Lesson 39:The Saints Build Winter

Quarters

Lesson 39: The Saints Build Winter Quarters,” Primary 5: Doctrine and Covenants: Church History, (1997),222

To help the children understand that great things can be

accomplished when people cooperate and serve each other.

Purpose

I'm Trying to Be like Jesus 1. I'm trying to be like Jesus; I'm following in his ways. I'm trying to love as he did, in all that I do and say. At times I am tempted to make a wrong choice, But I try to listen as the still small voice whispers, 2. I'm trying to love my neighbor; I'm learning to serve my friends. I watch for the day of gladness when Jesus will come again. I try to remember the lessons he taught. Then the Holy Spirit enters into my thoughts, saying: Chorus "Love one another as Jesus loves you. Try to show kindness in all that you do. Be gentle and loving in deed and in thought, For these are the things Jesus taught." Words and music: Janice Kapp Perry, b. 1938 (c) 1980 by Janice Kapp Perry.

(Enter name here)

OUR OPENING PRAYER WILL BE GIVEN BY

I want you to look up the scripture referenced on the cards I’m handing out.

Why can’t you find the scripture listed?

You need cooperate with each other to match the card pieces together.

2:18 2:21 30:8 6:3 4:2 4:3 42:29 76:5 100:16

Attention Activity

Let’s try it again, only this time work with an other person to see if

you can have better success at locating the scripture verse.

Attention Activity

Mosiah Mosiah Alma Moroni D&C D&C D&C D&C

2:18 2:21 30:8 6:3 4:2 42:29 76:5 100:16

Let’s have one person from each pair now read the scripture they

were able to look up.

Attention Activity

As the versus are being read, listen for one word that appears in each of

the scriptures.

Attention Activity

What word appeared in each scripture?

Attention Activity

SERVE

Whom should we serve?

SERVE

How do we serve God?

SERVE

Let’s read Mosiah 2:17.

SERVE

17 And behold, I tell you these things that ye may learn wisdom; that ye may learn that when ye are in the service of your fellow

beings ye are only in the service of your God.

What do you think this verse means?

SERVE

In today’s lesson, we are going to learn about how the Saints, who

were driven out of Nauvoo, served God by helping and serving each

other.

Lesson 39:The Saints Build Winter

Quarters

Lesson 39: The Saints Build Winter Quarters,” Primary 5: Doctrine and Covenants: Church History, (1997),222

After the Saints had worked hard to complete the Nauvoo Temple

and build Nauvoo into a prosperous

city, they were driven out of

Nauvoo.

Once again they had to leave

their homes to escape their

enemies.

Go to the VideoGo to the slides

Continue

About two weeks after the first Saints left Nauvoo, it got so cold that the river froze over.

Some of the Saints drove their wagons across the river on the ice.

The Saints camped by the river for a few days.

Some of them did not have enough clothes and were very cold.

Some of them did not have enough food.

Those who had enough food and clothes shared with others.

Soon the Saints moved and made another camp.

Brigham Young chose leaders who helped the people get organized and prepared for the journey to the west.

The Saints who were traveling to the west were called pioneers.

In March 1846 the pioneers began traveling west across Iowa.

In March 1846 the pioneers began traveling west across Iowa.

Their progress was slow because of bad weather, bad trails, and other problems.

Brigham Young sent men ahead to find good places for other camps.

These men cut trees and made log cabins.

They also planted crops and built bridges across streams.

They made it easier for the pioneers to travel.

In June 1846, about four months after leaving Nauvoo, the first group of pioneers made it all the way across Iowa to the Missouri River.

They stopped at a place called Council Bluffs and built a ferryboat for crossing the river.

Other Saints soon came to join them .

While many Saints had left Nauvoo in February 1846, many others stayed behind for a little longer.

Some of them had been assigned to finish the temple.

As the Saints left Nauvoo, they looked back across the river and saw their beautiful city, with the temple on the hill.

They were sad to leave, but they were happy they had finished the temple of the Lord.

Many of the Saints who left Nauvoo in the later months were too sick, poor, or unprepared to travel.

Hundreds of them were scattered along the banks of the river and had little shelter or food.

But the Lord helped them by sending flocks of small birds called quail, which the Saints were able to catch and eat.

When Brigham Young heard of the troubles of these Saints, he sent some men to rescue them.

These men saved them from

starvation and helped them travel

to Council Bluffs and other places in Iowa where the Saints were camped.

While the Saints were in Iowa, Captain James Allen of the United States Army came to see Brigham Young.

Captain Allen said the president of the United States wanted 500 men from the Church to join the army to help in a war with Mexico.

Although this was a difficult time for the Saints and the men were needed for the trek west, Brigham Young encouraged them to go.

The money they would be paid would help their families, the Saints who were poor, and the missionaries.

Serving in the army would also show the loyalty of Church members to their country.

Brigham Young told the men to be the best soldiers in the army.

They should take the Bible and Book of Mormon with them.

They must be neat, clean, and polite.

They must be neat, clean, and polite. They should not swear or play cards. Brigham Young told the men to obey

God’s commandments. If they did, they would not have to fight.

One day a woman came to Charles C. Rich, one of the Church leaders in Mount Pisgah, and tearfully explained that her husband was away with the Mormon Battalion and she and her children had nothing to eat.

Brother Rich asked his wife to give the woman some flour.

Sister Rich explained that they had only a little flour in the house and there was none available to buy,

but Brother Rich told his wife, “Let her have all that there is in the house, and trust in the Lord to provide for us.”

Sister Rich did as her husband asked, even though she wondered what her own family would eat.

Later that day some wagons stopped in front of the Rich home, and a man gave Brother Rich fifty dollars, saying that the Spirit had told him the family was out of money.

Brother Rich handed the money to his wife and said, “Now you see the Lord has opened the way for us to get flour.”

The man also told Brother and Sister Rich that there was a wagon full of flour coming to Mount Pisgah, so they would be able to buy what they needed.

Brother and Sister Rich both burst into tears as they realized how the Lord blessed them for sharing their small amount of flour.

When the wagon full of flour arrived in Mount Pisgah, Brother Rich purchased flour for his family and to give to the sick and poor people in the settlement.

The Saints had hoped that some of them could make it to the Rocky Mountains in 1846.

But Brigham Young realized they should wait until the next year.

They needed to get better prepared.

They also needed strong men for the journey, and many of the men were with the Mormon Battalion.

Some Indians agreed to let the Saints use some land across the river from Council Bluffs.

In September the Saints began building a town there, which they called Winter Quarters .

They planted crops and built over 700 homes.

Brigham Young divided Winter Quarters into wards and chose men to be bishops to watch over the members of each ward.

The pioneers built a fence around the town for protection.

Brigham Young divided Winter Quarters into wards and chose men to be bishops to watch over the members of each ward.

The pioneers built a fence around the town for protection.

Orson Spencer and his family had been driven out of Nauvoo with the rest of the Saints.

The Spencers traveled toward Winter Quarters, but before they got there Brother Spencer was called on a mission to England.

He did not want to leave his six children.

Ellen, the oldest, was fourteen; Aurelia was twelve; Catharine was ten; Howard was eight; George was six; and Lucy was four.

Their mother had died of an illness just outside Nauvoo, and they had no one to take care of them.

However, Brother Spencer accepted the mission call.

He took his children on to Winter Quarters and built them a home,

and then he asked his neighbors to help care for them, which they willingly did.

The older Spencer children took care of the younger ones, and they all learned to help each other.

That winter the Spencer children kept busy attending school, keeping the house clean, sewing dresses,

and spending time with the neighbor children practicing spelling, telling riddles and stories, and playing games.

While the Saints were in Winter Quarters, the Lord gave Brigham Young a revelation concerning the journey to the west.

The Lord told Brigham what the Saints should do to get ready and what they should do as they traveled.

The Lord said the people should be divided into small groups, each with a leader.

The people should obey their leaders. They should help each other, especially the poor, the widows, and those who did not have fathers.

The Lord said each group should have its own wagons and food.

Each group should also have people who knew how to fix the wagons, build bridges, build homes, and plant crops.

The Lord told the Saints they should keep His commandments.

They should not fight.

They should say good things about each other, not bad things.

They should be honest and give back things they borrowed or found.

The Lord wanted the pioneers to be happy.

He told them to sing, dance, and pray together.

He promised to help them if they were sad or afraid.

He said their trials would help them be prepared to receive the great blessings He had for them.

Brigham Young did what the Lord told him to do.

He divided the people into groups.

Each group had everything it would need to build a city in the mountains.

The months the pioneers spent at Winter Quarters were very difficult.

They suffered greatly from disease, hunger, and cold, and more than 700 of them died.

Despite their trials, they remained strong in their faith and worked hard to get ready for their journey.

Discussion Questions

Lesson 39: The Saints Build Winter Quarters,” Primary 5: Doctrine and Covenants: Church History, (1997),222

Why do you think it was hard for the Saints to send the Mormon Battalion to California to help with the war?

Why do you think these men agreed to go?

How was the Saints’ situation more difficult after these five hundred men left?

How did the Rich family help others?

Charles Rich told his wife to trust in the Lord.

The Lord usually helps us by sending other people to assist us with our needs.

Why is it important for us to be aware of others’ needs and be willing to help?

How have you helped someone in need?

How does it make you feel when you help others?

How did the Saints help each other while building Winter Quarters?

What would have happened if each family had had to do everything for themselves?

Build their own home, plow and plant their own crops, weave and sew their own clothes.

How did the neighbors help the Spencer family so Brother Spencer could serve a mission?

How did the Spencer children help each other?

How can you help your family members?

How can you help your neighbors?

Why do you think the Saints in Winter Quarters took time to play together when conditions were so difficult?

How do you think playing together helped them?

Why is it important for us to work together, worship together, and play together in our families and wards?

What did the Lord instruct the Saints to do while they were at Winter Quarters?

What did he ask them to do to help others? (D&C 136:8–9.)

What did the Lord promise the Saints if they would prepare and help each other? (D&C 136:11.)

Prepare for the move west (D&C 136:1–2, 5.)

What important lessons do you think the Saints learned in Winter Quarters?

What can we learn from their experiences?

By serving others we can become more Christ-like and gain true happiness.

I’m grateful for what others do for me and my family and for the opportunities I have to serve others.

Look for ways to help your family and friends.

TESTIMONY

(Enter Name Here)

OUR CLOSING PRAYER WILL BE GIVEN BY

THE END

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The Lesson and Scripture story are from lds.org. The video used in this presentation was edited from 3 different videos found on lds.org along with the lesson narration.

This presentation was created with the help of the power point presentation created by Erika Colvalt as published on sugardoodle.net

Please do not use this presentation for commercial use. Feel free to alter the presentation for use in church or home to suit personal preference.

This presentation is intended to supplement, not replace, the lesson manual and scriptures.

Teachers should refer to the manual, scriptures and other resources when preparing and conducting the lesson.

D&C 136:11  11 And if ye do this with a pure heart, in all

faithfulness, ye shall be blessed; you shall be blessed in your flocks, and in your herds, and in your fields, and in your houses, and in your families.

D&C 136:1–2, 5 1 The Word and Will of the Lord concerning the Camp

of Israel in their journeyings to the West:   2 Let all the people of The Church of Jesus Christ of

Latter-day Saints, and those who journey with them, be organized into companies, with a covenant and promise to keep all the commandments and statutes of the Lord our God.

5 Let each company provide themselves with all the teams, wagons, provisions, clothing, and other necessaries for the journey, that they can.

D&C 136:8–9 8 Let each company bear an equal proportion,

according to the dividend of their property, in taking the poor, the widows, the fatherless, and the families of those who have gone into the army, that the cries of the widow and the fatherless come not up into the ears of the Lord against this people.

9 Let each company prepare houses, and fields for raising grain, for those who are to remain behind this season; and this is the will of the Lord concerning his people.

Mosiah 2:18 18 Behold, ye have called me your king; and

if I, whom ye call your king, do labor to serve you, then ought not ye to labor to serve one another?

Mosiah 2:21 21 I say unto you that if ye should serve him

who has created you from the beginning, and is preserving you from day to day, by lending you breath, that ye may live and move and do according to your own will, and even supporting you from one moment to another—I say, if ye should serve him with all your whole souls yet ye would be unprofitable servants.

Alma 30:8 8 For thus saith the scripture: Choose ye this

day, whom ye will serve.

Moroni 6:3  3 And none were received unto baptism

save they took upon them the name of Christ, having a determination to serve him to the end.

D&C 4:2  2 Therefore, O ye that embark in the service

of God, see that ye serve him with all your heart, might, mind and strength, that ye may stand blameless before God at the last day.

D&C 4:3 3 Therefore, if ye have desires to serve God

ye are called to the work;

D&C 42:29 29 If thou lovest me thou shalt serve me

and keep all my commandments.

D&C 76:5 5 For thus saith the Lord—I, the Lord, am

merciful and gracious unto those who fear me, and delight to honor those who serve me in righteousness and in truth unto the end.

D&C 100:16 16 For I will raise up unto myself a pure

people, that will serve me in righteousness;