The Temple

With so many temples under construction or being renovated, my heart is turned towards the meaning of temples in our lives. I love this quote from President Packer:

May we each dedicate ourselves anew to the service of the Lord. 

Say the word temple. Say it quietly and reverently. Say it over and over again. Temple. Temple. Temple. Add the word holy. Holy Temple. Say it as though it were capitalized, no matter where it appears in the sentence. 

Temple. One other word is equal in importance to a Latter-day Saint. Home. Put the words holy temple and home together, and you have described the house of the Lord! 

May God grant that we may be worthy to enter there and receive the fullness of the blessings of His priesthood. (Boyd K. Packer, "The Temple, the Priesthood," Ensign, May 1993, 20-21)

In the March 2011 New Era, the story "Breaking New Ground" by Breanna Bennett Olaveson really touched me. Breanna describes how she was able to attend the groundbreaking of the Rexburg Idaho Temple. As she stood there reflecting on the ceremony, she "realized they were doing more than moving dirt around. The hardened ground needed to be softened before there could be room for the temple, and [she] knew [she] could learn from that." She decided that her life needed some changes so she could be ready for the temple when it was finished. Breanna started to better herself by finding new friends who made better choices and reading her scriptures more regularly.

In February of 2008, Breanna was able to attend the temple's dedication.

She said, "...I didn’t feel like the same person. As I sat beside my parents in the newly completed Rexburg Idaho Temple, I reflected on how far I’d come in the years since the groundbreaking. I sang the hymn “The Spirit of God” (Hymns, no. 2), and I knew that unimaginable blessings still awaited me in that holy house.

"The temple was ready and dedicated to the Lord. And so was I."

 

Whether we live near a temple that is being dedicated soon or not, may be strive to align our lives with God's and prepare to be worthy to enter Heavenly Father's Holy House, today.

Sincerely,

Sal

Forgiveness

In Doctrine and Covenants the Lord tells us that we are to forgive all men and that the Lord will choose whom He forgives. Some posts back I wrote of a sister at church who had hit my daughter. About a month later I was in Nursery with my son and she came in to assist. I went to tell her that she was okay not to sub, but before I could get more than her name out of my mouth, she shut the door firmly in my face. That hurt more than I can put into words. Since then I have cried for strength to really forgive and allow the Spirit to move her into forgiveness as well. Last Sunday she gave my husband a bag of scraps left over from her sewing projects for me. I have since decided a thank you card is in order. That the Lord works miracles in our lives when we sincerely pray for them is my testimony.

Last Sunday a sister shared a poem with us that showed the effects of sin when we judge and do not pray to forgive others.

The Cold Within
Six humans trapped by happenstance, in bleak and bitter cold,
Each one possessed a stick of wood, or so the story’s told.
Their dying fire in need of logs, the first man held his back,
For of the faces ‘round the fire, he noticed one was black.
The next man looking cross the way, saw one not of his church,
And couldn’t bring himself to give the fire his stick of birch.
The third one sat in tattered clothes; he gave his coat a hitch.
Why should his log be put to use to warm the idle rich?
The rich man just sat back and thought of the wealth he had in store,
And how to keep what he had earned from lay, shiftless poor.
The black man’s face bespoke revenge as the fire passed from sight,
For all he saw in his stick was a chance to spite the white.
The last man of this forlorn group did naught except for gain,
Giving only to those who gave was how he played the game.

Hope this gives you strength.
Happy creating, everyone!

Linda

Featured Seller: Ryan from Ryan Wordsworth

This week's featured seller is Ryan Walker from Ryan Wordsworth. His story:

I have enjoyed graphic arts as long as I can remember. I knew I must be smarter than my 1st grade teacher when I pointed out to her that you can make a lowercase "a" more than one way (as you can several letters). I was always noticing how printed materials, billboards, etc., were laid out.

I started my Etsy shop not too long ago when I saw how easy it was to offer my designs to a wide audience who may enjoy my designs. It's been the best online method for me so far.

I really enjoy using my talent to present the gospel message in an attractive way. One of my callings in my ward is to do the Sunday bulletin. I have a scripture or conference quote on the front each week. From those designs, I share many on my tumblr blog, ryansLDS.tumblr.com. I also have had a book published of designs that dovetail with the LDS Young Women's values, called Values: Illustrated Scriptures for Latter-day Saint Young Women. I've been working on another book of illustrated scriptures with a Christmas message—no date for release on that one yet.

We look forward to learning more about it! Check out Ryan Wordsworth for more inspiring and customizable prints.

Helpful Etsy Apps

There are many Etsy apps (applications) out there to help make running a shop easier. Here are some of the more popular ones:

• craftcult.com: for making widgets displaying your shop and treasuries on your blog or website
• craftopolis.com: for recording shop analytics and editing multiple listings at once
• etsyonsale.com: for running sales easily (not free, except for 5 credits to run 1 sale; use the referral code 3BC8YJD7U5 for 5 bonus credits)
• fotofuze.com: for improving photos
• shmetsy.com: for easy treasury making and contacting featured sellers

Find more Etsy apps here or share your favorite ones in the comments. The ones you use will show up in "Apps" under "Your Account."

Why Treasuries?

I've written two posts on treasuries: how to be featured in a treasury and how to make a treasury. But what's the big deal about treasuries anyway?

Treasuries get you sales!

1. Attractive treasuries, especially for holidays, get high views and hearts. Even mediocre treasuries will get high views and hearts if they are made by people in lots of circles or promotional teams.
2. Treasury views get you clicks: people clicking on an item or shop in the treasury.
3. Clicks get you sales! Even if you don't get an immediate sale, clickers are very likely to heart your shop or item(s), making it more likely for them to return for a future sale and promoting you to other potential buyers.

Several sellers have thanked me for featuring them in treasuries because they resulted in sales. So please don't write off treasuries! Help each other out by making them. And show support when you are featured; it only helps you and you can always un-favorite it later.