Weekly Family History Activities

Psalms 1–2; 8; 19–33; 40; 46

“The Lord Is My Shepherd”

Psalms 24; 26–27

Entering the Lord’s presence requires purity.

From Come, Follow Me:

Because the temple at Jerusalem was built on a hill, the phrase “hill of the Lord” (Psalm 24:3) may refer to the temple or to the presence of God. What does this add to your understanding of Psalm 24? What does it mean to you to have “clean hands, and a pure heart”? (Psalm 24:4

What do Psalms 26 and 27 teach you about the house of the Lord?

“The greatest gift you could give to the Lord is to keep yourself unspotted from the world, worthy to attend His holy house. His gift to you will be the peace and security of knowing that you are worthy to meet Him, whenever that time comes.” (Preparing the World for the Savior's Second Coming- President Nelson) 

In his concluding remarks in April 2022 General Conference, President Russell M. Nelson also said, “Positive spiritual momentum increases as we worship in the temple and grow in our understanding of the magnificent breadth and depth of the blessings we receive there… I plead with you to counter worldly ways by focusing on the eternal blessings of the temple. Your time there brings blessings for eternity.” (Now Is the Time)

As you watched Elder Bednar and Elder Rasband lead this virtual tour of the Rome Italy Temple, what did you feel and learn about the temple?. Learn more about Inside Temples and Prophetic Teachings on Temples. Discuss with your family how each member feels about the temple. What do you like most about the temple? How can you increase temple blessings in your lives?

If you would like to see if there is a video or other visual material for a specific temple near you, visit https://churchofjesuschristtemples.org/temples/. Click on the temple name in which you are interested. Look on the left and scroll down to see if a video, virtual tour or photograph gallery is listed. If so, click on it to see more.

You can find other temple videos here.

Refer to Temple Ordinances from Week 19 and the discussion your family had about temple covenants and ordinances. Have you been more aware of the covenants you have made since your last discussion? Have you tried harder to keep those covenants? In what ways have you been blessed as you have kept those covenants? What motivates you to stay true to your covenants with God? During your discussion, you may have some insights and goals come to mind that you may want to write in your journal for future reflection.

Psalm 23

From Come, Follow Me:

Psalm 23 was the inspiration for several hymns, such as “The Lord Is My Shepherd” and “The Lord My Pasture Will Prepare” (Hymns, nos. 108, 109). Perhaps your family would like to sing one of these hymns and identify words in the psalm that might have inspired the lyrics.

You might enjoy watching videos of The Lord is My Shepherd and The Lord My Pasture Will Prepare performed by the Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square.

“Music is a powerful way to connect with other people. Whether you’re listening or performing, you can strengthen bonds with friends, family and even strangers simply through music. All over the world, wherever people gather, you often hear the sounds of voices, laughter–and music.” (The Power of Music to Make Connections) 

Music can bring strength and hope. Does your family have any memorable songs that have helped you through tough challenges?

The pioneers sang the hymn "Come, Come Ye Saints" to help give them courage on their trek west. (The Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square version; Hymns, music and lyrics version)

Gancci, a young five-year-old boy, his two siblings and babysitter were buried in the rubble of a three-story apartment building during Haiti's devastating 2010 earthquake. Rescuers found them by following the sound of Gancci's voice singing Primary songs. (Sacred Anthems: Why Latter-day Saints Worship with Music—Church News)

Families can gain strength through stories and music passed down from generation to generation. Write or audio-record about songs that have had a comforting or encouraging influence in the lives of your family.

Think of some songs that have meaning to your family. Sing them together. Discuss why these songs are special to your family. How far back have you heard of your ancestors singing them? You may want to sing together Family History is the Story of Me. This singalong video displays the words; you can also find them here.

Psalm 24:3–5.

From Come, Follow Me:

To emphasize the importance of having clean hands and a pure heart, you could read Psalm 24:3–5 while family members wash their hands. What might hands represent in this psalm? What could the heart symbolize? What can we do to spiritually cleanse our hands and purify our hearts?

“Preaching the gospel and seeking after our dead are two divinely appointed responsibilities that relate to both our hearts and to priesthood ordinances. The essence of the Lord’s work is changing, turning, and purifying hearts through covenants and ordinances performed by proper priesthood authority.” (Missionary, Family History, and Temple Work) 

The Prophet Joseph Smith said, "The greatest responsibility in this world that God has laid upon us is to seek after our dead." (Teachings of Presidents of the Church, Joseph Smith)

As a family, find ancestors you can go do baptisms for in the temple. If you haven't used Ordinances Ready yet, learn how here and read Ordinances Ready—Inspiring Members Around the World. You can also watch a video training on how to use “Ordinances Ready for iOS, Android and Web, Find some names and take them to the temple.

Redeem the Dead is another activity you may want to do (It was created for a stake but is adaptable to a ward or family setting.) Participation opportunities include indexing and finding clues in an "escape room."

Psalm 46:10.

From Come, Follow Me:

You might do something together that requires family members to “be still.” How can being still help us come to know God? What opportunities do we have to be still and come to know God?

“Nothing opens the heavens quite like the combination of increased purity, exact obedience, earnest seeking, daily feasting on the words of christ in the Book of Mormon, and regular time committed to temple and family history work…As you patiently honor the Lord’s timetable, you will be given the knowledge and understanding you seek. Every blessing the Lord has for you–even miracles–will follow. That is what personal revelation will do for you.” (Revelation for the Church, Revelation for our Lives)

Discuss as a family what areas of temple and family history work you would like to focus on. Seek for inspiration as you determine what areas of focus are most important to you at this time. Do you want to do more indexing, add more memories to your collection, find out more information on a particular family line, or increase your temple attendance? You will probably want to work on all of these and other areas of temple and family history, but what one or two things are you inspired to focus on at this particular time? Write them down and set goals to begin working on them. 

Consider a DNA Test 

Getting the results from a DNA test can lead to breakthroughs in your family history research, as well as connect with living distant cousins who share your ancestry. Learn the basics of DNA inheritance, testing and research in Project 8: DNA, Goal 1.