[Jenny SmithParticipant]

Here’s a quote by Howard W Hunter about posting a picture of the temple in your home:

“Let us be a temple-attending and a temple-loving people. Let us hasten to the temple as frequently as time and means and personal circumstances allow. Let us go not only for our kindred dead, but let us also go for the personal blessing of temple worship, for the sanctity and safety which is provided within those hallowed and consecrated walls. The temple is a place of beauty, it is a place of revelation, it is a place of peace. It is the house of the Lord. It is holy unto the Lord. It should be holy unto us.

“Let us share with our children the spiritual feelings we have in the temple. And let us teach them more earnestly and more comfortably the things we can appropriately say about the purposes of the house of the Lord. Keep a picture of a temple in your home that your children may see it. Teach them about the purposes of the house of the Lord. Have them plan from their earliest years to go there and to remain worthy of that blessing.”

http://lds.org/ensign/print/2010/10/a-temple-motivated-people?lang=eng&clang=eng

See also the following links:

http://lds.org/general-conference/2009/04/sacred-homes-sacred-temples

http://lds.org/general-conference/1985/10/born-of-god

http://lds.org/general-conference/1999/10/home-family-and-personal-enrichment

http://lds.org/general-conference/2004/10/choose-you-this-day

[Jenny SmithParticipant]

We don’t do stake-wide scripture chases here. I didn’t like chasing when I was in Seminary, but I think the class of seminary students I teach would like it, however.

Scripture chasing is one of those things that engages some students and not others. Plus, different teachers emphasize scripture memorization to different degrees. My seminary teacher didn’t teach the scripture masteries at all, so when we went to stake scripture chases, it seemed like a boring waste of time. My current class is excited to pass of the scripture masteries, and I think they would be more engaged. It depends on the students interest and the teacher’s emphasis.

Could you consider operating your scripture mastery day like a carnival? Different booths could have different activities, some competitive, some not. Teams could build the Tower of Babel out of blocks while someone reads the story from the scriptures. Tallest tower built in that time wins. One booth could make a recipe like “Jericho Bread” from CookingWithTheBible.com. Another booth could make scripture mastery posters. Groups could compete to organize wordstrips with the names of the books in the Old Testament first. Chases could run throughout by announcement: “Seniors come to the stage to enter our scripture chase at 11:15.”

I think with a little creativity you could come up with lots of ideas that would fit all types of interests and skills.

[Jenny SmithParticipant]

There’s no set rule. I think it’s easiest if the secretary makes the assignments and then gives them with the agenda to the person conducting. But like I say, there’s no set rule. Operate according to what your RS president instructs.

[Jenny SmithParticipant]

I don’t know of any ready-made cards, but you can check out this list of little ideas for contacting less-actives:

http://www.mormonshare.com/node/328/encouraging-less-active-members

[Jenny SmithParticipant]

For temple candy molds try:
http://www.bakerscandc.com/

And

http://www.kitchenkneads.com/catalog/product/314

[Jenny SmithParticipant]

Regarding special needs adaptation of the personal progress program, I’d check first with LDS Ability:

http://www.ldsability.org/programs/mutual

They have a great community and can help in lots of ways. See also the following links:

http://lds.org/disability/faq/how-to?lang=eng

“After careful consideration, parents and leaders may modify the [personal progress] program to help young women with special needs. For example, they may consider the needs of young women with disabilities or educational limitations, young women who join the Church or become active in Young Women after age 16, and young women who are not Church members. When making any changes or exceptions for one person, leaders should consider the effect those changes may have on others.” (http://lds.org/handbook/handbook-2-administering-the-church/young-women/10.7?lang=eng#107)

I would also suggest working with the child’s parents to adapt the program to suit this young woman’s needs. Many of the requirements for personal progress may not need any adaptation. There is a section at the end of the personal progress section where you can write your own experience, and I expect that the parent and child working on personal progress together could create meaningful experiences that would fit within each value category.

Thanks for asking about special needs personal progress — please share any experiences you have so that others can draw on them, too.

[Jenny SmithParticipant]

You are welcome to link to the LDS burial here.

I probably wouldn’t consider linking to a funeral home on that page, however, you could submit your link by following the directions here:

http://www.mormonshare.com/lds-business

[Jenny SmithParticipant]

There isn’t a good way to do this from the Church’s website. LDS.About.com editor Rachel Bruner has created an index that should help you here:

http://lds.about.com/library/gallery/clipart/blclipart_gallery_subindex.htm

[Jenny SmithParticipant]

They’re also on the back of the scripture mastery book mark found here:

https://si.lds.org/bc/seminary/content/library/student-resources/ot/old-testament-bookmark_eng.pdf

[Jenny SmithParticipant]

Try the instructions in the Seminary student guide here:

http://seminary.lds.org/manuals/doctrine-and-covenants-and-church-history-seminary-student-study-guide/dc-ssg-1-iv.asp

[Jenny SmithParticipant]

One other note on YW birthdays, if you create a custom YW birthday calendar in the new calendar program at lds.org, it will show up in your calendar within the LDS tools app. Then you’ll see the birthdays alongside your other church activities and it will be able to be printed with your YW calendar.

You can find out how I did this here:
http://www.mormonshare.com/forum/suggestions-for-using-the-new-ldsorg-calendar-for-auxilaries

[Jenny SmithParticipant]

Birthday information is private, but you can use the LDS Tools app to track this information straight from MLS.
https://tech.lds.org/wiki/LDS_Tools_application

Go to the iTunes store to download LDS Tools. It’s official and free.

If you’d like to add birthdays, you can add them in the Notes section on the individual records.

Create a custom group to get to the individuals’ contact information quickly.

[Jenny SmithParticipant]

Thanks for asking about LDS funeral customs.

This is a very kind gesture, and I’m sure it would be greatly appreciated by any family, Mormon or Catholic.

So, yes, totally appropriate.

[Jenny SmithParticipant]

Thanks, Didi! Can you tell I don’t speak Portuguese? (and apparently I don’t know the what next year is either) Fixed them here:

http://www.mormonshare.com/lds-clipart/choose-the-right-logo

Please let me know if you see other errors.

[Jenny SmithParticipant]

Paula A reported these awards on the Facebook page:

Our stake has the President’s Award for attendance and reading and 100 percent SM.

At oct and April conf we also gave mini prizes for noting SM used by speakers.

Honors students get 80% (?) attendance, read 15 minutes a day for 6 months and know the SM.

We would assign each student a SM scripture and let them make up a clue or situation.

Last four years a few of us worked on and challenged class to memorize the SM!

I would also use the questions in the New Era and ask the students to write an answer using scriptures from present and past years if possible.

We also memorized the first pres and quorum of the 12. Fridays were always a review learning game and service activity day.

[Author]

Posts