The Mesa Temple Christmas lights are back! After 5 years, we finally get to walk the beautiful grounds and see the lights at the temple. My family went on Sunday and I forgot about the wonderful displays they have depicting the birth of the Savior. As we were walking around, I thought I wish I knew what order to see the different displays. There are different displays sprinkled throughout the North side of the temple, but they don’t necessary go in an order. After we came home, I was pondering on what we were able to see and thought I should make a map for kids to use so they can follow the storyline of the birth of the Savior. Then I thought, what about a Where’s Waldo adventure to engage the little ones as they enjoy the lights and messages about Jesus Christ.
This is what I came up with! On December 26th the church will begin to study the New Testament again for Come Follow Me and we just launched our video series. The first lesson will be about Matthew 7:7 Ask and ye shall receive. Well, I included a fun Scavenger Hunt for the kids to do at the temple. It is called “If Ye Seek, Ye Shall Find!” At every display there are three objects on display that the kids can look for. When they find the match they trace the circle, color the picture, or stamp it! This is the perfect way to engage the kids! You can walk the temple grounds in the order that things happened or just go through it however you want.
FREE Temple Lights Scavenger Hunt
I created two printables that you can choose from. One is a booklet that has the scripture that is on the plaque, QR code to the video, and quote. All of these items are on the board too, but now you can take it to go! The middle section has the seek and find part as well as a map in the center of the booklet!. Just print on cardstock or regular paper, double-sided, hole punch on the folded side and use yarn or string to tie it together!
We also made a tri-fold that is easy to just print and go! We hope your children love the temple and enjoy this printable. Please share this page with all your Arizona friends! If you can’t make it to the temple or you do not live in the area, you can still join us! Watch our Virtual Tour as we take you through the temple grounds! Download the printable and find the items with us.
Best Time To Go
We arrived at the temple about 40 minutes before sunset. There wasn’t very many people there plus it allowed us to see the displays really well. Then we went into the Visitor Center and on our way back to our car, we walked through the grounds again to see the beautiful lights. By this time, it was crowded around the signs so it worked out perfectly. Next time, I would bring a box of donuts and hot chocolate to snack on in the car afterwards!
Where to Start
Start at #1 and learn about the prophet Isaiah and then finish at #10 the New Star. It is close to the Visitor Center so when you are done looking at lights, you can go see the 100 Nativities from around the world on display. Don’t forget to see the beautiful chalk art wall in the Visitor Center with the nativity scene. It is near the replica of the temple in 3D. The artist that painted the murals in the temple also did the chalkboard art!
Please Share!
If you use these printable, please tag us on social media @MTCforKids. We would love to see your kids using them! If you need more ideas to help Light the World this Christmas, check out this page full of service ideas and more free printables!
Mesa Temple at Night
Here is a quick video as we walked around the grounds again before leaving! We hope you have a very Merry Christmas!
Gospel Videos for Kids
Here is a video we made about the importance of the temple!