After 50 years of captivity in Babylon and Persia, a remnant of the house of Israel had physically returned to their holy land, but spiritually they were still far from the Lord. Through the prophet Zechariah, the Savior renewed His invitation, “turn ye unto me” (Zechariah 1:3), with the promise that He would “dwell in the midst of [His people]” (Zechariah 2:10). This lesson can help students understand ways they can turn to the Lord.
Student preparation: Invite students to ponder what they would say to a friend who feels far away from the Lord’s love. Students could prepare to share their advice with the class. Students might ask a trusted friend or parent what counsel they would give in this situation.
Possible Learning Activities
Why do some people turn away from Jesus Christ?
Consider beginning class by displaying an image of the Savior next to a stick figure with an arrow pointing away from him.
What are some reasons teenagers might turn away from the Lord?
Remind students that throughout the Old Testament, prophets declared the Savior’s invitation to turn or return to Him regardless of the reason they turned away (see Deuteronomy 4:30–31; Nehemiah 1:9). Sometimes we turn away without recognizing that we are drifting.
Invite students to think about if they or people they love might be turning away from the Lord. You could invite students to reflect on the following self-assessment.
Which of the following statements do you feel is true of you?
I want to help people I care about who are turning away from the Lord.
I haven’t really thought about how close I am to the Lord.
I am feeling tempted to turn away from the Lord.
I am doing my best to stay close to the Lord and hope I can stay strong.
As you study Zechariah, seek inspiration from the Holy Ghost to help you in your personal circumstances.
Turning to the Lord
After 50 years of captivity, many Israelites finally returned to Jerusalem and the surrounding area. They rebuilt the city and started rebuilding the Lord’s temple (see Ezra 5:1–2; 6:14). But though they had physically returned to Jerusalem, many people were still far from the Lord spiritually. He sent the prophet Zechariah to help the people turn to Him so that He could “dwell in the midst of [them]” (Zechariah 2:10).
Read Zechariah 1:1–3, looking for what the Lord invited His people to do.
Create four columns on the board. Write or have a student write the following incomplete truth on the board above the columns: We turn to the Lord by …
You could write the following scripture passages on the board, one in each column. Organize students into groups of four and invite each group member to study one of the passages. Students could then complete the statement of truth using their passage.
Zechariah 3:7 (“I will give thee places to walk among these that stand by” can refer to feeling clean and worthy in the presence of heavenly messengers; see footnote c.)
Consider writing each phrase on the board in the proper columns.
The following activity can help deepen students’ understanding of the truths they identified from Zechariah. Give each group copies of the handout “We Can Turn to the Lord By …” Invite students to work in pairs or small groups to complete the handout. Alternatively, you could assign different scenarios to different pairs and have them prepare to share with pairs that worked on a different scenario.
Share what you have learned
Invite the groups to share what they learned. One way to do this is to invite each group to write their responses to prompt 2 or 3 for one of the scenarios in the appropriate column on the board.
When students finish sharing, help them reflect on what they have learned by inviting them to do the following.
In your study journal, write down one or two things you feel could help you turn to the Lord. Prayerfully invite your Heavenly Father to help you with your efforts.
You might conclude with your witness of the love Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ have for us and Their constant loving invitation to turn to Them.