Micro-Training # 04
Help learners come unto Jesus Christ
Help learners recognize the Lord’s love, power, and mercy in their lives
Theme
How to help learners come unto Jesus Christ in placing Him at the center of our teaching and learning experience.
Illustrate
Our students “yearn to know more about the Savior” (Dieter F. Uchtdorf, “A Teacher of God’s Children,” January 28, 2011). Teachers can help students increase their understanding of His teachings, redeeming power, perfect love, and divine character.
Students’ hearts will change as they move from talking about Jesus Christ to speaking of Him as their personal Redeemer that they have come to know, love, and trust. As you help students see the Lord’s hand in blessing people in the scriptures, you will also be able to help them recognize the role He is playing in their lives. Consider together with your students how the Savior is helping them find healing and answers or how He is giving them strength to face temptations and challenges.
As you help your students recognize the Lord’s tender mercies in their own experiences and in the scriptures (see 1 Nephi 1:20), they will feel and know that the Lord is with them and will stand by them (see Doctrine and Covenants 68:6). They will see and feel the reality of the Lord’s love, power, and mercy in their personal needs and circumstances.
Teachers should keep in mind that a central intent of prophets has always been to testify of Jesus Christ. Teachers of the gospel should likewise look for every opportunity to testify of the Lord’s power, mercy, and influence in our lives. One way to do this is to encourage students to ask, “What does this scripture block teach about Jesus Christ that would help me understand and rely on His teachings and Atonement?”
As we focus on Jesus Christ’s character and attributes, the Spirit will testify of Him, bringing greater understanding and love for who He truly is and a greater desire to become like Him. As students learn of Jesus Christ, follow His teachings and example, and seek the blessings of His Atonement in their lives, they can gain strength and experience, forgiveness, healing, and conversion.
Here are two quotes from our Church leaders:
“In the end, the central purpose of all scripture is to fill our souls with faith in God the Father and in His Son, Jesus Christ—faith that They exist; faith in the Father’s plan for our immortality and eternal life; faith in the Atonement and Resurrection of Jesus Christ, which animates this plan of happiness; faith to make the gospel of Jesus Christ our way of life; and faith to come to know “the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom [He has] sent” ( John 17:3).
(Elder D. Todd Christofferson, “The Blessing of Scripture,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2010, 34)
“Brothers and sisters, ...I invite you to feel more joy in your life: joy in the knowledge that the Atonement of Jesus Christ is real; joy in the Savior’s ability, willingness, and desire to forgive; and joy in choosing to repent. Let us follow the instruction to ‘with joy ...draw water out of the wells of salvation.’”
(Elder Dale G. Renlund, “Repentance: A Joyful Choice,” general conference, Oct. 2016)
Invitation to act
Think about your students and your next lesson. Prepare a question or two that will help them recognize the Lord's power, mercy, and influence in the Scriptures and in their lives. To help you formulate these questions, I invite you to do the exercise below.
Share your thoughts, experiences or questions with other teachers on your stake teacher's WhatsApp group.
If you would like to spend more time on this topic, I invite you to do the proposed exercise by clicking on this button.
