The Mother of Samson - Learning and Living the Gospel #7
Read D&C 89. Discuss how Heavenly Father blesses us when we faithfully live the Word of Wisdom. Help plan and conduct an activity to teach the Word of Wisdom to others. - Learning and Living The Gospel #7
I called up Trader Joes about a month in advance and asked if we could come take a tour of their store. I picked Trader Joes because 1) they are awesome to local scout groups and 2) they are a store known for being health(ier) and I thought it was a good tie-in to the Word of Wisdom.
We met at Trader Joes 15 minutes before I had scheduled the tour. This worked perfectly: some girls showed up 5 minutes late (10 minutes before the tour) a few just a bit after that, and the last girl showed up right as we were starting our tour. 15 minutes early works great!
The tour was delightful. We got to go in the freezer (-10 degrees!) and see the cardboard crusher, we met the staff and learned about some history. We talked about healthy food (fruits and vegetables) and food that should be used as treats (chocolate and cookies).
After the tour we walked across the street to a park to have our lesson. After our opening stuffs we had our lesson:
After Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt, God told Moses about a way for them to to be separated from the world and consecrated to God. He told Moses that if anyone wanted to be separated from the world and consecrated to God, they could become a Nazarite. In order to be a Nazarite, you had to make an oath. During your time as a Nazarite, you had to follow special rules that could not be broken, or you had to start all over again. The rules were: You can’t eat or drink anything that has any trace of grapes. You can’t drink any alcohol. You can’t cut your hair. You can’t touch any dead bodies or graves.
When you were done being a Nazarite, you offered a special sacrifice to God. All of this was done only if the person wanted to, and they could choose how long they wanted to be a Nazarite. It could be for 30 days, a few years, or much longer.
Why do you think God cares about what we eat?
God made us. He made our bodies, he made our world, he made our food! He knows more about our bodies than anyone, because he created them. He knows what’s good for our bodies and what isn’t good for our bodies.
What we eat can affect how we feel. Have you ever eaten so much candy you felt sick to your stomach? Have you ever eaten so much turkey you felt sleepy? What we eat can also affect how we listen to the Spirit. If we are addicted to something, we won’t be able to listen or understand when the Spirit is talking to us. God cares about what we eat because if affects how he communicates with us.
Roughly one thousand years after Moses introduced the revelation or Nazarites, a people named the Philistines invaded Israel and took over. They ruled for 40 years.
During that time lived a woman who wanted to receive revelation from God. She always tried to do what the Lord wanted her to do and was always seeking for more knowledge about the Gospel.
One day and angel appeared to her and said: “thou shalt conceive, and bear a son. Now therefore beware, I pray thee, and drink not wine nor strong drink, and eat not any unclean thing: For, lo, thou shalt conceive, and bear a son; and no razor shall come on his head: for the child shall be a Nazarite unto God from the womb: and he shall begin to deliver Israel out of the hand of the Philistines.” The Angel told her that her son was to be a Nazarite, but a very special Nazarite, one that would be a Nazarite for his whole life, not just for a time. In fact, He would be a Nazarite from before he was born! He would be a Nazarite in his mother’s womb!
She went right away and told her husband, Monoah, that she had seen a man with a “countenance like an angel” and what the angel had told her. They then both said a prayer together because they wanted more knowledge, more revelation. They entreated the Lord, and said, “Let the man of God which thou didst send come again unto us, and teach us what we shall do unto the child that shall be born.”
What do you think happened?
Nothing. They didn’t an answer: The angel didn’t come back and talk to them. Sometimes when we pray for answers, God makes us wait for those answers. Revelation takes faith and patience. This woman knew that. She waited upon the Lord, continually asking her questions and praying for revelation.
A few days later, while she was by herself in a field, the angel appeared to her again and said he was there as an answer to her and her husband’s prayer. She ran to Manoah and told him he was back! Manoah came out to the field and saw the angel, but he didn’t recognize him as an angel, he thought he was just a man. He asked him if he was the one who told his wife she would have a baby. The angel answered “I am.”
Manoah said “ Now let thy words come to pass. How shall we order the child, and how shall we do unto him?”
“And the angel of the Lord said unto Manoah, Of all that I said unto the woman let her beware.” She may not eat of any thing that cometh of the vine, neither let her drink wine or strong drink, nor eat any unclean thing: all that I commanded her let her observe.”
Moanah then asked him to dinner, because he didn’t understand that he was an angel. The Angel told Manoah to make a burnt offering to the Lord. So Manoah took a meat offering and offered it to the Lord. “and the angel did wondrously; and Manoah and his wife looked on. For it came to pass, when the flame went up toward heaven from off the altar, that the angel of the Lord ascended in the flame of the altar. And Manoah and his wife looked on it, and fell on their faces to the ground.
When we ask the Lord a question, then wait for answers with faith, obedience and prayer, not only will He answer our questions, but He will show us wonderous miracles.
Then Manoah knew that he was an angel of the Lord.
And Manoah said unto his wife, We shall surely die, because we have seen God. But his wife said unto him, If the Lord were pleased to kill us, he would not have received a burnt offering and a meat offering at our hands, neither would he have shewed us all these things, nor would as at this time have told us such things as these.
She did become pregnant and during her pregnancy she didn’t eat anything with grapes or alcohol in it just like the angel told her. Her baby had been foreordained and set apart as Nazarite before he was even born. Because Nazarites can’t eat any grapes or alcohol, and because what the mother eats during pregnancy feeds the growing baby, if she ate raisins, her son would be breaking the vow of the Nazarites. Once he was born she needed to know not to feel him grapes or ever cut his hair, and teach him all about his vows.
When the baby was born, they named him Samson, and Manoah and his wife raised him the way they had been told by the angel. Samson grew to become one of Israel's most famous judges and helped to free his people from the Philistines. When we seek answers and revelation from the Lord, sometimes we have to ask then wait with faith and patience. When the Lord does answer our questions, he will also show us wonderous miracles.
In our day, instead of being a Nazarite to be separated from the world and consecrated to God, God has promised that if we are obedient, we will always have His Spirit with us. Instead of rules like no eating grapes, no cutting your hair and no touching graves or dead bodies, he has given us The Word of Wisdom.
The Word of Wisdom is a way for us to receive revelation. It is a way for us to get answers to our questions. If we read the Word of Wisdom, pray about it, and ask God what he wants us, individually to eat or not eat, and if we have patience and faith, he will answer those questions with marvelous miracles.
The lesson went great! We then each read a verse from the Word of Wisdom and talked about each one, keeping in mind that the point of the Word of Wisdom is to help us receive revelation. We discussed how each verse related to us receiving revelation. After that we did our friendship circle and closing prayer. I handed out the hand-pout and we all went home. I emailed the parents, asking them if the girls could teach their next Family Home Evening lesson because their Faith In God requirement is that they teach a lesson on the Word of Wisdom.
What we know about her:
She was married to Manoah
She was unable to have children
She recognized and angel for what it was
She listened to the council of the angel
She shared her revelations with her husband
She and her husband prayed together to ask for more answers.
What we can learn from her story:
What a woman eats, feels, thinks, does, and takes into her body during pregnancy affects not only her baby.
Children are aware and able to be influenced while they are in the womb;
Sometimes God gives women personal revelation about their bodies and pregnancies. These revelations usually come to women first and if husbands want to understand and be supportive about them they should "intreat" the Lord for knowledge and confirmation;
Children have foreordained missions in this life and how they are treated in the womb can influence their future mission;
Husbands and wives should be unified and ask the Lord for direction about how to raise their children.
What we take into our bodies affects our ability to receive revelation
Sometimes When we ask the Lord a question, we need to wait patiently for answers. If we do, we’ll not only get our answer, but see wondrous miracles.
God cares about what we eat and drink.
I called up Trader Joes about a month in advance and asked if we could come take a tour of their store. I picked Trader Joes because 1) they are awesome to local scout groups and 2) they are a store known for being health(ier) and I thought it was a good tie-in to the Word of Wisdom.
We met at Trader Joes 15 minutes before I had scheduled the tour. This worked perfectly: some girls showed up 5 minutes late (10 minutes before the tour) a few just a bit after that, and the last girl showed up right as we were starting our tour. 15 minutes early works great!
The tour was delightful. We got to go in the freezer (-10 degrees!) and see the cardboard crusher, we met the staff and learned about some history. We talked about healthy food (fruits and vegetables) and food that should be used as treats (chocolate and cookies).
After the tour we walked across the street to a park to have our lesson. After our opening stuffs we had our lesson:
The Mother of Samson
After Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt, God told Moses about a way for them to to be separated from the world and consecrated to God. He told Moses that if anyone wanted to be separated from the world and consecrated to God, they could become a Nazarite. In order to be a Nazarite, you had to make an oath. During your time as a Nazarite, you had to follow special rules that could not be broken, or you had to start all over again. The rules were: You can’t eat or drink anything that has any trace of grapes. You can’t drink any alcohol. You can’t cut your hair. You can’t touch any dead bodies or graves.
When you were done being a Nazarite, you offered a special sacrifice to God. All of this was done only if the person wanted to, and they could choose how long they wanted to be a Nazarite. It could be for 30 days, a few years, or much longer.
Why do you think God cares about what we eat?
God made us. He made our bodies, he made our world, he made our food! He knows more about our bodies than anyone, because he created them. He knows what’s good for our bodies and what isn’t good for our bodies.
What we eat can affect how we feel. Have you ever eaten so much candy you felt sick to your stomach? Have you ever eaten so much turkey you felt sleepy? What we eat can also affect how we listen to the Spirit. If we are addicted to something, we won’t be able to listen or understand when the Spirit is talking to us. God cares about what we eat because if affects how he communicates with us.
Roughly one thousand years after Moses introduced the revelation or Nazarites, a people named the Philistines invaded Israel and took over. They ruled for 40 years.
During that time lived a woman who wanted to receive revelation from God. She always tried to do what the Lord wanted her to do and was always seeking for more knowledge about the Gospel.
One day and angel appeared to her and said: “thou shalt conceive, and bear a son. Now therefore beware, I pray thee, and drink not wine nor strong drink, and eat not any unclean thing: For, lo, thou shalt conceive, and bear a son; and no razor shall come on his head: for the child shall be a Nazarite unto God from the womb: and he shall begin to deliver Israel out of the hand of the Philistines.” The Angel told her that her son was to be a Nazarite, but a very special Nazarite, one that would be a Nazarite for his whole life, not just for a time. In fact, He would be a Nazarite from before he was born! He would be a Nazarite in his mother’s womb!
She went right away and told her husband, Monoah, that she had seen a man with a “countenance like an angel” and what the angel had told her. They then both said a prayer together because they wanted more knowledge, more revelation. They entreated the Lord, and said, “Let the man of God which thou didst send come again unto us, and teach us what we shall do unto the child that shall be born.”
What do you think happened?
Nothing. They didn’t an answer: The angel didn’t come back and talk to them. Sometimes when we pray for answers, God makes us wait for those answers. Revelation takes faith and patience. This woman knew that. She waited upon the Lord, continually asking her questions and praying for revelation.
A few days later, while she was by herself in a field, the angel appeared to her again and said he was there as an answer to her and her husband’s prayer. She ran to Manoah and told him he was back! Manoah came out to the field and saw the angel, but he didn’t recognize him as an angel, he thought he was just a man. He asked him if he was the one who told his wife she would have a baby. The angel answered “I am.”
Manoah said “ Now let thy words come to pass. How shall we order the child, and how shall we do unto him?”
“And the angel of the Lord said unto Manoah, Of all that I said unto the woman let her beware.” She may not eat of any thing that cometh of the vine, neither let her drink wine or strong drink, nor eat any unclean thing: all that I commanded her let her observe.”
Moanah then asked him to dinner, because he didn’t understand that he was an angel. The Angel told Manoah to make a burnt offering to the Lord. So Manoah took a meat offering and offered it to the Lord. “and the angel did wondrously; and Manoah and his wife looked on. For it came to pass, when the flame went up toward heaven from off the altar, that the angel of the Lord ascended in the flame of the altar. And Manoah and his wife looked on it, and fell on their faces to the ground.
When we ask the Lord a question, then wait for answers with faith, obedience and prayer, not only will He answer our questions, but He will show us wonderous miracles.
Then Manoah knew that he was an angel of the Lord.
And Manoah said unto his wife, We shall surely die, because we have seen God. But his wife said unto him, If the Lord were pleased to kill us, he would not have received a burnt offering and a meat offering at our hands, neither would he have shewed us all these things, nor would as at this time have told us such things as these.
She did become pregnant and during her pregnancy she didn’t eat anything with grapes or alcohol in it just like the angel told her. Her baby had been foreordained and set apart as Nazarite before he was even born. Because Nazarites can’t eat any grapes or alcohol, and because what the mother eats during pregnancy feeds the growing baby, if she ate raisins, her son would be breaking the vow of the Nazarites. Once he was born she needed to know not to feel him grapes or ever cut his hair, and teach him all about his vows.
When the baby was born, they named him Samson, and Manoah and his wife raised him the way they had been told by the angel. Samson grew to become one of Israel's most famous judges and helped to free his people from the Philistines. When we seek answers and revelation from the Lord, sometimes we have to ask then wait with faith and patience. When the Lord does answer our questions, he will also show us wonderous miracles.
In our day, instead of being a Nazarite to be separated from the world and consecrated to God, God has promised that if we are obedient, we will always have His Spirit with us. Instead of rules like no eating grapes, no cutting your hair and no touching graves or dead bodies, he has given us The Word of Wisdom.
The Word of Wisdom is a way for us to receive revelation. It is a way for us to get answers to our questions. If we read the Word of Wisdom, pray about it, and ask God what he wants us, individually to eat or not eat, and if we have patience and faith, he will answer those questions with marvelous miracles.
The lesson went great! We then each read a verse from the Word of Wisdom and talked about each one, keeping in mind that the point of the Word of Wisdom is to help us receive revelation. We discussed how each verse related to us receiving revelation. After that we did our friendship circle and closing prayer. I handed out the hand-pout and we all went home. I emailed the parents, asking them if the girls could teach their next Family Home Evening lesson because their Faith In God requirement is that they teach a lesson on the Word of Wisdom.
The Mother of Sampson
What we know about her:
She was married to Manoah
She was unable to have children
She recognized and angel for what it was
She listened to the council of the angel
She shared her revelations with her husband
She and her husband prayed together to ask for more answers.
What we can learn from her story:
What a woman eats, feels, thinks, does, and takes into her body during pregnancy affects not only her baby.
Children are aware and able to be influenced while they are in the womb;
Sometimes God gives women personal revelation about their bodies and pregnancies. These revelations usually come to women first and if husbands want to understand and be supportive about them they should "intreat" the Lord for knowledge and confirmation;
Children have foreordained missions in this life and how they are treated in the womb can influence their future mission;
Husbands and wives should be unified and ask the Lord for direction about how to raise their children.
What we take into our bodies affects our ability to receive revelation
Sometimes When we ask the Lord a question, we need to wait patiently for answers. If we do, we’ll not only get our answer, but see wondrous miracles.
God cares about what we eat and drink.
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