Come, Follow Me
What can I do to help new members of the Church?

What can I do to help new members of the Church?

Prepare Yourself Spiritually

For many people, becoming a member of the Church can be challenging. It may involve leaving behind old friendships and adjusting to a new way of life. Each new member of the Church needs friendship, a responsibility, and nurturing with “the good word of God” (Moroni 6:4). We can help new members by befriending them, serving alongside them, and sharing our testimonies with them.

Resources to Help You Prepare

These resources are to help you prepare for the “Learn together” section of the meeting.

Questions to Ponder before You Teach

What have you done to help strengthen new members? What did others do to help you after you were baptized?

Are any of the young women in your class new members? How have they adapted to being members of the Church? How have other young women helped them?

What can the young women do to prepare to learn? For example, they could read a talk, watch a video, or study a scripture related to this doctrine.

Teaching in the Savior’s Way

As the Savior taught His disciples, He responded to their questions and listened to their experiences. He was sincerely interested in their answers to His questions, and He rejoiced in their expressions of faith. What can you do to show love and interest for the young women in your class?

Meeting Outline

1. Counsel Together and Share Experiences

Led by a member of the class presidency; approximately 5–10 minutes

Lead a discussion about items such as the following:

  • Our class: Who is missing today? What visits do we need to make? Who should we invite to an upcoming activity? Who needs our help and prayers?

  • Our responsibilities: What assignments do we need to make? What assignments have we fulfilled? How have we invited others to come unto Christ, and how can we invite others now?

  • Our lives: Remind the class of the discussion from the last meeting. What experiences have we had with applying what we learned? What experiences have we had in the past few weeks that strengthened our testimonies of the gospel?

If possible, discuss these items beforehand in a class presidency meeting.

2. Learn Together

Led by a leader or teacher or a member of the class; approximately 25–35 minutes

After studying the above resources and following the inspiration of the Spirit, you may select one or more of the activities below to help class members understand the doctrine.

  • Invite the young women to visualize or think about a Church member who reaches out to new converts who may come from different circumstances than the member. The young women could make a list on the board of things that this Church member might do or not do to make new converts feel welcome. Elder Neil L. Andersen in “Whoso Receiveth Them, Receiveth Me” told several stories about people who reached out to new members, and Sister Neill F. Marriott in “What Shall We Do?” told about the welcome she received as a new convert from her husband’s step-grandmother. What can the young women learn from these stories that they can add to their list?

  • Show a picture of the Savior holding a lamb (see Gospel Art Book [2009], no. 64). Write on the board the words Feed my sheep. Ask the young women what they know about this statement. Invite them to listen for additional insights as you read to the class John 21:15–17. Who are the “sheep” and “lambs” in this passage? How are new members of the Church like lambs? What does it mean to feed the Savior’s lambs? Invite the young women to share experiences they have had strengthening new members. What specific things can they do to help new members in the future?

  • Write on the board scripture references (such as those listed in this outline) about our responsibility to strengthen fellow Saints. Ask each young woman to read one of the scripture references, thinking about how it applies to new members of the Church. Ask her to write on the board a short summary of her passage and share an example of the principle it teaches. Ask the young women why it is important to strengthen new members of the Church.

  • Help the young women think of questions they would like to ask someone who recently joined the Church. With the bishop’s permission, invite one or two recent converts to class. Ask them to share their conversion stories and their experiences as new members of the Church. Invite the young women to ask their questions and discuss how they can help new members make the transition into the Church.

  • Invite the young women to read “Friends” in For the Strength of Youth and look for answers to the question “What does it mean to be a true friend?” Ask them to share what they find and share an experience in which someone was a true friend to them. Why is it especially important for us to be good friends to new members of the Church? Invite the young women to make a list of new members they know and discuss how they can apply the counsel in For the Strength of Youth to befriend them.

3. Plan to Act

Led by a member of the class presidency; approximately 5–10 minutes

  • Ask the young women to discuss any feelings or impressions they had during the meeting. What was meaningful to them? Is there something they can do personally or as a class to apply what they have learned?

  • Give the young women a few minutes to record what they will do in the coming weeks to act on their impressions. Invite them to share their ideas.

  • Remind the young women that they will have the opportunity to share their experiences at the beginning of the next meeting.

Related Youth Activities

Plan a Mutual activity that will help the young women apply what they learned in this lesson.