Lesson 3 Heading 3 Sweet Repentance

Preach My Gospel, Lesson 3 Heading 3 “Repentance”

Repentance Preparation: Have on hand: a bandage, a piece of unsweetened baking chocolate, a piece of regular milk chocolate, GAK 311 and GAK 227. Study Alma 23-24 to be able to teach about the Anti-Nephi-Lehies, also Alma 36, if you’d like. (Note: Remember that children under the age of eight are not accountable; none of your children should be made to feel guilty. ☺)

Opening Song: “He Sent His Son” or “I Stand All Amazed” Show a bandage to the children. • Have any of you ever had a cut? • How did it feel? • What should we do when we get a cut? (Clean and bandage it.) • Why should we clean and bandage a cut? (To help it heal faster.) When we do something wrong, it is like having a cut. It hurts inside and makes us sad because we know we have done wrong. Repentance can help us when we have made a mistake. It is a way of cleaning and healing a spiritual hurt. ~ Faith in Christ leads to repentance (see Alma 34). Remember how Jesus made the bridges for us? When we have faith in Him, we will want to repent because we know He paid for our sins already. We will want to have that clean, peaceful feeling inside. After you are 8 years old, you will be accountable for the mistakes you make. It is important for you to know how to repent. So tonight we’re going to teach you how! ☺ ~ We feel godly sorrow (see 2 Corinthians 7:9-10). One of my favorite stories about repentance is from the Book of Mormon. Remember those great missionaries, Ammon and the sons of Mosiah? This story is about some of the Lamanites that they taught. What were the Lamanites like before the sons of Mosiah came to teach them? Ammon taught the people of King Lamoni about the gospel of Jesus Christ. He taught them that they should love each other, and follow God’s commandments. He taught them about Jesus Christ and the great Atonement He would make for them. How do you think these Lamanites felt when they realized how wicked they had been?

Can you think of a time that you did something wrong? How did you feel inside? (Let children have a nibble of the bitter chocolate). This is the first part of repenting—to feel sorry for what we have done. ~ We stop doing things that are wrong and continue doing things that are right. Thousands of the Lamanites repented and joined the Church. They called themselves “Anti-Nephi-Lehies”, or the people of Ammon. The people of Ammon never wanted to kill or hurt anyone again. What did they decide to do? Read Alma 24:15, and show GAK 311. This is also what we should do when we want to repent. We stop doing what was wrong, and keep doing what is right! If it is something we can fix, we fix it! ~ We confess our sins (see D&C 58:43). Tell personal story about a time when you had to make restitution. Or you can use mine, if you want (ouch). Once when we were living in Tallahassee a sweet lady that lived in another ward called me and asked if I would like a box of free pears. She said that they were good for making jelly, but not very good for eating. Well, I was very interested in learning to make pear jelly, and I love free things, so I said yes! ☺ She brought them by later that day. I was excited to start, but was busy with other things. Days went by. Soon I noticed that flies were buzzing around the pears and they were starting to rot. I was too late! I felt awful about it. A few Sundays later I saw my friend, and she asked me if I had enjoyed making pear jelly. I didn’t want to hurt her feelings, and before I knew it, I had told her a complete lie, saying, “Yes, it was great. Thank you so much for them.” As soon as I said it, I knew I had made a mistake. I felt so guilty! I wasn’t sure how to fix it, though, without hurting my friend’s feelings. I knew she would be ashamed of me for letting all those pears go to waste. I decided I needed help, and talked to a member of the bishopric, even though I was embarrassed. I am so glad I did! He was so kind, and helped me to see that my friend would still love me if I told her the truth. And I would feel A LOT better if I told her and asked her for forgiveness. So I did. The next time I saw her, I said, “I need to apologize to you. Those pears you gave me were wonderful, but I got busy and before I knew it, they had rotted. I felt just awful about it, but I felt even worse after lying to you. Can you forgive me?”

My friend not only forgave me, she gave me a big, warm hug and thanked me for being honest. I also asked Heavenly Father for forgiveness, and felt a wonderful comfort that He did forgive me. And now comes the best part of repentance! ~ We receive forgiveness; guilt and sorrow are replaced by peace (see Alma 36:1721). After we have repented, those awful, bitter feelings of guilt and sadness are replaced with a sweet peace. We are forgiven! What does it feel like? Here is what Alma said about it. Read Alma 36:20-21. Give everyone a taste of the sweet milk chocolate. Show GAK 227. Always remember that Jesus tasted all of the bitter for all of us, so that we can taste the sweet if we repent! Bear testimony.

Sources: Primary Manual 3 CTR B, Lesson 10 “Repentance” MormonShare.com – Object Lesson on “Repentance—how sweet it is” Book of Mormon Stories – Chapter 26 Scriptures