to start, Mother answered. While the girls watched The Tree of Life DVD, Mother called each of the girl s parents to apologize and explain what had happened. When the pizza was done, the girls gathered around the kitchen table and Stacy offered a prayer. Please bless this food and please help us to hold to the iron rod and never watch a bad movie again. Heavenly Father, please help us put the trash that we ve let in our minds out. by Margie Nauta Lee
Approximate time: 15 minutes What you need: Preparation Activity: A copy of the Praiseworthy or Trashy? activity, glue, tape and scissors. 1. Print out the artwork. 2. Assemble according to directions. 3. Fold appropriate media along white line with print side facing out. Glue together. (Younger children will need help from an older sibling or parent.) 1. Explain: You wouldn t go rifling through a trash can hoping to find a good meal, so why would you go to media with unwholesome content? Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin, of the Quorum of the Twelve, says we should take the counsel of the prophets as a word of wisdom for our minds. Just as we exercise great care about what we take into our bodies through our mouths, we should exert a similar vigilance about what we take into our minds through our eyes and ears. Ensign, Nov. 1995 Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved. 2. Explain: The film industry requires anyone under the age of seventeen to be accompanied by a parent or adult twenty-one or older to watch an R-rated movie. 3. Ask: What have the prophets said about R-rated movies? (Discuss ideas.) 4. Ask: Are R- or X-rated movies the only movies that we shouldn t watch? (Discuss ideas. Emphasize: Before playing a video game or seeing a movie, research its rating and content. Ask yourself if there is unsuitable material in the game or movie, regardless of the rating. Avoid anything that drives away the Spirit. New Era, Oct 2008 Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved. 5. Ask: How can the Thirteenth Article of Faith help us in choosing media? (Discuss ideas.) 6. Explain: We have been counseled to choose games, movies and music that are also mentally and spiritually stimulating. 7. Ask: What games, movies and music do we have in our home that are mentally and spiritually stimulating? (Discuss ideas.) 8. Ask: What would you do if you were at a friends house and they were watching or playing media that will lead you from the Word of God? (Discuss ideas.) 9. Reinforce the principle taught by doing the Praiseworthy or Trash? activity.
Praiseworthy or Trashy? 1. Cut along dotted lines. 2. To assemble trash can: a. Roll cylinder and tape edge along black line. b. Fold white tabs upward. Slide tabs into cylinder and tape together to form the bottom of the trash can. c. Fold lid together with print side facing out. Glue. d. Fold black rectangle in half with print side out. Tape to lid. e. Tape other side of black rectangle with lid to inside of cylinder. 3. Fold appropriate media along white line with printed side facing out. Glue together. 4. Mix up media and place face up on table. 5. Take turns choosing media. Discuss why it is or isn t appropriate media for your family. Throw trashy media in garbage can. Place praiseworthy media in a pile. Explain that when you choose not to watch inappropriate television shows it is the same as if you were throwing them in the trash. 6. Turn praiseworthy media over and put together to form the last line of the thirteenth Article of Faith. 7. Read the scripture together. 8. Bear your testimony that your family will be blessed if they hold to the word of God and seek after praiseworthy media.
DVD Crude Humor DVD violent content Video Game Stimulating Gambling Computer Game Infrequent use of mild language Magazine Indecent displays Book Strong Language Suggestive humor Coarse language
Approximate Time: 45 minutes Prep Time: 10 minutes Bake Time: 30 40 minutes 2-1/4 cups flour 1-1/2 cups sugar 3/4 cup shortening 3/4 cup milk 3 eggs 1 teaspoon salt 2-1/2 teaspoons baking powder 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 11 oz. can mandarin oranges (drained) 2 cups of your favorite white frosting 15 drops blue food coloring Black licorice twists Praiseworthy Media Cake Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Combine all ingredients and mix thoroughly. Pour into a prepared 9 x 13 inch pan. Bake for about 35 40 minutes or until tooth pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool for 15 minutes. Turn cake out onto a serving tray. Cool completely. Mix 1 3/4 cups frosting with food coloring. Frost cake. Reserve 1/4 cup frosting for writing on cake. Treat Time: Let children help decorate perimeter of cake with black licorice twists to create the bezel of the TV. Write Seek Praiseworthy Media on the T V screen with the reserved white frosting. Closing Prayer and blessing on the food.