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25: "The Battle Is the Lord’s" (1 Samuel 8–10; 13; 15–18)

Have you ever heard that part of “Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing” where the lyrics read, “Here I raise my Ebenezer” and wondered what it was talking about? It turns out "Eben-ezer" was the name Samuel gave a stone as a token of gratitude for deliverance. In Hebrew, the word also means "stone of help." So when we think about David and Goliath, we see how crucial a stone of help is—and not just in slaying giants. As we study 1 Samuel chapters 8–10, 13, and 15–18 we'll discover how the Savior is our personal Ebenezer, and how He helps us face our own Goliaths.

3: “We Have Come to Worship Him” (Matthew 2, Luke 2)

If you’re like us, now that the new year has begun you might be experiencing holiday withdrawals. But what if we told you that Christmas can keep on going? Luckily, this week’s Come, Follow Me lets us revisit the story of the Savior’s birth in the second chapters of Luke and Matthew. In these verses, we learn of early witnesses of Christ from the shepherds to the wise men from afar who recognized that this baby boy was called to an important work. So let’s start out the new year by studying this miraculous story and bringing the Savior into the season and into our hearts once again.

13: “Who Hath Ears to Hear, Let Him Hear” (Matthew 13, Luke 8; 13)

Do you see yourself—your day-to-day life, your joys, your troubles—in the parables of Christ? We may not separate wheat from tares or handle mustard seeds as often as the people of Jesus’s day, but His parables are still very much for us. They teach powerfully about ourselves and how we should treat others. In this week’s lesson in Matthew 13, Luke 8; 13, we will dive into why Jesus taught in parables and realize just how applicable they are to modern living.

16: “Thou Art the Christ” (Matthew 15–17; Mark 7–9)

Nothing may be sweeter than a young Primary child nervously (or sometimes not so nervously) stepping up to the microphone during fast and testimony meeting. What is your earliest memory of bearing your testimony? Whether you were five or sixty-five, in a chapel or in a car, bearing our witness of Christ can be a spiritually defining moment. Today’s study of Matthew 15–17 and Mark 7–9 will give us powerful examples of bearing testimony and show us that testimonies can be born in the most unique of places.

7: “Ye Must Be Born Again” (John 2-4)

Faith doesn’t have to fade in the face of uncertainty. Nicodemus, the Samaritan woman at the well, Mary the mother of Christ—they all held to their seed of faith even though they didn’t understand everything, and then they witnessed miracles. In this week’s lesson in John 2–4, we’ll dive into several accounts from the Savior’s early ministry and see how a precious bit of faith led to conversion. And along the way we’ll come to better appreciate the role that active and continuous belief has in our lives.

10: “Thy Faith Hath Saved Thee” (Matthew 8, Mark 2-4, Luke 7)

The famed poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow once penned the beautiful words, “Be still, sad heart! and cease repining; Behind the cloud is the sun still shining; Thy fate is a common fate of all, Into each life some rain must fall.” Longfellow is right—rain comes at different times to all of us. But his words also remind us that behind the clouds, the sun is always still shining. In this week’s lesson in Matthew 8, Mark 2–4, and Luke 7, we’ll read about when a tempest caught Jesus’s disciples unaware. And we’ll see that just as the physical sun always still shining, so too is the Son of God always there for us.

15: “O Grave, Where Is Thy Victory?” (Easter)

The gospel classic Jesus the Christ was released over 100 years ago, 108 to be exact. When the book became available, a Church announcement said of it, “The sacred subject of our Savior’s life and mission is presented as it is accepted and proclaimed by the Church that bears his Holy Name. We desire that the work, Jesus the Christ be read and studied by the Latter-day Saints.” In this special Easter episode, we study this monumental book and talk to four women who accepted the invitation to read it—and how that experience changed them.

Exercising Patience for Peace with Tara Bench

In today’s world, patience is a virtue that seems to be diminishing. We have access to everything so rapidly. Every situation has a quick fix. Even waiting in the drive-thru feels like an imposition. But patience is an important attribute of a peacemaker. God has told us to “be still and know that I am God.” Perhaps we should take the time to slow down and be still, and even though that can be uncomfortable, what can we learn about patience as we make that effort?

24: “Continue Ye in My Love” (John 14–17)

The Passover meal had come to an end. Feet had been washed; hymns had been sung. Then Christ and His disciples began their walk to the Garden of Gethsemane. According to some scholars, much of the teaching the Savior did that night took place during that fateful walk—a walk that moved the Savior toward what Elder Jeffrey R. Holland describes as “the greatest suffering that has ever taken place in the world or ever will take place.” In John 14–17, we will study just what Christ taught His disciples in those final moments; He comforted His dear friends, and hopefully His words will do the same for us.

26: “It Is Finished” (Matthew 27; Mark 15; Luke 23; John 19)

The last Friday of the Savior’s life was filled with devastating, consuming sorrow that will gnaw at the souls of those who love and honor the Son of God. Of all the days since the beginning of this world’s history, this Friday is the darkest. But as Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin once beautifully reminded us, “the doom of that day did not endure. The despair did not linger.” As we study the final hours of Jesus’s life in Matthew 27, Mark 15, Luke 23, and John 19, hold in your heart that both in scripture, and in our own lives, the glory and relief of Sunday will come.