February 5, 2008

Today in class, we talked a little bit about the new First Presidency.
As we went into the lesson, we reviewed what we had talked about yesterday, and then read a couple of verses in chapter 15 of 1 Samuel which showed us the root of Saul's problem. We then looked at DC 98:14-15. These verses tell us that the Lord will test or prove each of us to see if we will keep our covenants, so that we can be found worthy to be with him again. We discussed how we react or respond when we are being tested... do we see it like that, or do we dwell on how awful life is? We saw that Saul was tested, and he didn't pass the test - he failed. He relied on his self rather than on the Lord. We looked at v. 22 (1 Sam 15) which also told us one of Saul's problems. He was more worried about what others thought. We talked about how easy this is to do.
Going into chapter 16, we read v 1-17 (+/-) together. We focused on the scripture mastery - for the Lord looketh on the heart. Samuel saw Jesse's sons, and thought - wow, he looks like he'd make a great king. Here though, the Lord instructed him that he really needs to see the inside of people rather than the outside. We discussed this at length - how it applies in our life. We also really examined verses 3-4 which shows such a pattern of faith. When the Lord commands, we need to go and do, and trust that He will make all things possible and make a way. Compare to 1 Ne. 3:7.
One of the students recapped the story of David and Goliath for us, and we talked about our own personal Goliaths. We saw how David was courageous and stood up to Goliath. He couldn't believe that someone (a Philistine) could defy their God in such a way. As he went into battle, his response to Goliath was that he would be slain, so that the Lord could show who was the God of Israel.
We listed some of the Goliaths which we see in our day - materialism, word of wisdom, immorality, pornography etc. These are all things which we see in our world - many people struggle with these things and don't believe that they can be overcome.
I gave each student a marshmallow, and they got to try out a slingshot - flinging their marshmallow at our Goliath which we had on the wall. It was suprisingly difficult. A couple of students made it, but most missed their mark. Some of them even threw their mallows, and repeatedly were deflected off of Goliath's shield.
I believe there are two different lessons here. 1. When we compare Saul vs. David (a whole lesson in itself) we can see what happens when we trust in the Lord and put our faith in him. 2. When we begin to tackle our Goliaths, sometimes we aren't always successful the first time. Sometimes we miss, but we can keep on trying. If we (like David) put our trust and faith in the Lord, we WILL CONQUER.
We will be going over 1 Samuel 18-24 tomorrow.