My Body Is a Temple

"Our bodies are temples, and the Spirit of the Lord should dwell there and shine through" (Elder David A. Bednar, Friend, June 2008).



Opening song: My Heavenly Father Loves Me
Prayer: Luke (age 3)
Scripture: 1 Corinthians 3:16-17 (Bible, New Testament)

Lesson:
What is a temple?
Display photographs of a modern-day temple. (See "Questions and Answers about the Temple", Friend, October 2009.) Explain that a temple is literally a house of the Lord, a place where the Lord may come. It is a holy place where we can worship and commune with God.

How is our body like a temple?
Our physical body houses our spirit, and is a place where the Spirit of the Lord may come. Our body is also holy, meaning it is sacred and worthy of respect. Just like the temple, our bodies can be clean and beautiful and bright both inside and out. When we keep our mind and body pure, we qualify for great blessings including the companionship of the Holy Spirit.

Jesus Cleanses the Temple
Read John 2:13-22 and show the accompanying artwork. Jesus worked very hard to keep the temple a clean and sacred place. After doing so, He compared His body to a temple and prophesied it would be destroyed and rebuilt (or resurrected) in three days.

Game
What must we do to keep our body clean like a temple? Play this game to help children learn to care for and respect their physical body. Divide the family into two groups and provide a Mr. Potato Head for each group (minus body parts). Take turns drawing slips of paper from a container that list a variety of items that are either good or bad for the body (see suggestions below). If the item is good for the body, add 1-2 parts to your potato. If the item is bad for the body, do NOT add any body parts. Continue until both teams complete a Mr. Potato Head body.

Challenge
Invite each family member to set health goals for the upcoming month.

Activity:
Family Aerobics
Take turns calling out an exercise the family can do together. Just try to keep it fast-paced, get your heart rate up and have fun! The exercises we did included running, jumping, galloping, skipping and marching across the room. We also showed the kids how to do sit-ups, push-ups, jumping jacks, cartwheels and headstands. Weight lifting, skipping rope and yoga would also have been fun to try!

Refreshment:
Gingerbread cookies

Closing song: The Lord Gave Me a Temple
Prayer: Dad

Credits:
Conducting= Luke
Lesson= Mom
Activity= Dad
Treat= Collin