Take My Yoke

An overloaded backpack, a two-ox team, and a Sabbath showdown where Jesus chose people over rules

  • 🧭 Youth 11–14
  • Week 11
  • 📅 Sunday, March 14, 2027
🤔 Forehead Guess🏆 Showdown
💡 The big idea

Jesus Christ invites everyone who is worn out and weighed down to come to Him, take His yoke through covenants, and find rest, and His Sabbath is a day to do good and draw close to Him, not a pile of extra burdens.

I can bring my burdens to Jesus Christ, stay yoked to Him through my covenants, and use the Sabbath to do good and find rest.

Know the chapters

Matthew 11:28–30 is one of the Savior’s most tender invitations: come to Me if you’re worn out and weighed down, take My yoke, learn of Me, and you’ll find rest. A yoke is a wooden beam that joins two animals so they pull a load together. Through our covenants we are yoked to Jesus Christ; He doesn’t always remove the load, but He pulls with us, and He is far stronger. The manual asks what “rest” means here and points to several talks, including President Camille N. Johnson’s “Jesus Christ Is Relief” (April 2023), where she compares our burdens to rocks in a backpack: some from our own sins, some from other people’s choices, and some simply from living in a fallen world. Today’s hook borrows that picture.

Matthew 12:1–14 shows what the Savior’s rest is not. Over the centuries, religious teachers had added many rules to the Sabbath, and some Pharisees counted even plucking and rubbing a handful of grain as forbidden work. When Jesus’s hungry disciples did that (the King James Version calls it “corn”), the Pharisees objected. Jesus answered from their own scriptures: David ate the temple’s holy bread when he was hungry, priests work in the temple on the Sabbath, and God said through Hosea, “I will have mercy, and not sacrifice” (Hosea 6:6). Then, in the synagogue, with a man with a withered hand as bait, they asked if healing on the Sabbath was lawful. He asked who wouldn’t pull their sheep out of a pit on the Sabbath, taught that it is lawful to do well on the Sabbath, and healed the man. Instead of rejoicing, the Pharisees went out and plotted to destroy Him.

Luke 11 adds prayer. After watching Jesus pray, a disciple asked, “Lord, teach us to pray,” and Jesus taught the pattern we call the Lord’s Prayer, then told of a friend knocking at midnight and promised: ask, seek, knock. No earthly father hands his hungry child a stone or a scorpion, and Heavenly Father will give the Holy Spirit to those who ask (Luke 11:9–13). Luke 11:39 and Matthew 12:34–35 add that God cares about the inside, not just a clean outside.

For 11- to 14-year-olds, burdens are real: homework and grades, practices, family stress, friend drama, anxiety, a mistake they can’t stop thinking about. Don’t minimize them. The message isn’t “try harder”; it’s “you don’t pull alone.” For many of them, the Sabbath is also where the question “what am I allowed to do?” lives. Turn it toward the Savior’s question: what can I do today that does good and brings me closer to God?

Only have 5 minutes?

Read Matthew 11:28–30 and Matthew 12:1–14. Load up a volunteer with the Backpack hook, have teams find the invitations and promises in Matthew 11:28–30 and teach verse 28, run the Ox Team Relay, let Teach Mode carry the Sabbath drama (you read Jesus’s words), play the Do Well Draft, and close by asking each youth to hand one rock to the Savior this week. Brought nothing? Tap “I brought nothing”: the backpack becomes outstretched arms holding invisible rocks, and the draft is played out loud.

What to bring3 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. Load the books or cans next to the backpack so you can add them one at a time during the hook.
  2. Read Matthew 12:1–14 twice. Choose a good-humored youth to play the Sheep in the Pit; it’s the comic relief of the drama.
  3. Text two readers before Sunday: Reader 1 takes Matthew 11:28, Reader 2 takes Matthew 11:29–30.
  4. Add names in the My Class tab so you can hand out roles with one tap.
  5. Think of a time you felt the Savior lighten a burden you couldn’t carry alone, or a Sabbath that really felt like rest. You’ll share it in two sentences.

If your class is wild

  • The backpack gets heavy fast. Stop at six or seven books and let the volunteer set it down on a chair; the point is made.
  • The Ox Team Relay is loud and funny. Rule: pairs walk, never run, and if the linked arms break, they go back to the start.
  • Don’t ask anyone to name their own heavy rocks out loud. Keep burdens general (“school,” “family stuff”) and let them keep their own list private.
  • The Sabbath can get preachy fast. Keep your energy on the Savior’s question (what does good?) instead of a list of don’ts.
  • Give jobs: a scorekeeper, a timer for the relay, and a youth to read the discussion questions.

The 25-minute plan25 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

The Backpack

3 min

A volunteer’s backpack gets heavier with every burden the class names, which makes the Savior’s invitation to the heavy laden feel real.

  1. A volunteer puts on the empty backpack. Say: “Everybody carries a backpack you can’t see. What goes in it for people your age?”
  2. Each time someone names a burden (a test, practice, family stress, a friend drama, a mistake, feeling left out), drop in a book. Keep going until the volunteer is clearly feeling it.
  3. SAY“In a 2023 conference talk, President Camille N. Johnson compared burdens to rocks in a backpack. Some are from our own sins, some from other people’s choices, and some just come from living in a hard world.” Ask: “Which of these rocks can a person take out on their own?”
  4. Let the volunteer set the backpack on a chair. Say: “Today Jesus has something to say about this backpack.”
🌪️ Volunteers only, and stop before it’s genuinely too heavy. Six or seven books is plenty.

Class screen: 🎒 What’s in the backpack you can’t see? · Name a burden. Add a rock.

No supplies? Do this instead

Instead of: A backpack and six to eight heavy books (or cans from the pantry)

  1. A volunteer stands and holds both arms straight out in front, palms up. Say: “Everybody carries a backpack you can’t see. What goes in it for people your age?”
  2. Each time someone names a burden, the class “places” an invisible rock in the volunteer’s hands. Just holding arms out gets heavy for real within a minute.
  3. SAY“In a 2023 conference talk, President Camille N. Johnson compared burdens to rocks in a backpack: some from our own sins, some from other people’s choices, some from living in a hard world.” Ask which ones a person can take out alone.
  4. Let the volunteer drop their arms. Say: “Today Jesus has something to say about this.”
2. Scripture

Three Invitations, Three Promises

5 min

Teams find exactly what Jesus asks and exactly what He promises in Matthew 11:28–30, and learn what a yoke really is.

  1. In teams of two or three, read Matthew 11:28–30. Say: “Find three things Jesus invites you to do and three things He promises. First team with all six stands.” (Come, take My yoke, learn of Me · I will give you rest, rest unto your souls, My yoke is easy and burden light.)
  2. Ask: “What’s a yoke?” Explain: a wooden beam that joins two oxen so they pull one load together. Ask: “If you’re yoked to Jesus, who’s the stronger ox?”
  3. SAY“We get yoked to Him through covenants: baptism, the sacrament every week, and for many of you, the temple. He doesn’t always take the load away. He pulls with us.” Share President Johnson’s words from “Jesus Christ Is Relief” (see Conference quotes).
  4. Teach Matthew 11:28 with the motions. Say it twice together, then have a youth lead it once with motions only.

Class screen: 🐂 Three invitations. Three promises. Find all six. · Matthew 11:28–30

No supplies? Do this instead

Instead of: Scriptures: Bibles, a quad, or Gospel Library on phones (one per team of two or three)

  1. Read Matthew 11:28–30 aloud from your scriptures or Gospel Library. Teams listen for three invitations and three promises; the first team to call out all six scores.
  2. Explain a yoke: a wooden beam joining two oxen so they pull one load together. Ask: “If you’re yoked to Jesus, who’s the stronger ox?”
  3. Explain that covenants yoke us to Him, and share President Johnson’s words from “Jesus Christ Is Relief” (see Conference quotes).
  4. Teach Matthew 11:28 with the motions. Say it twice, then have a youth lead it with motions only.
3. Wiggle break

Ox Team Relay

2 min

Pairs discover what it feels like to be yoked: you only move well when you move together.

  1. Pair up. Partners stand side by side and link inside elbows: that’s your yoke.
  2. Tap Timer. Two teams race: each pair walks in step to the far wall and back, then tags the next pair. If the link breaks, that pair starts over.
  3. Ask afterward: “What made it work?” (Matching steps, paying attention to your partner.) “What would it be like if your partner was way stronger and always knew the way?”
⏱️ Big Timer (a class game in the Gospel Sparks app)

Class screen: 🐂 Link up. Walk in step. Don’t break the yoke. · Walk, never run

4. Story

Story Drama: The Sabbath Showdown

5 min

Acting out the grainfield and the withered hand shows that the Savior’s Sabbath is about mercy and doing good, not piling on burdens.

  1. Hand out roles (tap Roles in Teach Mode). Everyone not cast is the Synagogue Crowd. You read Jesus’s words yourself.
  2. Read each scene and pause for the action. After scene 2, ask: “Were the disciples being irreverent, or were they just hungry?”
  3. After scene 5, have a youth read Matthew 12:12 aloud.
  4. After the last scene, ask: “The Pharisees knew every rule. What did they miss?” (Mercy, the man, and the Lord of the Sabbath Himself.)
🌪️ The Sheep in the Pit gets exactly three baas per scene. More than that and the sheep gets sheared (loses the part).

Class screen: 🎭 Hungry disciples, a trap, and a healed hand. · Matthew 12:1–14

5. Game

Do Well Draft

4 min

Teams compete to come up with real, specific ways a young person can “do well on the sabbath,” turning a list of don’ts into a list of dos.

  1. Two teams, one paper each. Say: “Matthew 12:12: it is lawful to do well on the Sabbath. You have ninety seconds to list things someone your age could actually do on Sunday that either help someone, bring you closer to God, or give you real rest.”
  2. Start the timer. When time’s up, teams read their lists one item at a time. Any idea both teams wrote is crossed off. Unique ideas score a point.
  3. Bonus point for the most specific idea (“text Grandma a picture of…” beats “be nice”).
  4. Ask: “Which of these would actually make next Sunday feel different?”
⏱️ Big Timer (a class game in the Gospel Sparks app)

Class screen: 📝 Ninety seconds. How many ways can you do well? · Help someone · draw close to God · real rest · Duplicates don’t count!

No supplies? Do this instead

Instead of: Paper and a pen for each team

  1. Two teams. Say: “Matthew 12:12: it is lawful to do well on the Sabbath. Name things someone your age could actually do on Sunday that help someone, bring you closer to God, or give real rest.”
  2. Teams alternate calling out one idea at a time. No repeats. A team that takes more than five seconds, or repeats an idea, loses the round.
  3. Play two quick rounds. Bonus point for the most specific idea.
  4. Ask: “Which of these would actually make next Sunday feel different?”
6. Talk it over

Rest Talk

4 min

Honest questions connect the yoke, the Sabbath and prayer to a young person’s real burdens.

  1. Circle up. A youth reads each question from your phone or tablet and picks who answers. Anyone can pass.
  2. Keep answers short so more voices get in, and add one honest answer of your own.
💬 Ask the class
  • Why do you think people your age try to carry everything alone instead of asking for help, from God or anyone else?
  • Jesus says His yoke is easy, but keeping covenants takes effort. How can both be true?
  • The Pharisees turned the Sabbath into a burden. What makes Sunday feel like rest instead of a list of rules?
  • A disciple watched Jesus pray and asked, “Teach us to pray.” What has helped your prayers feel less like a routine and more like real talking?

Class screen: 💬 Rest talk

7. Testimony

Hand Over One Rock

2 min

Each youth quietly chooses one burden to bring to the Savior this week, and hears the teacher’s witness that He pulls with us.

  1. Wait for real quiet. Say: “Think about your own backpack. Pick one rock you’ve been carrying alone. Don’t say it out loud.”
  2. Share your two-sentence story of the Savior lightening a burden, or a Sabbath that really felt like rest.
  3. Testify that Jesus Christ invites every tired person to come, that He is the stronger one in the yoke, and that He will give rest to our souls.
  4. Introduce the challenge and ask a youth to pray.

Class screen: 🪨 Which rock will you hand to Him this week? · Come unto me… and I will give you rest. Matthew 11:28

8. Game

Forehead Guess: Yokes and Sabbaths

4 minBONUS

A quick team review of the people, places and ideas from Matthew 11–12 and Luke 11.

  1. Tap Forehead Guess. One youth holds your phone or tablet on their forehead facing the class.
  2. Hard mode: clue-givers can’t say the word or any word in the hint.
  3. Teams alternate 45-second turns; add correct guesses to the lesson score.

Class screen: 🤔 Forehead Guess: no words from the hint!

9. Game

Scripture Showdown

5 minBONUS

A team quiz reviews the yoke, the Sabbath showdown and Jesus’s teachings on prayer.

  1. Keep the same teams. Tap Scripture Showdown.
  2. Read each question aloud; teams get ten seconds to decide, then point.
  3. Bonus point if the winning team can name the verse.

Class screen: 🏆 Scripture Showdown!

Story drama

The Sabbath Showdown

Matthew 12:1–14 ↗

Parts to hand out

  • The Hungry DisciplesTwo or three youth: walk through the field, pluck invisible grain, rub it in their hands and munch happily.
  • Pharisee 1The rule enforcer. Points dramatically: “That is not lawful!” Later asks the trap question in the synagogue.
  • Pharisee 2Nods along, takes notes on an invisible scroll, and whispers plans to catch Jesus.
  • The Man with the Withered HandHolds one hand curled against his chest, looks nervous, then stretches it out healed.
  • The Sheep in the PitSits on the floor in an imaginary pit and baas pitifully until someone (anyone) rescues it.
  • The Synagogue CrowdEveryone else: whisper, watch the trap unfold, gasp at the healing, and turn to stare as the Pharisees storm out.

Scenes

  1. 🌾 A Sabbath walk through the grainfields

    On a Sabbath day, Jesus and His disciples walked through a field of grain. The disciples were hungry, so they picked some heads of grain, rubbed them in their hands, and ate. Nothing fancy. Just a snack on a walk.

    🎬 The Hungry Disciples stroll, pluck, rub their hands together and munch. They offer some to the Crowd.

  2. 🚨 “Thy disciples do that which is not lawful!”

    Some Pharisees saw it and pounced. Their traditions counted picking and rubbing grain as harvesting work, and work was forbidden on the Sabbath. They told Jesus His disciples were breaking the law.

    🎬 Pharisee 1 points and gasps. Pharisee 2 scribbles furiously on an invisible scroll. The Disciples freeze mid-chew.

  3. 📜 Jesus answers from their own scriptures

    Jesus reminded them that King David once ate the holy bread from the house of God when he and his men were hungry, and that priests do work in the temple every Sabbath. Then He quoted the prophet Hosea: God wants mercy, not just sacrifice. And He told them the Son of man is Lord of the Sabbath.

    🎬 The Pharisees open their mouths to argue, then close them. Pharisee 2 slowly lowers the scroll.

  4. 🕍 A trap waiting in the synagogue

    Jesus went into their synagogue. A man was there with a withered hand, and the Pharisees were watching closely. They asked Jesus, Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath? They didn’t want to know. They wanted something to accuse Him with.

    🎬 The Man with the Withered Hand stands nervously in the middle. Pharisee 1 asks the trap question with a smug grin. The Crowd whispers.

  5. 🐑 What would you do for your sheep?

    Jesus asked them a question back. If your one sheep fell into a pit on the Sabbath, wouldn’t you grab it and pull it out? Of course you would. And isn’t a person worth much more than a sheep? So it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath.

    🎬 The Sheep in the Pit baas pitifully. A disciple hauls it out; it baas gratefully. The Pharisees look at their shoes.

  6. ✋ “Stretch forth thine hand”

    Then Jesus told the man to stretch out his hand. He did, and it was completely restored, just like the other one. On the Sabbath. In the synagogue. In front of everyone.

    🎬 The Man slowly uncurls his hand, stretches it out, flexes his fingers and stares at it. The Crowd gasps.

  7. 😠 The Pharisees walk out plotting

    You would think everyone would celebrate. Instead, the Pharisees went out and met together to plan how they could destroy Jesus. They had so many rules about the Sabbath that they missed the Lord of the Sabbath standing right in front of them.

    🎬 The Pharisees storm out, whispering. Everyone else turns and watches them go, then looks back at the healed man.

Key verse

Matthew 11:28 ↗
“Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”
In plain words: If you’re worn out and carrying too much, come to Jesus. He will give you rest.
🙌 “Come unto me” = wave someone toward you · “all ye that labour” = wipe your forehead · “and are heavy laden” = slump your shoulders like a heavy backpack · “and I will give you rest” = straighten up and let your shoulders drop, relaxed.

More verses

Matthew 11:29–30 ↗
“Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
In plain words: When we’re yoked to Jesus by covenant, He pulls with us, and the load gets lighter.
Matthew 12:12 ↗
“How much then is a man better than a sheep? Wherefore it is lawful to do well on the sabbath days.”
In plain words: People matter more than rules. The Sabbath is for doing good.
Luke 11:9 ↗
“Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.”
In plain words: Keep asking. Keep seeking. Keep knocking. God answers.
Luke 11:13 ↗
“how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?”
In plain words: If good parents give good gifts, Heavenly Father will definitely give His Spirit to people who ask.

Forehead Guess words17 words

  • 🐂 Yoke
  • 🎒 Heavy laden
  • 😌 Rest
  • 🕊️ Meek and lowly
  • 📅 Sabbath
  • 🌾 Grainfield
  • 🧐 Pharisees
  • 👑 King David
  • 🍞 Shewbread
  • ✋ Withered hand
  • 🐑 Sheep in a pit
  • 🕍 Synagogue
  • 🙏 Lord’s Prayer
  • 🚪 Knock
  • 🦂 Scorpion
  • ✨ Holy Spirit
  • 🤝 Covenant
Clues for each word
  • Yoke: Wooden beam joining two oxen
  • Heavy laden: Carrying way too much
  • Rest: What Jesus promises the weary
  • Meek and lowly: How Jesus described His heart
  • Sabbath: The Lord’s day
  • Grainfield: Where the hungry disciples snacked
  • Pharisees: Rule experts who accused the disciples
  • King David: Ate the holy bread when he was hungry
  • Shewbread: Holy bread in the house of God
  • Withered hand: Healed in the synagogue on the Sabbath
  • Sheep in a pit: You’d pull it out, even on the Sabbath
  • Synagogue: Where the trap was set
  • Lord’s Prayer: Jesus taught it when asked “teach us to pray”
  • Knock: Do it and it shall be opened
  • Scorpion: No father gives this instead of an egg
  • Holy Spirit: The gift Heavenly Father gives those who ask
  • Covenant: How we get yoked to Jesus
▶ Play Forehead GuessFull screen, 60-second timer, works on any phone.

Scripture Showdown9 questions

  1. What is a yoke?
    • A. A wooden beam joining two animals to pull together
    • B. A kind of bread
    • C. A shepherd’s staff
    Show answer

    ✅ A. A wooden beam joining two animals to pull together Yoked to Jesus, we pull with the strongest partner there is.

  2. Who does Jesus invite in Matthew 11:28?
    • A. Only the righteous
    • B. All who labour and are heavy laden
    • C. Only the Twelve
    Show answer

    ✅ B. All who labour and are heavy laden Everyone who is worn out and weighed down. That includes you.

  3. How did Jesus describe His heart in Matthew 11:29?
    • A. Strong and mighty
    • B. Proud and powerful
    • C. Meek and lowly
    Show answer

    ✅ C. Meek and lowly The One who pulls with us is gentle and humble.

  4. Why did the Pharisees complain in the grainfield?
    • A. The disciples picked grain on the Sabbath
    • B. The disciples stole sheep
    • C. Jesus was late
    Show answer

    ✅ A. The disciples picked grain on the Sabbath Matthew 12:2. Their traditions counted it as forbidden work.

  5. What did Jesus say we would all do for a sheep in a pit?
    • A. Wait until Monday
    • B. Pull it out, even on the Sabbath
    • C. Call a priest
    Show answer

    ✅ B. Pull it out, even on the Sabbath Matthew 12:11–12. And a person matters far more than a sheep.

  6. What did Jesus say is lawful on the Sabbath?
    • A. Nothing at all
    • B. Only sleeping
    • C. To do well
    Show answer

    ✅ C. To do well Matthew 12:12. The Sabbath is a day to do good.

  7. What did the Pharisees do right after the man’s hand was healed?
    • A. Rejoiced
    • B. Plotted to destroy Jesus
    • C. Asked to be baptized
    Show answer

    ✅ B. Plotted to destroy Jesus Matthew 12:14. They knew the rules but missed the Lord of the Sabbath.

  8. What did a disciple ask after watching Jesus pray?
    • A. “Lord, teach us to pray”
    • B. “Lord, why pray?”
    • C. “Lord, pray for us”
    Show answer

    ✅ A. “Lord, teach us to pray” Luke 11:1. Then Jesus taught them the Lord’s Prayer.

  9. What does Heavenly Father give to those who ask, in Luke 11:13?
    • A. Riches
    • B. The Holy Spirit
    • C. A stone
    Show answer

    ✅ B. The Holy Spirit Good parents give good gifts, and He gives the best one.

▶ Play Scripture ShowdownTeams take turns on one screen.

From general conference

“That the yoke is easy and the burden is light presumes we get in the yoke with the Savior, that we share our burdens with Him, that we let Him lift our load.”

— President Camille N. Johnson, “Jesus Christ Is Relief,” April 2023

Share in Three Invitations, Three Promises, right after explaining the yoke.

Read the talk ↗

Songs

  • Did You Think to Pray? Hymns, no. 140

    Luke 11 is Jesus teaching His disciples to pray; this hymn asks whether we remembered to. Find it ↗

  • The Lord Is My Shepherd Hymns, no. 108

    A hymn about the Lord giving rest to His sheep, and Jesus said a person is worth even more than a sheep. Find it ↗

This week’s challenge

Hand Over One Rock

Pick the one rock in your backpack you’ve been carrying alone and bring it to Heavenly Father in a real prayer, in Jesus Christ’s name, this week. Then plan one specific way to “do well” next Sunday (visit, text, serve, rest, study) and do it. Memorize Matthew 11:28 so it’s there when the backpack gets heavy.

Text the parents

This week in class we loaded a backpack with the burdens youth carry and learned what it means to take the Savior’s yoke (Matthew 11:28–30). We acted out the Pharisees accusing Jesus’s disciples on the Sabbath and Jesus healing a man’s withered hand, because it is lawful to do well on the Sabbath (Matthew 12:1–14). Ask your youth: what is one way our family could “do well” next Sunday?

📝 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?

🦂 Egg or Scorpion? · 4 min

  1. Put a small rock inside a bread bag, or draw a scorpion and tuck it in an egg carton. Let youth guess what’s inside.
  2. Read Luke 11:9–13. Ask: “What would you think of a parent who did this to a hungry kid?”
  3. Ask: “What does this tell you about how Heavenly Father answers when we ask for the Holy Spirit?”

🥤 Clean Outside, Dirty Inside · 4 min

  1. Show a cup that’s spotless outside but has something gross drawn or smudged inside. Ask: “Would you drink from this?”
  2. Read Luke 11:39 and Matthew 12:34–35. Ask: “How can someone look great on the outside online or at church but not be clean inside?”
  3. Ask: “What cleans the inside?” (Repentance, the sacrament, the Savior’s Atonement.)

🙏 Lord, Teach Us to Pray · 5 min

  1. Read Luke 11:1–4. List what Jesus included in His pattern: praising the Father, His kingdom, daily needs, forgiveness, protection from temptation.
  2. Read Luke 11:5–8, the friend knocking at midnight. Ask: “Why would Jesus tell a story about not giving up?”
  3. Each youth picks one part of the pattern to add to their prayers this week.

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 Youth 11–14 lessons