I’m writing this post directly to my family. But I like you readers so much I wanted to share it with you too. : ) ------------ Guys, I want you to join me in a brand new family tradition. It’s called The 12 Days of Christ. It’s fairly simple. Each day for 12 days leading up to Christmas, we’ll have one person share a scripture/story/testimony about Christ. These will help us to focus on the real purpose of ...

My little sister is about to go to the temple for the first time. I have a strong testimony of the temple. But when I went the first time, I was shocked—why hadn't anyone helped me prepare for this?  I want to make sure there are no glaring gaps in my sister's preparation. So I'm looking for problem points. I have two questions for you. Please leave a comment below—even one sentence will do: What were your ...

Here's a simple trick you can use in Elders Quorum or Sunday School: I'm a big geek—let's just get that out in the open. I'm also a big fan of Google Presentations. In fact, sometimes I think I can't teach without them. I made an awesome slide show for my lesson on The Holy Grail (Charity). But I needed a way for the class to see it. I started by writing the short URL on the board: goo.gl/UpUiD I asked them ...

Here's how we've organized our Elders Quorum: We have a Google Sites site, and it links to all the important documents people might need.   After the home page, we have a page for the sacrament. There's a Google Spreadsheet embedded in the page that can be edited by anyone on the web. So our Elders use that page to easily sign up for preparing, blessing, and passing the sacrament. Our Sacrament Coordin ...

A picture's worth a thousand words. But I'll throw in a few words to boot, just for good measure. Did you find this helpful? Have any similar tricks or ideas? Let us know in the comments! ...

This is something I learned from an Elder on my mission. Though, ironically, I didn't try it till I'd been home for several years. Here's how it's done: Print the lyrics of a hymn (or a scripture you want to memorize). Make sure it's small enough that it will fit in a sandwich baggie. Put it inside a sandwich baggie (with the opening on the bottom: because the seal is heavier, this keeps it from peeling off ...

20 seconds. Seriously. This will take you 20 seconds. (FYI: THIS IS AN UPDATE. TreeSeek launched a new website that makes it super easy to do this same process.) Go to CreateFan.com. Click Login, and enter your FamilySearch/LDS.org credentials. Click Create. Did you want more steps? Because that's it. Seriously. It's amazingly simple. I love it. One cool thing: it now shows the birth date. It still doesn't ...

Okay, yes, I'm promoting my own website. Hear me out. It's launching today. It's called HelamanGallery.com. I'm offering FREE artwork. There are wallpapers like the ones posted above--pretty standard. But here's the cool part: You can also download 5x7s (that don't have watermarks). Then you upload those files to Walmart Photo, Costco Photo, or wherever. Next you buy a frame, and voilà!--inexpensive artwork ...

"Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication." —Leonardo da Vinci Here's a template for a sacrament meeting program. I like this one because it's simple. Just click USE THIS TEMPLATE, replace the names, hymns, and hymn numbers, and then click print. If you have other designs, please posts links to them in the comments. We'd love to see some creative and easy templates for ward program designers to use. P.S. I ...

Here's a quick way to remind yourself that it's Fast Sunday. Every month. For the rest of your life. In Google Calendar, you can set an event to repeat (check the box). Then you can add a reminder (like text or email) to show up 1 day (24 hours) in advance. That way you'll never forget that it's time to start fasting. ...