Jesus Christ can turn my weakness into strength.
When we read Moroni’s powerful writings, it’s easy to forget that he worried about his “weakness in writing” and feared that people would mock his words (see Ether 12:23–25). If you have ever felt anxious about your own weakness, read about Moroni’s struggles—and the Savior’s response—in Ether 12:23–29. You might also ponder times when Jesus Christ has helped you recognize your weakness and made you strong—even if He didn’t completely remove it. Also think about weaknesses you are currently struggling with. What do you need to do to receive the Savior’s promise to “make weak things become strong”? (Ether 12:27).
I'm loving this lesson! I really want my youth to understand the power of Moroni's words and apply it to their lives. Here is what I am doing:
Hand out these pieces to 4 capable youth, make sure they read everything and let them know that they will be sharing a personal experience. When it is their turn they can read it to everyone and share their experience.
Point out that faith is an action word.
As they read and share they can add their piece to the board. It will look like this when they are done:
If any of the youth 4 youth that shares their personal experience's, mentions their obstacle you can add that to the board. Have the youth help you make a list of obstacles that they face. Psst. if you ask the youth to share their "weakness" that may not feel as safe. It is the same thing, but phrased differently may help you get more feedback. You can even share some of the obstacles you face, and set the example of what it looks like to be transparent.
Question: What are some obstacles teens face today?
You list may look something like this:
Now you are going to study these scriptures, add to your list...their obstacles, use this as a diagram for mapping out these scriptures.
Consider searching the following passages to see how others in the scriptures gained strength through the grace of Jesus Christ:
Enoch (Moses 6:31–34; 7:13)
Moses (Exodus 4:10–12; 14:31)
Gideon (Judges 6:12–16; 8:22–23)
Peter (Luke 5:8–10; 22:55–62; Acts 4:13–21)
Moroni (Ether 12:23–29)
Joseph Smith (Joseph Smith—History 1:28; Doctrine and Covenants 35:17; 135:3)
You can either pass these out for the students to look up scriptures and read...they can even be name tags(: If you want each person to play the part of the characters. I highly recommend this.
OR/and (print Two) you can put them on the the board like this:
I am very visual, so I like this idea of recording the scriptures as you show see how the Lord showed him 1. his weakness , 2. then the next step, faith/ action, 3. Last, the miracle of strength. You may need to erase each time, or each person, if there isn't enough room on the board): Chalk boards should at least be as big as the entire wall(:
For older students I recommend doing that.
For younger students or students with disabilities I recommend scripture cards like this:
You might want to write on the back of these cards, the name Moses or Enoch, let the students figure out the steps, but you can know which cards to hand to each student.
The nice thing about scripture cards, it's much more clean(: But, I'm sure if you like recording you, you can make that clean too.
See also Gospel Topics, “Grace,” Gospel Library; “The Lord Is My Light,” Hymns, no. 89.
Rejecting the Lord’s prophets puts me in spiritual danger.
Being king of the Jaredites was, historically, a dangerous position. This was especially true for Coriantumr, as many “mighty men … sought to destroy him” (Ether 13:15–16). In Ether 13:15–22, notice what Coriantumr did to protect himself and what the prophet Ether counseled him to do instead. As you read the rest of the book of Ether, ponder the consequences of rejecting the prophets. What happens to people when “the Spirit of the Lord [ceases] striving with them”? (Ether 15:19). What might the Lord want you to learn from these accounts? Consider what you will do to follow His prophets.