Meridian Magazine :: Family Home Evening: Lost Boy!

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Lost Boy!
By C.S. Bezas

What God permits is different than what God causes. This Family Home Evening lesson provides not only a great emergency preparedness moment, but it also teaches children that God can be trusted — always. Time for some FHE Fun!

FHE Fun!

Opening Song: #229 Today, While the Sun Shines

Opening Prayer: By Invitation.

Devotional: Start FHE with a few minutes of spontaneous scripture sharing amongst family members. This not only builds the spiritual sensitivities of the individual who reads a verse and then explains its power, but it also aids others who may be quietly struggling (and needing to hear the inspired message). It is not required that each person share — only those who may have found a meaningful scripture during the previous week.

FHE items needed:

Scriptures for each family member
A sheet of paper and pencil for each person pre-printed with the following questions:
- What is the message of the song?

When should we follow the message of the song?
Why?
How do we learn to do this?

Miniature paper quilt printed for each person

Activity:

Read the following brief story from Elder Boyd K. Packer's talk, “Lost Boy”:

In the late 1850s, many converts from Europe were struggling to reach the Great Salt Lake Valley. Many were so poor that they had to walk, pushing their meager belongings in handcarts.

Archer Walters, an English convert who was with one such company, recorded in his diary under July 2, 1856, this sentence: “Brother Parker's little boy, age six, was lost, and the father went back to hunt him.”

The boy, Arthur, was next to the youngest of four children of Robert and Ann Parker. Three days earlier the company had hurriedly made camp in the face of a sudden thunderstorm. It was then that Arthur was missed. His parents had thought that he was playing along the way with the other children. Finally someone remembered that when they had stopped earlier in the day, the little boy had been seen settling down to rest under the shade of some brush.

For two days the company remained where they were, and all the men searched for him. Then on July 2, with no alternative, the company was ordered west.

Robert Parker, as the diary records, went back alone to search once more for his little son. As he was leaving camp, his wife pinned a bright shawl about his shoulders, with words such as these: “If you find him dead, wrap him in the shawl to bury him. If you find him alive, use this as a flag to signal us.”

With their three other little children, she took the handcart and struggled along with the company. At sundown on July 5 the Parker family saw a figure approaching from the east. Then, in the rays of the setting sun, they saw the glimmer of the bright red shawl! The mother's prayers were answered.

On July 5 Archer Walters recorded: “Brother Parker came into camp with a little boy that had been lost. Great joy through the camp. The mother's joy I cannot describe.”

We do not know all the details. A nameless woodsman had come upon the little boy and had cared for him until his father found him. (Elder Boyd K. Packer, “Lost Boy,” Friend , Jul 1987, inside front cover).

Ask the family what kind of feelings come when we are lost. What is one of the best things to do when lost? Does God send help, even when we've made mistakes like this little boy made?

Complete the activity by learning and singing this simple children's song, #107 “ Listen, Listen.”

Enjoy the time together as you work to make the song work in “round” fashion (instructions as to what “rounds” are and how to sing them are in small print at the bottom of the song's page). When finished, pass out the papers with pre-printed questions and a pencil to each person. If there are many family members, divide into teams and discuss the answers together during each team's writing process. If you have a small number of people, encourage each one to work individually (helping small children, of course).

Once the group has finished, invite each person individually to share what they learned. Do this even if there was teamwork, because sometimes individual insights are not always talked about during group work.

Then read this quote from Elder L. Lionel Kendrick (“Personal Revelation,” Ensign , Sep 1999, 7):

In a world of instant communication, we are prone to become impatient and want instant answers to our prayers. God always answers prayers, but He does it in His own way and in His own time. Perhaps it is wise to remember this counsel: “Be still and know that I am God.” ( D&C 101:16 ).

Ask the family what it really means to them to “be still and know that I am God.” When and in what situations would it be most important to remember this counsel?

Application:

Explain that the Holy Ghost is like a comforter that you put on your bed to keep warm. Any time you are cold, wrapping yourself up in a comforter will keep you warm. The Holy Ghost is like that, but in an even better way. Any time you are scared or lonely or do not know what to do, you can “wrap” yourself in the Comforter the Lord has given you because of your baptism — the Holy Ghost. He will provide guidance — especially for those who are lost or confused — through small still impressions.

Pass out the pre-printed paper quilts and explain that the family will focus throughout the week how to seek and recognize the comfort of the Holy Ghost. This way listening to the Holy Ghost (like in the song) will be easier to understand and simpler to do.

Each evening, before family prayer, family members can share a scripture they'd studied during the day from the “quilt” and what they learned, in addition to coloring the next portion of their “quilt.” Together your family can become strong and led by the Holy Ghost while facing the challenges of today's world. As you join together in serious study and seek one of the Lord's best gifts for His children — the Comforter, the Holy Spirit — you will not be left comfortless. In fact, spiritual understanding will increase and your way will be steadied in today's increasingly unsteady world.

Closing Song: #266 “The Time Is Far Spent”

Closing Prayer: By Invitation.

Refreshments: A camping treat would be quite thematic for this FHE and reminiscent of the lost pioneer boy. Here is a simple recipe to Indoor S'Mores!

While eating the treat, chat with the family on the importance of preparing our lives every day to hear and respond to the voice of the Spirit.

Additional Resources :

As Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin states in “The Unspeakable Gift ( Liahona , May 2003, 26-29), “We should lower the noise level in our homes so that the noise of the world will not overpower the still , small voice of the Holy Ghost.” For additional reading, click here.
The paper quilt idea came from Elizabeth Ricks' “Sharing Time: Listen to the Still, Small Voice,” Friend , Aug 2007, 10-12. She teaches in straight-forward fashion how to survive this ever-darkening world.
With the craziness of the stock market, the flux of food prices, and so on, it could be enough to confound the most savvy of individuals. Elder Dallin H. Oaks' article, “Teaching and Learning by the Spirit,” Ensign , Mar 1997, 7, provides a sure guide to get through times like we're now facing.
And finally, Elder L. Tom Perry's “Becoming Men in Whom the Spirit of God Is ( Liahona, Jul 2002, 42-45),” reminds us of this thought: “The Lord is bound by solemn covenant to bless our lives according to our faithfulness.” This is a talk worth reading as we, parents, face the future armed with the Spirit to teach our children.

Struggling with your teens? C.S. Bezas' book is an essential help for parents and youth leaders. Powerful Tips for Powerful Teachers teaches you how to create powerful change. Visit your local LDS bookstore or get your copy online here.

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About the Author:

C.S. Bezas graduated from BYU in communications, with an emphasis in human resource development and training programs. She also took seminary teacher-training classes while studying at BYU, looking forward to the day when she might join the ranks of the Lord’s seminary teachers. She now teaches early-morning seminary in the southeastern portion of the United States. Additionally, she has conducted trainings and workshops for audiences on a variety of topics and has won recognition for her writings and stage musicals.

C.S. Bezas has appeared as a keynote speaker and before audiences on television, stage, and film. Her book Powerful Tips for Powerful Teachers has been called essential for those who work with teens and for parents. She is the creator of a soothing-music CD series found at CSBezasMusic.com. She and her husband have four children and relish the gospel of Jesus Christ.