Sometimes you plan. And then you plan some more. And then just to be safe you plan a little bit more. You work out every little detail. And then in the end you manage to overlook one tiny thing and KA-BOOM!
I had Sharing Time today in primary. The topic was the
Plan of SalvationI had, what I thought, was a FABULOUS idea. See, I told the kids that we had decided to take the entire Primary on a field trip. We had talked it over with several other members of the ward and narrowed it down to two choices. We had invited two members of the ward to explain each choice to the kids and then they would get to vote on what we were going to do.
So the first Brother said told the kids that we were going to go to
Lagoon. But he was going to plan the entire trip, down to every detail. We would ride all the same rides at the same time and eat all the same food. But because he was planning every detail he would guarantee that nobody would get lost, sick, or hurt.
The second Brother said that he was going to also take the kids to Lagoon but that they could choose which rides to ride and what they wanted to eat. They could stay together in small groups(like families) if they wanted. There would be rules and guidelines set up in advance and there would be leaders throughout the park to help along the way. If rules were not followed there was a chance that they could get hurt or lost. But there would always be teachers/leaders to try and help find them and help them if they did get hurt, sick, or lost.
After the kids heard both plans they voted on it. Then I tried to transition into the spiritual part of the lesson, where I compare it to the Council in Heaven and then talk about the Plan of Happiness.
I planned and prepared and picked the perfect men to play the roles. They did a flawless job, too. Very convincing. Everything should've gone off without a hitch, right?
Problem is-as soon as I told the kids that we weren't REALLY going to Lagoon I lost them. They were so hung up on NOT going to Lagoon that the spiritual part, the important part, was completely missed.
Lesson learned. Never tell a child you are taking them to Lagoon unless you actually intend to take them to Lagoon.