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Wings Like Eagles

A log that can’t save anybody, a king named before he was born, and a Lord who never forgets you

  • 💧 Valiant 7–8
  • Week 40
  • 📅 Sunday, October 4, 2026
🤔 Forehead Guess🏆 Showdown
💡 The big idea

Jesus Christ is stronger than anything in the world, He will never forget me, and He gives me strength when I trust Him.

I can trust Jesus Christ to give me strength and stay with me when I feel tired, scared, or forgotten.

Study it yourself firstRead Isaiah 40–49 in Gospel LibraryCome, Follow Me manualOpen this week (Isaiah 40–49)
Know the chapters

Isaiah 40 begins with the word “Comfort.” Until now Isaiah has mostly warned Israel. Here he writes to people who won’t be born for a long time. They’re the Jews who’d be carried off to Babylon after Jerusalem and its temple were destroyed. That happened more than a hundred years after Isaiah’s day. Many of them would wonder if God had forgotten them, as Isaiah 49:14 says. Isaiah’s answer, again and again, is “Fear not.” Nephi had chapters 48–49 on the brass plates and read them to his brothers. See 1 Nephi 19:22–23 and 1 Nephi 20–21. So these promises were written long before the captivity happened.

These chapters are full of comfort a child can hold onto. The Lord gathers the lambs in His arm like a shepherd, in 40:11. He never gets tired, and He gives strength to the weak. So those who wait on Him “mount up with wings as eagles,” in 40:28–31. He’s with us when we pass through deep waters, in 43:2. He has engraved us on the palms of His hands, in 49:15–16. The Lord speaking in these chapters is Jehovah, who is Jesus Christ. Many Latter-day Saints think of 49:16 when they remember the Savior’s hands. He still bears the marks of the nails, as 3 Nephi 11:14–15 tells.

Isaiah also makes fun of idols. In 44:9–20 a man cuts down a tree. He burns half of it to cook dinner and warm his hands. Then he carves the other half into a god and prays to it! In 46:1–4 Babylon’s idols have to be loaded onto tired animals and hauled away. Meanwhile the Lord says He carries His people from birth to old age. Then Isaiah does something astonishing. He names Cyrus, the Persian king who would conquer Babylon and let the Jews go home to rebuild the temple. See 44:28, 45:1, and Ezra 1:1–4. Isaiah wrote that name about 150 years before Cyrus set the captives free.

For eight-year-olds, keep it simple. Only Jesus can save us, as 43:11 says. He’s stronger than anything that scares us. He never forgets us, and He gives us strength when we trust Him. Many of your kids just promised at baptism to stand as witnesses of God, in Mosiah 18:9. Isaiah 43:10 calls the Lord’s people “my witnesses.” Invite them to lean on Him this week when they feel tired, scared, or left out.

Only have 5 minutes?

Read Isaiah 44:14–17 and 49:15–16. Grab a wooden spoon and a sticky note for Larry the Log. Write the kids’ names on your palm before class. Tell the story from Teach Mode. Teach the eagle motions for Isaiah 40:31, play Idol Freeze Dance, and open your hand at the end. Brought nothing? Tap “I brought nothing.” Larry becomes a chair, and you trace their names on your palm with a fingertip.

What to bring2 items

Tick what you have. Forgot something? Every step that needs a supply has a no-supplies version in the plan below.

Before class

  1. Read Isaiah 44:14–17 and 49:15–16.
  2. Right before class, write each child’s first name small on your palm with the washable marker. Keep that hand closed until the end.

If your class is wild

  • Listening for a word turns wiggly kids into detectives. Watch for the thumbs, and grin at each one you see.
  • Make your wiggliest kid the Larry Keeper. Holding Larry perfectly still is harder than it looks.
  • Use one attention signal all lesson. You say “Eagles…” They flap twice, answer “…land!” and fold their wings.
  • In Freeze Dance, idols can’t talk. Anyone who freezes without a sound picks the next way to move.
  • Keep your marker hand closed all lesson. The mystery keeps them watching you.

The 25-minute plan24 min + bonus

Bonus steps are for when you have extra time. Steps that mention Teach Mode, the Sound Board or other class games refer to the Gospel Sparks app; on the web you can play Forehead Guess and Scripture Showdown from this page.

1. Hook

Meet Larry the Log

3 min

A silly prop gets giggles and flips into the big question: who can really help us?

  1. SAY“Everyone, meet Larry. Larry is a log. Long ago, some people prayed to wood like Larry.”
  2. Give Larry a goofy sticky-note face. Let two or three kids who are sitting ready ask him for help, like a sunny day.
  3. Pause for Larry’s silence. Ask, “Why can’t Larry help?” He can’t hear, see, move, or love us.
  4. SAY“Isaiah laughed at people who prayed to wood. But he also told us about Someone who hears us. Someone who never forgets us.”
🌪️ Only kids who are sitting ready get to ask Larry a question. His silence is funnier when the room is quiet.

Class screen: 🪵 Meet Larry the Log. Can he help you? · 🪵 Can Larry help you?

No supplies? Do this instead

Instead of: A stick, a small piece of firewood, or a wooden spoon, plus a sticky note and marker for a silly face (this is Larry the Log)

Meet Larry the Chair

  1. SAY“Everyone, meet Larry. Larry is a chair. Long ago, some people prayed to wood like Larry.”
  2. Pat an empty chair like it’s very important. Let two or three kids who are sitting ready ask Larry for help.
  3. Pause for Larry’s silence every time. Ask, “Why can’t Larry help?” He can’t hear, see, move, or love us.
  4. SAY“Isaiah laughed at people who prayed to wood. But he also told us about Someone who hears us. Someone who never forgets us.”

Class screen: 🪑 Meet Larry the Chair. Can he help you? · 🪵 Can Larry help you?

2. Story

Story: The Long Way Home from Babylon

7 min

A true story shows that idols can’t help, but the Lord never forgets His people and brings them home.

  1. SAY“This is a true story about people who felt forgotten. Listen for the word ‘forget.’ Every time you hear it, give me a thumbs up.”
  2. Open the story in Teach Mode. Read each scene, and smile at the thumbs when they pop up.
  3. At scene 4, the Larry Keeper holds Larry up high. Everyone knocks on their knees: “It’s just a log!”
  4. At scene 5, flash your marker hand for one second and close it. Tell them you’ll show them at the end.
  5. After scene 7, ask, “Who remembered His people the whole time?” Listen for the Lord, Jesus Christ.
🌪️ If the room drifts, whisper the next scene. They’ll lean in so they don’t miss the word.

Class screen: 🦅 The Long Way Home from Babylon · 👂 Listen for “forget” · 👍 Thumbs up!

No supplies? Do this instead

Instead of: A stick, a small piece of firewood, or a wooden spoon, plus a sticky note and marker for a silly face (this is Larry the Log), A washable marker

  1. SAY“This is a true story about people who felt forgotten. Listen for the word ‘forget.’ Every time you hear it, give me a thumbs up.”
  2. Open the story in Teach Mode. Read each scene, and smile at the thumbs when they pop up.
  3. At scene 4, the Larry Keeper pats the empty chair. Everyone knocks on their knees: “It’s just a log!”
  4. At scene 5, hold up your closed hand. Tell them you have a secret about hands for the end.
  5. After scene 7, ask, “Who remembered His people the whole time?” Listen for the Lord, Jesus Christ.
3. Scripture

Key Verse: Isaiah 40:31

4 min

Big eagle motions help kids memorize a promise they can use whenever they feel tired, scared, or weak.

  1. SAY“Here’s how the Lord helps people who trust Him.”
  2. Show the verse on your phone or tablet and read it slowly.
  3. SAY“‘Wait upon the Lord’ means trust Him and keep following Him. ‘Renew’ means fill back up, like charging a tablet.”
  4. Teach the motions one phrase at a time. Say it three ways: baby-eagle voice, regular voice, then mighty-eagle voice.
  5. Ask, “When might you need the Lord to give you strength?” Maybe a hard test, a scary night, or feeling left out.

Class screen: 🦅 They shall mount up with wings as eagles!

4. Game

Idol Freeze Dance

7 min

Kids burn off energy while they practice the big idea: an idol can’t help anybody, but the Lord can.

  1. SAY“When the music plays, soar like eagles. When it stops, freeze like a wooden idol. No talking, no blinking!”
  2. Tap Freeze Dance. Eagles soar in their own space with arms out. No touching.
  3. While they’re frozen, ask, “Can an idol hear your prayers?” Pause. Then call, “But the Lord can! Come alive!”
  4. Keep going with new questions. “Can an idol help when you’re scared?” “Can an idol remember your name?”
  5. End by reading Isaiah 43:11: “I, even I, am the LORD; and beside me there is no saviour.”
🌪️ Kids who freeze without a sound pick the next way to move. Try hopping, tiptoeing, or slow motion.
🧊 Freeze Dance (a class game in the Gospel Sparks app)

Class screen: 🗿 Freeze like an idol… then come alive! · Soar like an eagle · Freeze like wood! · But the Lord can!

5. Testimony

Your Name on My Hand

3 min

A quiet surprise helps each child feel personally remembered by the Savior.

  1. SAY“Remember my hand? I wrote something on it before class.”
  2. Slowly open your palm and show them their names. Then read Isaiah 49:16.
  3. SAY“‘Graven’ means carved. My marker will wash off tonight. But the Lord will never forget you.”
  4. SAY“Jesus still had the nail marks in His hands when He rose again. We can read about it in Third Nephi, chapter eleven. He did all that for you.”
  5. Share a time the Lord remembered you or gave you strength. Show the Palm Reminder challenge, then invite a child to pray.

Class screen: ✋ The Lord will never forget you. · Your name is on His hands

No supplies? Do this instead

Instead of: A washable marker

  1. SAY“Remember my hand? Watch.”
  2. Slowly open your palm. Trace each child’s name on it with a fingertip as you say it softly. Then read Isaiah 49:16.
  3. SAY“‘Graven’ means carved. You can’t see the names on my hand. But the Lord will never forget you.”
  4. SAY“Jesus still had the nail marks in His hands when He rose again. We can read about it in Third Nephi, chapter eleven. He did all that for you.”
  5. Share a time the Lord remembered you or gave you strength. Show the Palm Reminder challenge, then invite a child to pray.
6. Game

Forehead Guess: Comfort Ye Edition

4 minBONUS

A quick Heads Up–style review of today’s story and big idea.

  1. SAY“Let’s see what you remember! Give clues, but don’t say the word.”
  2. Tap Forehead Guess.
  3. One kid holds your phone or tablet on their forehead, screen facing the class. Everyone else gives clues from their seats.
  4. Tilt down for “got it” and up to pass. Each turn is 45 seconds. Then pass your phone or tablet to the next kid.
🌪️ Go around the room one clue at a time. That way nobody shouts over anybody.
▶ Play Forehead Guess on the web

Class screen: 🤔 Forehead Guess! · Give clues, don’t say the word!

7. Game

Scripture Showdown

5 minBONUS

A fast team quiz reviews everything they learned.

  1. SAY“Team Eagle versus Team Lamb!”
  2. Split the class in two and tap Scripture Showdown.
  3. Read each question out loud. Teams whisper together, then point to an answer.
  4. Tap the team that got it right to give them a point.
▶ Play Scripture Showdown on the web

Class screen: 🏆 Scripture Showdown!

The story

The Long Way Home from Babylon

Isaiah 43:11; 44:9–28; 45:1; 49:14–16; Ezra 1:1–4 ↗

Optional helpers

  • Larry KeeperHolds Larry the Log on their lap and lifts him up high at “It’s just a log!”
  • Sound HelperSits next to you and taps each scene’s sound on your phone or tablet.

Scenes

  1. 🧔📜 Isaiah writes words of comfort

    Long ago, the Lord gave Isaiah a message for people who weren’t even born yet. It began with one gentle word: “Comfort.” The Lord knew His people would feel forgotten someday. He wanted them to know they weren’t.

    🙌 Listen for the word “forget.” Thumbs up when you hear it!

  2. 🏰😢 Far away in Babylon

    More than a hundred years later, Babylon’s army destroyed Jerusalem and its temple. Many families were taken far away to Babylon. They were so sad. “The Lord has forgotten us,” they said. “We’ll never go home.”

    🙌

  3. 🪓🔥 The silly woodcarver

    Isaiah told about a woodcarver. The man chopped down a tree. He burned half of it to cook dinner and warm his hands. “Aha, I am warm!” Then he carved the other half into a statue. He bowed down and prayed, “Deliver me!”

    🙌

  4. 🗿🙉 It can’t hear, see, or save

    Isaiah thought this was so silly! The same log that cooked dinner can’t hear, can’t see, and can’t help anybody. The Lord said, “beside me there is no saviour.” Only He can save us.

    🙌 Knock on your knees: “It’s just a log!”

  5. ✋❤️ “yet will I not forget thee”

    But Isaiah had good news for the sad families. The Lord said a mother might forget her baby. Then He said, “yet will I not forget thee. Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands.”

    🙌

  6. 👑📜 King Cyrus says, “Go home!”

    Then a king named Cyrus conquered Babylon. Long before Cyrus was born, Isaiah had written down his name! Cyrus told the Lord’s people they could go home and build the house of the Lord again.

    🙌

  7. 🦅🏜️ Wings like eagles, all the way home

    It was a long walk across the desert. But Isaiah made a promise. People who trust the Lord “shall mount up with wings as eagles.” The Lord never forgot His people. And He won’t forget you either.

    🙌 Flap your wings: “Whoosh!” Did you hear “forget”? Thumbs up!

Key verse

Isaiah 40:31 ↗
“But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.”
In kid words: When we trust the Lord and keep following Him, He fills us back up with strength, so we can soar like eagles and keep going without giving up.
🙌 “They that wait upon the Lord” = fold arms and look up · “shall renew their strength” = make big muscles · “mount up with wings as eagles” = rise onto tiptoes flapping huge wings · “run, and not be weary” = run in place super fast · “walk, and not faint” = walk in place, wobble like you might fall, then stand strong: “Not faint!”

More verses

Isaiah 49:15–16 ↗
“yet will I not forget thee. Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands”
In kid words: The Lord says, “I will never forget you. I have carved you on the palms of My hands.”
Isaiah 41:10 ↗
“Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee”
In kid words: Don’t be afraid. I am with you. I will make you strong and help you.
Isaiah 43:2 ↗
“When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee”
In kid words: When hard things feel like deep water, the Lord will be right there with you, and they won’t sweep you away.
Isaiah 43:11 ↗
“I, even I, am the LORD; and beside me there is no saviour.”
In kid words: Jesus Christ is the only one who can save us. Not a log, not a statue, not anything else!

Forehead Guess words19 words

  • 🧔 Isaiah
  • 🦅 Eagle
  • 🧑‍🌾 Shepherd
  • 🐑 Lamb
  • 🏰 Babylon
  • 👑 King Cyrus
  • 🗿 Idol
  • 🪵 Log
  • 🪓 Woodcarver
  • 🔥 Fire
  • 🏞️ River
  • ✋ Palms
  • 📜 Scroll
  • 🏛️ Temple
  • 🏜️ Desert
  • 🛣️ Highway
  • 🙋 Witness
  • 💪 Muscles
  • 🏃 Running
Clues for each word
  • Isaiah: Prophet who wrote “Comfort ye my people”
  • Eagle: Big bird that soars high; flap your wings!
  • Shepherd: Carries the little lambs in his arms
  • Lamb: Baby sheep the Shepherd carries close
  • Babylon: Faraway city where Israel was taken captive
  • King Cyrus: Isaiah wrote his name before he was born
  • Idol: Fake god that can’t see, hear, or help
  • Log: Half cooked dinner, half became a fake god
  • Woodcarver: Chopped a tree and prayed to half of it
  • Fire: “Aha, I am warm!”
  • River: Isaiah said peace can flow like one
  • Palms: Where the Lord has written your name
  • Scroll: Rolled-up paper for writing a message
  • Temple: King Cyrus said: go home and build it again!
  • Desert: Hot, dry land they crossed to get home
  • Highway: A straight road to prepare the way of the Lord
  • Witness: Someone who tells what they know is true
  • Muscles: Flex them! The Lord renews your strength
  • Running: Isaiah said we can do it and not get weary
▶ Play Forehead GuessFull screen, 60-second timer, works on any phone.

Scripture Showdown8 questions

  1. What is the very first word of Isaiah 40?
    • A. Comfort
    • B. Hurry
    • C. Beware
    Show answer

    ✅ A. Comfort Isaiah 40:1: “Comfort ye, comfort ye my people.” The Lord wanted His people to feel better.

  2. What did the woodcarver do with half of his log?
    • A. Built a boat
    • B. Cooked dinner and warmed his hands
    • C. Gave it to his neighbor
    Show answer

    ✅ B. Cooked dinner and warmed his hands “Aha, I am warm!” Then he made a god out of the leftovers. Silly!

  3. What did he do with the other half of the log?
    • A. Made a chair
    • B. Threw it in the river
    • C. Carved an idol and prayed to it
    Show answer

    ✅ C. Carved an idol and prayed to it Isaiah 44:17. A log can’t save anybody. Only the Lord can.

  4. Which king did Isaiah name long before the king was born?
    • A. King Kong
    • B. King Cyrus
    • C. King Arthur
    Show answer

    ✅ B. King Cyrus Isaiah 44:28 and 45:1. Cyrus let the Jews go home to rebuild the temple.

  5. People who wait upon the Lord mount up with wings as…
    • A. Eagles
    • B. Bats
    • C. Butterflies
    Show answer

    ✅ A. Eagles Isaiah 40:31. They run and don’t get weary, and walk and don’t faint!

  6. Where did the Lord say He has written you?
    • A. On a sticky note
    • B. In the sand
    • C. On the palms of His hands
    Show answer

    ✅ C. On the palms of His hands Isaiah 49:16. He will never, ever forget you.

  7. What did King Cyrus tell the Lord’s people to do?
    • A. Go home and build the house of the Lord
    • B. Stay in Babylon forever
    • C. Build a giant statue of him
    Show answer

    ✅ A. Go home and build the house of the Lord Ezra 1:3. After many years away, they could finally go home!

  8. When you pass through deep waters, what did the Lord promise?
    • A. To dry up every ocean
    • B. To send you a boat
    • C. “I will be with thee”
    Show answer

    ✅ C. “I will be with thee” Isaiah 43:2. He doesn’t always take hard things away, but He is always with us.

▶ Play Scripture ShowdownTeams take turns on one screen.

Songs

  • How Firm a Foundation Hymns, no. 85

    This hymn is built on Isaiah’s promises in 41:10, 43:2, and 46:4. Read Isaiah 43:2, then sing it. Find it ↗

  • Keep the Commandments Children’s Songbook, p. 146

    Isaiah 48:18: keeping the commandments brings peace like a river. Find it ↗

  • I Feel My Savior’s Love Children’s Songbook, p. 74

    Sing it at the very end, right after you show the names on your hand. Find it ↗

This week’s challenge

Palm Reminder

Each morning this week, ask a parent if you can draw a tiny heart on your palm. Use a washable marker. When you see it, remember Jesus will never forget you. Feeling tired, scared, or left out? Say a quick prayer for strength.

Text the parents

This week we learned from Isaiah 40–49 that the Lord is stronger than anything. He gives strength to people who trust Him. They “mount up with wings as eagles.” And He’ll never forget us. We laughed at a man in Isaiah who prayed to a log. We also learned that Isaiah wrote King Cyrus’s name long before he was born. Ask your child where the Lord said He’s written their name.

📝 After class

What worked? Who needs a check-in this week? Jot it here on a printed copy, or in the app’s private class notes.

Got extra time?

🧽 Pour Out Blessings · 4 min

  1. Show a dry, stiff kitchen sponge. Say, “This is like dry, thirsty ground.”
  2. Read Isaiah 44:3: “For I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground: I will pour my spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring.”
  3. Kids name blessings the Lord has poured on them, like family or a friend. Pour a little water for each one.
  4. Point out how soft the sponge got. Ask, “What changes in us when the Lord pours His Spirit on us?”

🐑 The Shepherd Gathers the Lambs · 5 min

  1. Read Isaiah 40:11: “He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom.”
  2. Lambs crouch in different spots and baa softly. Pick one Shepherd and lay down a blanket as the sheepfold.
  3. The Shepherd walks to a lamb and leads it by the hand to the fold. That lamb becomes a helper shepherd.
  4. Keep going until every lamb is home. Say, “Jesus never leaves a lamb behind. And He lets us help Him gather others.”

🌊 Peace Like a River, Strong Like the Waves · 3 min

  1. Read Isaiah 48:18: “then had thy peace been as a river, and thy righteousness as the waves of the sea.”
  2. For peace like a river, sway your arms slowly side to side and whisper, “Shhhh.”
  3. For righteousness like the waves, roll your arms in big crashing waves that just keep coming.
  4. Ask how keeping the commandments helps us feel calm and keep going. Then sing “Keep the Commandments.”

💧 The Paper Towel That Stayed Dry · 4 min

  1. Stuff a paper towel firmly into the bottom of a clear cup. Say, “The towel is you. The cup is the Lord, all around you.”
  2. Turn the cup upside down and push it straight down into a bowl of water. Count down together from five.
  3. Lift it straight up and pull out the towel. It’s dry! The trapped air keeps the water out.
  4. Read Isaiah 43:2. Say, “Jesus doesn’t promise we’ll never have hard things. He promises to be with us.”

🛣️ Build a Straight Highway · 2 min

  1. Read Isaiah 40:3: “Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.”
  2. At “every valley shall be exalted,” crouch low and rise up tall. At “every mountain and hill shall be made low,” stretch tall and squash down.
  3. At “the crooked shall be made straight,” twist into a pretzel. Then snap straight like a ruler.
  4. Say, “John the Baptist prepared the way for Jesus. We prepare the way when we choose the right.”

Sources

Scripture quotations are from the King James Version, the Bible used by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Tap or click a reference to open it in Gospel Library. Start with the official Come, Follow Me manual; these ideas are here to help it come alive.

All Valiant 7–8 lessons