The Family Proclamation: Listening to God's Prophets

By: Deborah Pace Rowley

This is the first in a series of family home evening lessons based on The Family: A Proclamation to the World. 

Lesson I:

Listening to God’s Prophets

Attention-Getting Activity:

Start the lesson with a treasure hunt. Beforehand fill a box with a treat and enough copies of the Proclamation for each family member. Hide the treasure somewhere very difficult to find in the house, such as the top of a closet behind other items, but keep its location a secret from other family members. Begin the activity by choosing a family member to lead the treasure hunt. Say to this person, “Lead us to the treasure.” Don’t give any clues or directions to help. When he or she gives up after a few minutes, ask the family if they need someone to help who actually knows where the treasure is. When they say “Yes”, give them the first clue such as go upstairs. Further clues could be; go to the master bedroom, go to the master bedroom closet, and look on the top shelf behind the extra sheets.

When the family has retrieved the treasure and shared the treat, remind them how important it is to have a guide who knows where the treasure is located. As a family, you are going to begin studying the Proclamation which is a guide by our prophet to help us find real treasure in our marriages and with our families. The prophet does know where the treasure is located and he can get us safely there. 

The Proclamation:

Hand each family member their own copy of the family proclamation. Show family members a picture of the First Presidency and the Council of the Twelve Apostles so that they can picture the speakers as you read the first paragraph together. 

“We, the First Presidency and the Council of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, solemnly proclaim that marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God and that the family is central to the Creator’s plan for the eternal destiny of His children.” 

Testimony:

Bear testimony that these men have been called of God and that they are divinely inspired to know what we need at this time. Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ inspired them to write this document for our day to guide us and help us to avoid the deceptions of the adversary.  Let your family know that the world teaches things that are different than this document. They may hear things in classes or on the news or with friends that contradict this document. The world can be very persuasive in presenting Satan’s lies but they can know with complete certainty that the Proclamation is true. It is what God wants us to know and believe about the family. We don’t ever need to be confused or unsure about where we should stand on an issue or what we should do. We have the guidance of living prophets. Now we need to learn and follow what they teach us. Promise your family that as they learn about and study the Proclamation they will feel the spirit witnessing that it is true. In this way, they will gain their own testimony of this document and its power. 

Extension Activity: 

It is fun to personalize the Proclamation by decorating the borders around the words. You can copy family pictures that your children can cut up and glue in place at the sides of the Proclamation. You can also have your children color pictures of each family member down the sides of the Proclamation. Have each child personalize their copy of the Proclamation and then keep them in a safe place for future lessons. 

Refreshments:  

Make doughnut sundaes by placing a simple glazed doughnut on a plate and filling the middle with ice cream. Drizzle caramel or chocolate sauce over the filled doughnut and add whipping cream and nuts if desired. As you eat refreshments, talk about how much yummier this is than a plain doughnut with nothing in the middle. In the same way, the family is the center of our Heavenly Father’s plan. Without a family, life is like the center of a doughnut, an empty hole.