Last week, we talked a little bit about some downloads available at the LDS website. The simplest and most obvious uses include saving them onto your computer, playing them on your MP3 player, or burning them onto a CD in your car. However, I’d like to suggest a couple of alternate uses.
- Traveling magazines on CDs for your kids – Recently, with all of the traveling we do, I’ve been getting books on CD for my children to listen to in the car. I was amazed last week to realize that the Friend was downloadable. Since we already subscribe to two copies for each of our older children, we now have a great Sunday tool for them to listen to. My two year old can follow along, either in the car or on the couch. Although I always vow to read the whole magazine with my children, I’m not as successful as I might wish to be. Now I don’t have to feel quite so guilty! (Also, since we live a good 30 minutes from our branch meetinghouse, this makes a good thing to listen to on the way to church.)
- Sunday lessons for adults – My husband rarely has time to read the lessons before Church on Sunday. However, he does a lot of driving. Even when he had a “regular” job with a standard commute, he was on the road a lot, so I know this can be a great tool for anyone who works outside the home, whether they listen on CD or MP3 player. You can download each like lesson onto a CD, or, better still, you can download and prepare the entire lesson. This especially works if your ward tells you in advance which Conference talk they will use on each fourth Sunday; you can prepare both the Society and RS/EQ lesson in advance for three out of four Sundays each month. Right now, we don’t have access to the study guide for the New Testament, but you can include the appropriate chapters. You can even add the home or visiting teaching message onto the beginning of the CD, making it:
1st Week Sunday School lesson -> Home/Visiting Teaching Lesson -> 2nd week Sunday School lesson -> 2nd week Teachings of the President lesson -> 3rd week Sunday School lesson -> 3rd week Teachings of the President lesson -> 4th week Sunday School lesson -> General Conference lesson from that month - Classes, especially youth classes, or FHE – If you are a teacher, or have Family Home Evening, why not listen to a segment of a recent Conference address rather than simply read it? How much more powerful and effective would it be for your student or children to here President Hinckley talk? You can queue up the appropriate quote before your lesson, and help further bring the Spirit in.
These are just a few nonstandard ways that you can utilize the downloads available at the church website. Please feel free to share any other suggestions you might have!
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