Oh my goodness, this is such an in-depth question!! As I read over the lesson outline and pondered which quote to letter, I found so many different spins you could take on this topic. I also saw a lot of negative statements, and while I'm not blind to problems that exist, I wanted to find a positive message to letter in a quote.
I finally settled with this quote from Carole M. Stephens. I love it because it reminds us that we are all one big family. There is so much diversity in this world, and everyone in it is loved and cherished by God. As we minister, we invite everyone to the fold as well.
I'll feature this on Instagram a little sooner to the lesson as a reminder, just wanted it to be up and available!
Be sure to check out the acct and give it a follow. 😁 We're like just just starting out on that platform, so don't judge the few posts that are up there, but I've been planning out lots of cute lil things to post and there's going to be some good stuff up there! There may be a few shop items sprinkled in, but there's mostly going to be lots of inspirational quotes and scriptures.
I converted it into a 8.5 x 11 printable, which you can get for free here.
Update: 😪sadly, due to quarantine, I had to take this product off the shop. It isn’t virtual-friendly, but if you are interested, 😂message me on Etsy and I can bring it back as a custom order for you. Thank you!
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Aaaah this has been in the works for SO long and I am so excited to share it with you!
This was such a fun product to create last year, and it was the first one that got my (back then) brand new Etsy shop on the map and on some people's radar as a place for beautifully designed Latter-Day Saint teaching resources.
It has been such a year of transformation and growth since that shakily hand-lettered scribble-filled packet full of doodles and good ideas, design-wise!
As I learned (and continue to always learn) the art of graphic design this year, I knew that any second try would yield better results than the original teach the theme printables, but I was worried that I wouldn't be able to come up with fun activities, games, and messages again.
But inspiration and great ideas came (no doubt with a lil heavenly help 😂) and I can truly tell y'all that this is a pretty amazing packet! I ended up totaling the pages to see if it was a number worth bragging about and the calculator said 46 (If I ever claim to have done math without one, don't trust my findings!) and... I think that's a good number!
I'll let the pictures serve as previews of all the good stuff inside and explain a little more about everything you'll get with your purchase below!
This picture makes an... attempt to convey everything in this packet. There is a lot that I couldn't fit on one little Pinterest picture, but I feel like it also does a good job of showing the theme, which was sooooo fun to create!
Officially, it's "The Search for Spiritual Treasure," and aesthetically, it's where the Book of Mormon tropical fun scene, a treasure hunt vibe, and the faintest hint of a pirate look meet. It has super fun colors, and it is gender neutral so you can use it with YM & YW.
Oh yeah ofc also there are so many ways to use this! Our classic ward activity is this super fun kickoff night party thing, but we have made sure to design it so that it works as a BYD, 5th Sunday lesson, or fun girls camp experience. And it has also been created in a way that has an option for the youth to lead!
I love this because I feel like lately in the church there has been such an emphasis on...
-revelation. Think President Nelson -- "It will not be possible to survive spiritually without it" etc, and some, myself included, struggle at times to know exactly what revelation is, how to receive it, and like, will God ever talk to me?? Revelation is the heart of what this entire activity is about.
There are three "units" (which aren't crazy long or anything, that's just what we're going to call it) which are all about seeking, receiving, and acting on personal revelation.
-the youth leading things. This is so that your youth can teach the entire lesson. Invite your class presidency to pick one of the five sections and let him or her run with it. I've got enough structure to get the youth started, but enough leeway that he or she can make each section their own. The included planning pages and checklist will help youth and adult leaders coordinate for a smooth and successful event.
-not watering everything down. When I teach, (and sometimes in general) I tend to always want to make everything one giant party. If it's not fun, why force people through it? If something's boring, why don't we just start having a more interesting discussion?
But I've had to learn that there has to be a balance between super boring mega nap lectures and little kid parties when we teach the gospel.
While making things fun has a great effect, we also don't want to make it at a level that they are spiritually way past at where they are, not able to feel the Spirit, and not learning anything, and it probably is harder for people to come out and say "Um y'all we gotta be a lil more serious" instead of "SIESTA TO FIESTA, NOW!!"
This packet maintains a good balance between moments of fun and learning and moments of stillness and learning, if that makes any sort of sense.
As I said before, there's the 3 teaching units! I also added in the closer because having 3 items wasn't super working aesthetically; in reality there are actually 5 parts to this: the introduction, unit 1, unit 2, unit 3, and a fun closer, which have all been carefully created to be fun and spiritually sustaining; I explain about them in more detail below.
It's all about revelation y'all! This may seem random or strange, but as we discuss in the packet, revelation is at the heart of Nephi's famous words. Nephi didn't always understand why Lehi did what he was doing, or follow along blindly with his father's will. Which is no less noble of him and I think actually makes him a much more relatable figure, which is good.
So how did he get from an average teen to the big BOM hero this activity is all about? He sought personal revelation. It's nearly impossible to understand what's going on with Nephi with the "go & do" phrase, even with the whole verse included.
What is Nephi going to go and do? Yes, I know it's "what is commanded" but what is commanded? Where? When? Why? How? All you need to do is back up a few verses to be enlightened about the situation.
As any person would be, Nephi is confused about the situation. "What's going on with Dad? Why do we have to move into the wilderness? I kinda like how things are now."
His sibs feel the same, although it seems that the L bros are lil more vocal about their concerns. But what sets Nephi apart from them and puts him on a trajectory to be great? Again! As we read in 1 Nephi 2-3, he sought personal revelation. The Spirit witnesses to him that it is true, it is real, and that he should listen to his dad.
So why is that personal revelation catchy crazy church buzzword what this packet is all about?
It's what Nephi's faith journey and personal journey (and our own journeys) are all about, and it's an important topic to learn.
That pic just details the organization of the packet a lil. There are lots of pages of teaching ideas, checklists, etc, that aren't the most graphic to be displayed but are key to creating a great activity experience.
Seek it! Yay! If the intro activity is good, you'll have a better chance of keeping the youths' attention, at least, that's my logic and experience! People often set their expectations through beginning experiences, and I wanted to be sure that this activity had a good one! And so, it all starts with a game.
This was soooo fun to make, and it's Book of Mormon themed. It's based off Spot It, super fun, super aesthetic and cute, just love how this game turned out. It was hard to create and engineer and everything, which makes it being completed that much more rewarding.
And ofc there's a devotional for each section including this part to tie things in. But I wanted the very first thing they did to be smth super fun.
And we're on unit 1! So fun! There was a lot of deep studying and poring over recent remarks from General Authorities, and I don't want to claim that they are all from the most recent one, bc I'm not 100% sure that every! single! quote! and teaching point came from there, but a lot really are. The fed but not nourished deer have a cameo, for example.
After I rounded up a ton of relevant quotes I had to turn it into a fun activity, and I thought, what could be more appropriate for this topic than a treasure hunt?
With the use of the giant treasure map (which is available as a poster or 4 8.5 x 11 pages) and special clues embedded within each important quote and lesson about seeking revelation, youth will gather information on where to find the spiritual treasure in the room.
*Also, this is important, I'm not going to spoil where it is/what the clues lead to bc that would be lame, but it's not a church-specific object where the treasure will be hidden, it's a household item that anyone and all church buildings have. You can do this activity anywhere!*
Unit 2 might be the climax of this whole thing, it's sooo good and I love how it turned out! Not to say that the other items aren't great, but receiving personal revelation is super important and a big skill to learn. You can't claim that God never talks to you if you don't know the ways God talks. As Albert Einstein said, (and I promise this is related!) "Everyone is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid."
It reminds me of the video about light, and I couldn't include it bc it had some topics that are fine for seminary age kids but might be a lil sketch to bring up with the little kids that are in the youth program nowadays... anyways, it's below, and it talks about how this dude thinks that if God is real, He will show Himself to the dude, and yeah, spoiler, it doesn't happen. He learns that revelation is a process requiring patience, something beautiful that happens over long periods of time as we attempt to step into God's glorious light.
Also a lil sidetrack here, but this LDSLiving article about when you can't receive revelation is soooooo good and super related to this topic!
Bottom line, revelation and receiving it are hot topics and they are heavily covered in this module with a scripture chase! It's pretty simple, but it's been dressed up a bit with cute printables.
But it's also like super powerful tho. The foundation of this was taken from Preach My Gospel, so that we knew that all of these examples were doctrinally sound, especially because they cited where they came from in the scriptures. This is a super great section!
And now it's time to act! This is a game that is designed to get the youth talking and having fun as they discuss ways to act in faith as demonstrated by Nephi's example in the theme. I really don't want to spoil what goes on in this one, but it's fun, it's a game, there's a ball 😂 as you can see above, and it includes quotes and connections to the recent General Conference.
And then we have a great closer! Classic, I know, to end with an invitation to act, but that's what it's really all about, right? "The gospel of Christ invites us to become something," Dallin H. Oaks said. I feel like that's actually a little harsh, not his idea, just the way it was worded.
We already are something amazing, a beautiful child of God! I think the point he was trying to make is that the gospel invites us to become someone new, which is a constant challenge and opportunity. This closing activity connects the Book of Mormon, goal setting, the theme, all sorts of fun stuff, and there's a super cute tag for treats.
I think I've put out plenty of information about everything in this packet, maybe even more than most care to hear, but, gotta fully answer all questions! Now onto the next big project.
Hey, y’all. I am here with another quote for CHRISTMAS! Whoop whoop! Just loving this holiday season, and how this adorable quote ended up turning out.
This is such a beautiful quote, y’all, and it reminds us about love, the prime motivator of everything God does for us.
He teaches and leads with love, not Pharisaical contempt and judgment.
Out of love, He gave us the commandments and guidelines that keep us safe.
We love Him because He first loved us, and knows us — all our faults, quirks, temptations and issues — and loves us anyway.
But this is maybe a pretty big final reason that Christmas is all about love. You know y’all know John 3:16.
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
It’s almost like sending a child of yours into a dangerous mission, hoping they don’t die.
Heavenly Father sent His Son Jesus, to die, atone for our sins, and save us all.
The first part of the Christmas miracle is the beautiful knowledge that Heavenly Father sent the Savior, to condescend (which means to dwell below usual conditions, not to be condescending as we usually think of it, I’ve learned) to our level, to have our bodies and our trials and live in our fallen world, with sickness, trial, evil, and death.
He knew He was sending His Son to be hated, scourged, humiliated, persecuted, bullied, and ultimately, betrayed and unjustly put to an agonizing death as He was crucified for us all.
But ultimately, it didn’t just happen. It was a choice. It wasn’t even Jesus saying “I will go and do” (which is no less noble at all) but Him saying “Father, send I” as He volunteered to be the Savior, and later saying “Thy will be done” before the Atonement, an unimaginable sacrifice and experience. And why? Because our Savior loves us.
It was Heavenly Father’s choice as well, to let Him go, let His son go to Earth despite knowing everything that would befall Him there.
But then again, the birth of Christ would mean nothing if He didn’t go on to live, faithfully accepting His mortal mission, “growing in wisdom, favor with God, favor with man” and obediently following His Father through His mortal reign and ministry.
John 15:13 says, “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.”
We celebrate not just that He was born, but that He is the Savior, and through His sacrifice, we can have eternal life. And that is the joy of this season.
I wanted to create a lil something to help families incorporate this new program in their lives, and I thought free printables going with a little family kick-off party could be super fun to share!
I organized 3 ways to use the printables. The FHE packet contains everything I created, and other versions are abbreviated for various needs.
FHE Packet & Plans: 1. Complete the "year in review" printable page. 2. Complete the "Goal Fails" activity. 3. Read the New Era article from President Ballard or view and discuss the summary posters. 4. As a family, complete Goal Planning pages and discuss what everyone is hoping to do this year. Children/Youth Activity Packet & Plans:
1. Complete the "Goal Fails" activity. 2. As a primary children/youth group, complete Goal Planning pages. Hand them out to the children/youth in place of or alongside the Children/Youth guidebooks, which they are meant to serve as a companion for. Personal Goal Setting Packet & Plans:
Read the article "Go for It" by President Ballard (March 2004 New Era) and complete the reflection and goal planning pages.
If you love the packet, please follow the blog on Pinterest! It just takes a click and there is lots of good stuff rounded up over there. Best of luck y’all!
I love this quote, especially how it alludes to the true reason we celebrate Christmas. A lot of things have been added, but it when you strip all of that away, it is about Him.
I love taking things and relating them to the gospel! Here are some symbols that you wouldn’t think of as being religious, accompanied with their tie ins.
1. Candy Cane
“Look at the candy cane. What do you see? Stripes that are red, like the blood shed for me. White is for my Savior, sinless and pure. ‘J’ is for Jesus, my Lord, that’s for sure! Turn it around and a staff you’ll see. Jesus is my Shepherd, was born for me.”
Ok. I kind of hate that poem, but it does prove the point! The reason I strongly dislike it is that the grammar is all over the place... you can’t just say, “is my Shepherd, was born for me.” And 50K people have made their own little printables without giving any credit to whoever wrote it ... whoever it was... but it’s fine. I shall calmly contain my rage! 😇
The candy cane looks similar to a shepherd’s staff, reminding us of the Savior this holiday is all about. He is the good shepherd because He will - and does - leave the 99 to find the 1, pick us up on His shoulders and safely carry us home. I made a gift idea about it here.
2. Elves
“I’m part of prep and landing, an elite unit of elves getting houses ready, around the world, for the big guy’s arrival.”
Y’all! Have you seen Prep and Landing? It is SUCH a gospel metaphor, and the plot is sooo similar to “The Best Two Years.” If you haven’t seen either one, stay with me.
There are two elves - Wayne and Lenny - in this movie. Lenny is an excited newcomer, but he’s dumb (“This isn’t the language they taught me at the MTC!” Right?) Wayne is tired of his job. (Lenny: Don’t you even care? Wayne: I’ve been working Prep and Landing 227 years. Believe me, the thrill is gone.”) He’s been out in the field for the while! And his responsibility has lost its spark.
But through an experience he realizes why they do what they do, the Christmas spirit returns, and he joyfully returns to his noble duties. I love both of these movies sooo much!
3. Christmas cookies
“Everyone is kneaded out of the same dough but not baked in the same oven."
— Yiddish proverb
So how is she gonna tie this one in? hahaha just you wait. Ok.
So there’s the dough, and what do you do with it next? You roll it out and then cut out the cookies.
Jeremiah 18:6 tells us, “Behold, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are ye in mine hand.” While the Lord is specifically talking to the House of Israel here, that doesn’t mean that it doesn’t apply to us as a metaphor.
He is in the details in our lives, and the circumstances we are given, these refiners fires, allow us to grow closer to God and what, who He wants us to become.
*These printables are my big gift to y'all for 2020! They took awhile to create and I was tempted to sell them, but I realized that there are lots of people selling things like this for Come, Follow Me + I wanted there to be a beautiful freebie available. I hope it helps you!*
So excited to share resources to study the Book of Mormon this year! In your free Book of Mormon binder kit, you will find...
•come follow me reading schedule
•cover page & spine
•daily study page
•weekly study page
•dividers
•four focuses
•sabbath notes
These are ALL there to help you enrich your personal study + explained in more detail below!
Binder Accessories: Cover, Tabs, Spine
The binder needs a cute cover + prints to help you get excited to study! 👩🏻🎨 LOVING the tropical vibe to match the theme this year. ✨
Weekly Study Worksheet
How will you divide the reading for the week? What approaches will work for you + your family? This page gives you space to chart your own scripture study course. ✍
Sabbath Notes
Having your gospel notes in one place 📝, along with scripture study insights for reference during sacrament meeting talk helps the study from the week + home centered church come all together!
Four Focuses
This is a fun + simple method great for visual learners, doodlers 👩🏻🎨 + anyone a little short on time.
1. On Sunday, open your manual + turn to the chapter for the upcoming week.
2. Look at the section "Ideas for Individual Study" with attached reading segments, etc.
3. Choose four of these ideas as your "focus" for the week.
4. Read the references + summarize each focus in one of its boxes.
Here is an example page for the first week, "Introductory Pages of the Book of Mormon."
Come Follow Me Reading Schedule
All of the Come, Follow Me readings this year at a quick + easy glance! I hope this cute chart helps remind you to study + what to study! 📚
QUICK TUTORIAL
Take action! ⚡ Once your pages are ready, follow these steps to put them into an awesome binder for yourself.
SUPPLIES
-Free binder inserts 🎁
-Scissors ✂
-Paper cutter 📄
-Binder 📘
-Hole punch ⭕
-Tape ✔
PROCESS
-Insert the front + back cover (reading schedule) + spine. hand
-Hole punch all binder inserts
-Cut out the tabs + paste them to first pages they go with.
Are you ready for the freebie? I got your link coming up soon. 💜 Before you download & dash, I just want to make sure you know this is NOT the only resource I have to make your life easier as a busy Latter-Day Saint? To see & have all my free resources at your fingertips, follow me on Pinterest! 📌Now here's the promised PDF in English + Español. Happy studying!
Merry Christmas! I hope these gospel Christmas quotes help brighten your season. Print them & add some Christ-centered Christmas spirit in your home!
1. Heavenly Holiday Hymns
To be honest, I love the buildup to Christmas even more than the day itself. And a huge part of that is the music! I didn’t letter all of this quote, but it went on to say that “Someday we will sing those songs with the hosts of heaven.” 😇 Y’all. Y’ALL! Take your expectations of heaven and raise the roof cuz President Eyring has told us we are going to be singing Christmas songs up there!! 🙌 🎶
2. Celebrate Traditions, Stay Centered in Christ
I love Elder Holland’s take on our spiritual & secular Christmas traditions. Rudolph, Santa & Frosty are fun! 🎅🏻 But let’s also always remember & focus on not only what but Who 🙏✝️ preceded them.
3. Reason For the Season
The Spirit helps confirm to our hearts many truths, one of this which is how crucial the Savior is to His day, our salvation, and everything, really, as President Monson describes.
4. Story of Love
It doesn’t take lots of searching to see what’s behind such a sacrifice for us. John 3:16 and President Eyring both talk about the love that allowed Christmas — our Savior’s birth — to occur. God’s love. And God is love, which I feel so strongly on this holiday.
Get the Prints
I got your link coming up soon. 💜 Before you download & dash, I just want to make sure you know this is NOT the only resource I have to make your life easier as a busy Latter-Day Saint? To see & have all my free resources at your fingertips, follow me on Pinterest! 📌Now here's the promised PDF. Merry Christmas again! I hope this season you feel God's love for you. 🥰
Hey, y’all! It’s the Christmas season — yet again — and I’m so excited to share this hand-lettered quote. It’s from Jeffrey R. Holland, and it teaches 2 basic things:
"All (of these fun Christmas symbols) are welcome. While we can be in the danger of forgetting the Christ in Christmas sometimes, these additional symbols of Christmas in and of themselves aren’t always bad. They can even be turned into gospel analogies, as I display here. This movie “Why do we call it Christmas” for kids is SO great for explaining all of the reasons behind the name Christmas, the tree, its time in the year, who St. Nick was and how he turned into Santa Claus, and more -- all in a not boring way! What matters is the results it brings to our lives -- by the fruits ye shall know them, right?
An entirely different spin could be taken off of this quote if desired. Sometimes we can get so stressed and overwhelmed at the holidays — all this shopping to do, decorating, baking, keeping up traditions and habits, and everything there seems to beg to be done. But it’s a gentle reminder that all those things are optional - you are choosing to participate in these traditions and getting the credit for doing so, but you can also choose to eliminate ones that are doing more harm than good.
Just a few things to think about! Merry Christmas y’all!
The gift going with it is twinkle lights! (That brand is the one I used/have tested.) About them, it says,
“Here are some twinkle lights.
They sparkle in the night.
They give off warmth and radiance as they shine bright.
Although these lights are tiny,
These lights on the string,
They unite and they share light.
This Christmas let’s all #LightTheWorld and live like our Savior, our King.
When we work together we can do great things.
Twinkle lights are just sooo cute and a great gift for Christmas! You can get the poems, there are 4 to a page, as gift tags, here. Don’t forget to check out my other #LightTheWorld resources and follow me on Pinterest!
Hi! My name is Claire and I'm so glad you stopped by. I’m a follower of Christ, proud Latter-Day Saint and graphic designer doing what I love. I started this site when I was in middle school & now I'm a college student at BYU.
I share beautifully designed inspirational printables on the blog and printables for young women by a young woman in my shop, to help make Latter-Day Saints’ lives easier.
beacons.ai/myldsprintspiration
The products, resources, and services offered by MyLDSPrintspiration are not affiliated with, endorsed, or approved by the Intellectual Reserve or the Church of Jesus Christ or Latter-Day Saints. All opinions expressed are solely that of MyLDSPrintspiration.
