This week’s readings: John 13–17
Don’t forget to record your impressions and read the ideas outlined in the new Come, Follow Me manuals on ChurchofJesusChrist.org.
Bible Video
Scripture Insight
This scriptural insight comes from Verse by Verse: Volume 1 by Andrew C. Skinner and D. Kelly Ogden.
Jesus concluded the teaching part of His mortal mission by offering a profound, deeply doctrinal prayer. President David O. McKay exclaimed, “The greatest, most impressive prayer ever uttered in this world is found in John 17” (Pathways to Happiness, 345). It is often called the high priestly or great intercessory prayer, because he as our great high priest now interceded before the Father on our behalf, just as ancient Israel’s high priest interceded or mediated before the Lord for the people.
Study Ideas
These ideas and topics are compiled from Come, Follow Me and have been adapted for specific situations. Check out the manuals online for more ideas, or come up with your own as you study!
For couples:
This week, you might consider taking a closer look at John 17. As you take a closer look at the unified relationship between Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father and the prayer that Christ offered on our behalf, you can talk about how to strengthen different relationships in your lives, such as your relationship with each other, your relationship together and individually with Jesus Christ, or your relationships with your children and family. Then you can pick one relationship or area to work on this week and share with each other how things went next week.
For singles:
In this week’s readings, there are many mentions of love, commandments, and discipleship. As you reach, you might highlight all the times the word “love” is used and think about the context in which it was mentioned. Here are a few questions you could ask: Why did Christ want His disciples to love each other? Why do we need to love God? What does opening our hearts to love encourage us to do? Why was love one of the final topics the Savior emphasized during His mortal life? How does love identify us as disciples? You may also want to pick one action you can do this week to increase your love toward others.
For families with young children:
In this week’s readings, Jesus Christ promises that the Holy Ghost will come to comfort, guide, and testify of truth after He is gone. This might be a good topic to focus on with your children. You might use an object lesson such as playing a round of “Hot, Cold” or wrapping each family member in a hug or blanket to illustrate some of the roles of the Holy Ghost. This might be a good opportunity to share a story from your own life of a time when you felt the Holy Ghost and allow children to share any experiences they might have had. Then during the next few weeks, you could put extra focus on helping your children recognize times when they might be feeling the Holy Ghost.
For families with teens:
The New Testament is full of references to disciples and discipleship. As you read the Come, Follow Me scriptures as a family this week, you may benefit from spending some time talking about what it means to be a disciple. You could start by reading the definition of a disciple in the Bible Dictionary, and then have family members highlight and share the characteristics of a disciple that you find as you read. You might even compile a list and then let family members pick one characteristic that they want to develop this week.
Stay in the loop on Come, Follow Me discussions and insights throughout the week by following the Brightly Beams Instagram account, or check out this week's related Come, Follow Me FHE lesson: The Holy Ghost.