Lesson 22

Blessed Are the Peacemakers

Purpose

To encourage each child to be a peacemaker at home.

Preparation

1. Prayerfully study Matthew 5:1–12 (or 3 Nephi 12:1–12) and Matthew 7:1–5, 12 (or 3 Nephi 14:1–5, 12).

2. Make a larger copy of the following illustration for each child in the class and for yourself (save yours to use with lesson 26).

   smiling and frowning face

3. If possible, obtain several pictures of families doing enjoyable things together.

4. Write Blessed Are the Peacemakers at the top of a piece of paper for each child in the class.

5. Prepare to sing or say the words to “Smiles” (Children’s Songbook, p. 267). The words to this song are included at the back of the manual.

6. Materials needed:

   1. A Bible or Book of Mormon.

   2. Pencils or crayons.

   3. CTR chart (see lesson 1).

   4. Picture 2-37, Sermon on the Mount (Gospel Art Picture Kit 212; 62166); picture 2-42, Family Fun.

7. Make the necessary preparations for any enrichment activities you want to use.

Suggested Lesson Development

Invite a child to give the opening prayer.

Follow up with the children if you encouraged them to do something during the week.

Feelings in Our Homes Can Be Happy or Sad

Attention activity

Give each child a paper face. Have the children sing or say the words to “Smiles” with you, turning the faces to frowns or smiles as suggested by the words.

Discussion

Display picture 2-42, Family Fun, and any other pictures you obtained of family members doing enjoyable things together. Ask the children to turn their paper faces to show how they think the people in the pictures feel.

• Why do you think all these people feel happy?

Ask the children to turn the faces to show how they think family members would feel if they were arguing and fighting.

• Why does arguing and fighting make family members sad?

Activity

Have the children turn their paper faces to the sad face and each tell something that would make a family sad. Then have the children turn their paper faces to the happy face and tell things that make their families happy.

• Do you like it better when your family is happy or when your family is sad?

Collect the faces so they won’t distract the children. Return them at the end of class so the children can take them home.

Jesus Christ Taught Us to Be Peacemakers

Discussion

Display picture 2-37, Sermon on the Mount, and have the children tell you what they know about the picture. Explain that Jesus Christ went up on a hillside and taught the people many important things, including some ways to make our homes happy.

Read aloud Matthew 5:9 (or 3 Nephi 12:9). Explain that Jesus taught the people to be peacemakers. Have the children repeat the word peacemaker with you.

• What is a peacemaker?

Explain that a peacemaker is someone who helps others be happy instead of angry. Peace means calmness and happiness, so a peacemaker makes a home a calm and happy place to be.

Explain that Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ are peacemakers, and each of us can also be a peacemaker. Jesus has told us how.

Read aloud Matthew 7:12 (or 3 Nephi 14:12). Help the children understand that they should treat others the way they themselves like to be treated. Then they will be peacemakers and will help bring a happy feeling into their homes.

Dramatization activity

Describe some situations to the children and help them think of and act out the way a peacemaker would act in each situation. Help the children think of ways everyone involved in the situation can be happy. Use the situations below or create some of your own:

1. You are quietly looking at a book when your sister comes over and grabs the book out of your hands because she wants to read it.

   • How would you like to be treated?

   • What will you say or do if you are a peacemaker?

2. You go to the kitchen to get one of your favorite cookies. Your brother runs to the cookie jar, takes the last cookie, and eats it. You are angry.

   • How would you like to be treated?

   • What will you say or do if you are a peacemaker?

3. You and your friend are drawing pictures. She teases you for coloring a tree purple. Your feelings are hurt, and you think of a mean name to call her.

   • How would you like to be treated?

   • What will you say or do if you are a peacemaker?

Scripture

Read again or paraphrase Matthew 7:12 (or 3 Nephi 14:12) for the class.

CTR chart

Display the CTR chart. Tell the children that when they treat others the way they would like to be treated, they are following Jesus Christ and choosing the right. Have the children repeat the words on the chart with you.

We Can All Be Peacemakers

Story

Tell the following story about peacemakers in your own words:

A bishop asked several young people to help him. For one month he wanted the young people to be peacemakers in their homes but not tell anyone what they were doing. He told them to be kind and thoughtful and to be good examples. He asked them to help stop quarrels and find ways to show love for their family members. The young people were to come back to the bishop in one month and tell what happened.

In one month they all met again and told what they had done. All the young people said that their homes had become happier places to live because of their efforts to be peacemakers. (See Franklin D. Richards, in Conference Report, Oct. 1974, p. 153; or Ensign, Nov. 1974, p. 106.)

Discussion

• What did the bishop ask the young people to do?

• What happened when they did this?

• How can you be a peacemaker in your own home?

Art activity

Give each child a piece of paper on which you have written Blessed Are the Peacemakers. Read aloud the words at the top of the paper and have the children repeat them together. Give the children pencils or crayons and let them draw pictures of their families being happy.

Encourage the children to hang their pictures somewhere at home to remind them to be peacemakers.

Summary

Song

Pass out the paper faces and sing or say the words to “Smiles” again. Remind the children that by being peacemakers they can help turn frowns into smiles.

Testimony

Testify that Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ want us to be peacemakers. Remind the children that when they try to be peacemakers at home, they and their families can be happier.

Encourage each child to try to be a peacemaker at home during the coming week. Ask the children to be prepared to tell about their experiences in class next week.

Invite a child to give the closing prayer. Suggest that the child ask Heavenly Father to help the class members be peacemakers in their homes.

Enrichment Activities

Choose from the following activities those that will work best for the children in your class. You can use them in the lesson itself or as a review or summary. For additional guidance, see “Class Time” in “Helps for the Teacher.”

1. Show picture 2-3, Jesus the Christ, or another picture of Jesus. Ask the children to pretend that Jesus Christ is coming to visit their homes. Ask them to think about how excited they would feel to have Jesus visit them.

   • What will you do to get ready?

   • How will you act when Jesus comes?

   Let the children act out some things they would do if Jesus came to visit them. Explain that if Jesus were in their home they would want to try very hard to be a peacemaker by sharing, being kind to one another, and not fighting. Then they could enjoy the good feeling that Jesus brought to their home.

   Tell the children that one way they can know how to be a peacemaker is to think of how they would behave if Jesus were visiting their home.

2. Sing or say the words to “A Happy Family” (Children’s Songbook, p. 198). The words to this song are included at the back of the manual.

   Remind the children that when they are peacemakers, they help make their families happy.

3. Sing or say the words to “If You’re Happy” (Children’s Songbook, p. 266), replacing clap your hands with actions the children suggest.

   If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands.

   If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands.

   If you’re happy and you know it,

   Then your face will surely show it.

   If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands.

4. To show the children that they can control their reactions to the actions of others, have two children stand facing each other. Have one child try to keep a straight face (show no facial expression) while the other child tries to make him or her smile, laugh, or show some other facial expression. Let all the children who want to participate take turns trying this activity.

   Help the children understand that they should try to control their own reactions when someone else does something that takes away from peace at home. For example, when a brother or sister yells at them, their first thought might be to yell back, but if they are trying to be peacemakers, they can find a better way to react.