Ezra Taft Benson Lesson 20

I've read this lesson several times now, and realized it is nearly identical to Joseph Fielding Smith Lesson 20. I went back and read that blog post and it contains some of the very best material I've ever collected on the topic of fellowshipping and dynamics with folks in our ward.

We're moving this week to Salt Lake City, and the timing of this lesson couldn't be better.

The mentioned blog post is short and so relevant, I promised myself to make a dedicated study of it this week for my own sake. There are only a couple of short JFS quotes ~ the rest is pure resource material which I hope and believe you will find invaluable. It all comes from a BYU Education class solely focused on true fellowshipping, making friends within your ward and healing some of the difficulties.

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Let's talk about another topic which is dear to my heart...why people don't stay active once they join the Church.

My mission president would draw a line down the middle of the chalk board.  On the left he titled it "Babylon" and on the right he titled it "Zion."

He used stick figures and I may get brave and expose my lack of artistic skills and include a series of illustrations later today.

He would draw a couple of stick figures on the left side of the line (Babylon) which represented investigators (people) just starting missionary discussions.

Then he drew two stick figures on the right in Zion which represented the missionaries.

He drew an arrow from the missionaries over the line down the middle of the chalkboard to the investigators in Babylon.

In essence the missionaries visit people in Babylon (the culture of the world) and they feel the Spirit and put a hand or a foot over the line in Zion.

They become converted and baptized ad cross over the line into Zion.

Problem is, their whole social structure, their family life, their discretionary time is back in Babylon. 

Unless it is replaced with a like friendship structure in Zion, those folks will gravitate back to Babylon.  The idea is to balance camaraderie and fellowship on the right side of the line (Zion) with what they had in Babylon.

Otherwise Babylon pulls them back.  "Hey, we're going to Vegas this weekend, want to come'?  "Let's go see that movie this Sunday"!

Makes a great object lesson.

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This is all I can write for now.

I'm excited for the move, but the crunch is full on us.

General Conference is coming up!  I hope you full out have a great time with it.

Good luck with your lesson.