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Act. Index 2023
Come, Follow Me is a resource offered by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It is designed to be used in the home to support personal and family scripture study to build faith in Heavenly Father and His plan of salvation and in the Savior Jesus Christ and His Atonement. Come, Follow Me is self-contained and adequate, when used properly. Products and materials designed to supplement this resource, though they may be helpful in some instances, are not necessary for a successful home study program.
Matthew 1:18–25; 2:1–12; Luke 1:26–38; 2:1–20
Jesus Christ condescended to be born among us on earth.
From Come, Follow Me:
Even if you have read or heard the story of the birth of Jesus Christ many times before, study it this time with this thought in mind: “Christmas is not only a celebration of how Jesus came into the world but also of knowing who He is—our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ—and of why He came” (Craig C. Christensen, The Fulness of the Story of Christmas.
Watch the above video, and discuss the following questions from this week in Come, Follow Me(see also For This Cause Came I into the World):
What do you know about who Jesus Christ was before He was born? (see, for example, John 17:5; Mosiah 3:5; Doctrine and Covenants 76:13–14, 20–24; Moses 4:2). How does this knowledge affect the way you feel when you read about His birth?
What do you know about why Jesus Christ came to earth? (see, for example, Luke 4:16–21; John 3:16–17; 3 Nephi 27:13–16; Doctrine and Covenants 20:20–28). How does this knowledge affect the way you feel about the Savior? How does it affect the way you live?
Watch the above clip from “Mr. Krueger's Christmas,” and try to feel what it would be like to be in the manger with the newborn Christ-child. You could even dress up to portray the “manger scene,” while someone reads Matthew 1:18–25; 2; Luke 1:26–38; 2:1–20. See this children’s adaptation of The Nativity Story .
Express to each other your feelings of how the Savior has changed your lives - his willingness to come to earth, his birth, life, teachings, example, and atoning sacrifice - whatever is in your hearts.
You could audio record this or write your testimonies and add those documents to FamilySearch memories, or video record.
Write questions to encourage the sharing of testimonies of Christ on slips of paper and place in a basket. Each member could write one question (or a parent or group leader could have the questions prepared ahead of time). Simplify for younger children.
Take turns drawing one slip from the basket and sharing your feelings and gratitude for the Lord's hand in your lives (see O Remember, Remember, Henry B. Eyring - watch a video clip here). Audio recordings of your experience can be recorded on or uploaded to FamilySearch.
Matthew 1:18–25; 2:1–12; Luke 1:26–38; 2:1–20
From Come, Follow Me:
How can you celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ with your family? Here are a few ideas, or you can come up with your own:
See also:
1 Corinthians 15:21–26; Colossians 1:12–22; 1 Peter 2:21–25
From Come, Follow Me:
Why are we grateful that Jesus Christ was born? What gifts has He given us? How can we show Him our gratitude?
What traditions could you begin or continue that help you and your family focus on your gratitude for the Savior more at Christmastime, and how can you preserve them as part of your personal and family history for generations to come?
See Gifts for the Savior.
One December we gathered together for a family meeting. We began by asking our 11-year-old son how he would feel if on his birthday we gave presents to everyone but him. He didn’t like that idea at all. We went on to ask if there is a holiday when we give gifts to others but not to the person whose birthday we are celebrating. It didn’t take the children long to realize we were talking about Christmas. We decided to start making Christmas more meaningful by giving gifts to Jesus Christ, whose birthday we are celebrating.
Our children wondered what they could give the Savior. We talked about what He desires of us. We discussed His Atonement and His desire for us to give up our sins and be obedient. We talked about how He wants us to give of ourselves by serving and sharing our talents.
That year, we had each family member write on slips of paper the gifts they planned to give the Savior and place the slips in a box. On Christmas morning, before we opened the other gifts, we had family prayer and shared with each other the gifts we were giving the Savior for the coming year.
As the years have come and gone, the tradition of giving gifts to Jesus Christ has helped our family focus on the real meaning of Christmas and on our love and gratitude for Him."
How can you and your family make temple and family history work part of your gift to the Savior in the coming year? Check out Weekly Family History Activities, and Family Activities: 5-Minute Ideas for Latter-day Saints which includes a myriad of ideas along with links to the following resources:
Many of you may have heard of or participated in some variation of the "12 days of Christmas" gift giving for family or friends. Beginning December 13th, each day until Christmas, a gift is delivered (usually anonymously--but not always). With only a week to go, here are some ideas for the “Six Days of Christmas,” family history style!
You and your family might enjoy creating a booklet or a collection of testimonies of the Savior from the records of your ancestors. Consider making a collection of the stories of the first converts in your family lines. See Ten Ways To Discover, Gather, and Share Ancestor Stories.
“The Living Christ: The Testimony of the Apostles”
From Come, Follow Me:
If you want to help your family focus on the Savior at Christmastime, perhaps you could spend some time reading and studying together “The Living Christ: The Testimony of the Apostles” Maybe you could memorize passages from “The Living Christ” or look for descriptions of the Savior’s life in the New Testament that support statements in it.
Print copies here.
As a family, you may want to audio or video record members of your own family taking turns reading from The Living Christ: The Testimony of the Apostles. You could also audio record it directly to FamilySearch using the Memories Audio app or the “Record My Story” feature on FamilySearch.