FHE: "A PATTERN IN ALL THINGS"

This was SUCH a fun Family Home Evening Lesson! When all said and done the kids were begging for more just like it. It was one of those lessons that just left me feeling like they actually got a great thing out of it. Likely because the idea was something inspired by a talk given at Time Out by DeAnn Flynn.

A PATTERN IN ALL THINGS

We sang "Love One Another" as our opening song.  Then I caught there attention with a story told by DeAnn about her daughter, whom we called Kate:

"At school Kate had been reading a book in her class. When the book was finished the teacher decided to turn it into an object lesson. "Your homework for tonight is to find you very favorite pair of pants and some material. You are going to use your pants as a pattern to make a new pair of pants with the material you bring."

Kate rushed home and went right for the dress up box. She pulled out a pair of lime green stretchy pants. The type that are FAR to thin until you put them on. Then they stretch right to the perfect size. Then she ran to get some material from her Mom's material stash. She picked a thick, non-stretchy cotton type and packed it in her bag.

At school the next day the teacher told the kids in the class how to lay their pants over the top of the material and cut around them to make a pattern. Kate followed the instructions. Laying her way-too-thin-legged leggings over the top of the material and cutting right along the edge.

Once they were cut the kids grabbed a needle and thread and began the long and tedious chore of hand stitching their seams together. Kate had a better idea! She found a stapler and 'click, click, click, click' stapled them together, flipped them right side out and VIOLA, a perfect pair of pants.

When all of the children were done they were directed to the bathroom to change into their new pants. Kate's were a little tight. She quickly noticed that the pants caused her underwear to bunch embarrassingly around the top of the pants. So she took them off, replaced her pants and headed back to class. But as she sat down in the chair, "pop, pop, pop, pop", every staple gave way and Kate's pants were left with a gaping hole in the back! 

She ran quickly to the bathroom to change back into her normal pants. Kate had learned a very embarrassing, but very important lesson about the importance of choosing good patterns and following instruction without taking short cuts!"

We all had a laugh at such a funny little story. Then we talked about what "pattern" means. What kind of different patterns there are. Where we can find patterns for our lives, etc. 

The Lord has set patterns for our lives throughout the scriptures. They are full of them! We named some of the examples or patterns set by prophets throughout the scriptures. Then we read and discussed Doctrine & Covenants 52:14.

"And again, I will give unto you a pattern in all things, that ye may not be deceived; for Satan is abroad in the land, and he goeth forth deceiving the nations—"

Then we talked about and discussed the MOST important pattern in all of the scriptures, by reading 1 Timothy 1:16:

"Howbeit for this cause I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might shew forth all longsuffering, for a pattern to them which should hereafter believe on him to life everlasting."

To lead into our activity I told the kids about the people in Kirkland, Ohio.

At night, when they wished to go out, they would light a lantern to find their way. Then to let others know who was coming toward them, each family established their own pattern, sort of like a family crest. That pattern was punched into the piece of tin that wrapped around the flame. This way the family was recognized even in the dark, by the pattern their light reflected.

What is the pattern our lives reflect? When people pass by us, do they recognize the pattern that we follow? Do they know WHO we are based on what is reflected in our actions or our countenance?

THE ACTIVITY: Following Christ's Pattern



* Get a piece of tin for each family member, each child, or one for the whole family. You can usually find    tin at a craft store, you can use a tin pie pan, or you can go to the local Heating & A/C company and ask for the size you want. (Make sure that if you do this you have them bend the edges tight to the back to make sure there are not any sharp edges. This stuff is REALLY sharp!)

*You will need a nail and hammer for each person and you will want a thick piece of wood to go under each piece of tin, where the hammering is being done. BELIEVE ME! If you don't, you will have LOTS of holes all over!

*Now print either one of these patterns that I got from the ever resourceful Sugardoodle.net (one of my favorite places), or find your own. You want your pattern to be thick lined and without a lot of shading type detail. You won't be able to do all the shading, so you want your image recognizable without it. Here are the patterns I printed:

Jesus Christ Standing In The Clouds

Jesus Christ

I printed them, and then re-copied them to enlarge to the perfect size for our tin pieces.

DIRECTIONS:

Securely tape your picture over the front of the tin. Place hammer your nail until it punctures the tin and light can be seen through the hole. Do this every 1/8 - 1/4 of an inch, until all lines have been traced with holes.

Remove paper image to reveal your new image!

Embelish by punching larger holes in the top corners to thread ribbon or material (we used material) through. Tie knots in the ends to secure. This is used to hang the image. We used rubber stamps with acrylic paint to stamp the kids names across the top. My older son wanted "WWJD" across the bottom to "remind him to follow Jesus' example by asking himself "What Would Jesus Do?" Too sweet. He is pretty funny!

Use stamps, ink, paint, whatever you want to add any details. I am not going to lie. This project made me want a Silhouette EVEN MORE! Oh I want one of those babies!

Just a note: This project takes a long time! We finished ours in the same night, but in hindsight I would have had that be a project they could work on throughout the week. Something to do after homework!

And just so the princess doesn't feel left out......