Make your own prayer books or Scripture booklets with this simple DIY technique. With only a few supplies that you probably already have, you can make cute little prayer books that are perfect gifts for the ladies at church, a loved one in the hospital, or your Secret Sister (of course)!

This would be an ideal activity to be done in your local women's group at church. This is an inexpensive small group option that could be a fun gathering experience.

To make these, cut cardstock paper into strips that are about 3 inches tall. Fold each strip into equal panels, accordion-style. If you have a paper-scoring-board, that makes it easier to plan your folding measurements, but a ruler would work just fine. If your paper strip is 8 inches wide by 3 inches tall, you may fold it every 2 inches. Then it will look similar to the top example shown in our photo below.

An optional way to decorate the pages of these prayer books is to cut patterned scrapbook paper into rectangles that are the same size of your folded panels. For example, if each "page" is 3 inches by 2 inches, cut decorative paper into 3" x 2" sections. Mix and match your paper patterns for each panel, as shown below. Attach them to the folded cardstock with a glue stick or double-sided adhesive tape. (Hint: you won't need fancy glue. Stock up on inexpensive multi-packs of glue sticks when there are back-to-school supplies on sale.)

Next you will add writing to the pages. Include short prayers, Bible verses, and/or inspirational quotes. These messages could be written with pen, marker, or a calligraphy set. Another idea is to use Scripture stickers on each page, if you have those available.

Decorate your prayer book(s) with stickers, ribbon, stamps, or pressed flowers.

Make these for yourself, or to share with someone else. You could even keep extra prayer books in your purse to give to the people you encounter in your daily life (grocery store, church, work, on a walk, etc.) to bring a smile to their faces and spread some joy to their hearts.

If you are hosting a party soon, or if you need an idea of a snack to take to an event, try this easy snack recipe for bacon wrapped dates. With only three ingredients, it is an easy recipe to make. Your guests will be amazed when they taste these sweet and salty finger-food-bites.

If your church's women's group is starting up a Secret Sister program, one of the first thing you'll want to do in organizing it is to print the important forms that can help make your Secret Sister group successful.

First, you'll want to have a sign-up sheet for those interested in becoming involved. We have a sign-up sheet available here: Secret Sister Sign Up

Next, you'll want to print out a questionnaire (like the one below) that each woman will fill out. Fold all of the filled-out forms the same (so there aren't any clues to whose paper is whose) and have each woman choose one. They may look at whose name they got, but they will not show it to anyone else. (It's a secret!) As they send notes of encouragement and gifts during the allotted time of your program, typically a few months, they will be able to base their gifts on the information given to them in the questionnaire about their Secret Sister.

Tip #1: The leader of your Secret Sister group may want to keep a private record of who each person picked as a Secret Sister. This helps when someone hasn't been participating as they should, so it can be addressed by the leader without revealing names. (see tip #3)

Tip #2: Someone should speak up right away if they picked their own name, so the drawing may be re-done fairly. (Each participant has to have someone else's name for this to work.)

Tip #3: If someone leaves the group, does not participate as agreed, or there is some other circumstance preventing them from reaching out to their Secret Sister - Have a plan in place to address this. First, reach out to the person to remind them to do their part. If that does not resolve it, have a back-up plan. The group's leader can contribute in-place of that person, by reaching out to the other person (recipient) themselves. Or use your list of names collected in the beginning, perhaps having the person who was giving to the person-not-participating switch to give to the person who had not been receiving anything.

Find our other tips for having a successful Secret Sister group here: Tips

What a blessing it is to be a Secret Sister to another woman without revealing your identity! Part of being a great Secret Sister is reaching out to her with encouragement and helping her feel loved. The best part of it is that, when done right, she has no idea who is blessing her. And you get the benefit of loving someone well, without the recognition. Hopefully someone is reaching out to you as their Secret Sister at the same time. And ideally you are receiving the same amount of encouragement that you are giving out.

We hope every part of your Secret Sister program is going well. If you need some tips about being a Secret Sister, check out our other resources here: Secret Sister Tips

Today we have a free printable card for you to give to your Secret Sister. Simply click on the file below, print it out, fold, then figure out a way to get it to her without her knowing it's from you. The card has a beautiful sentiment and is already signed "Secret Sister" for you.

Card Printing Tips: Print one page at a time, flipping your paper to print the reverse side of the card. You may use a glue stick to attach the sheets together if you'd rather print them separately. If your printer has margins set, you may need to cut the card to size after printing.

Continue reaching out to your Secret Sister often. You are doing a great job, and we are proud of you for that.

Are you considering having a Secret Sister gift exchange? It is such a fun women's group activity that may help build friendships within a community of ladies. Participants should be people who know and trust each other and are part of the same gathering of women who agree to the program's guidelines.

What is a Secret Sister program, and how do I start one?

Here is a brief summary of what a Secret Sister group is all about:

• Women sign-up to join a group of Secret Sisters.
• Everyone fills out a questionnaire that reveals their interests.
• Women are each randomly assigned a name of someone else in the group.
• They do not reveal whose name they have, nor are they aware of who chose them.
• They receive the questionnaire previously filled out by the person they selected.
• Each person will be a "Secret Sister" to someone else.
• Every participant will give to someone and also receive from someone else.
• The name they've drawn is the person they will anonymously bless for a period of time.
• The names are to remain a secret, so no one knows who has been blessing them.
• Each participant will offer cards and/or gifts to the person they've selected.
• Gifts and cards will reflect the other person's interests shown on the questionnaire.
• Gifts are given secretly without being noticed. (Don't sign your name.)
• Church groups often promote praying daily for your Secret Sister.
• The Secret Sister program may last for weeks or even months.
• There will be a reveal party at the end.
• Guests at the reveal party may guess who had their name.
• A final gift or card for each person will reveal their Secret Sister's identity.

Decide the rules your group will have and make that information clear when you are recruiting participants. Points to consider are as follows:

• How long will your Secret Sister program last?
• How often should Secret Sisters encourage each other with a gift or card?
• Is there a spending limit on gifts?
• Who will be in charge of event planning and organizing?
• How will each Secret Sister name be assigned or selected?
• Who will follow-up with everyone to remind them to actively participate?
• What will you do to keep it fair for everyone if someone drops-out of the group?
• Is there a gift distribution area in the church for items to be dropped off anonymously?
• When and where will there be a final Secret Sister reveal party?
• What other forms do I need? (See our other resources!)
• How can I make this Secret Sister group successful? (See our Secret Sister tips!)

We are offering a free printable sign-up form below that you may use to begin a secret sister group in your church, or simply among a group of friends. Print this form out and pass it around to women who may want to partake in this encouraging gift exchange.

Print out the Secret Sister group sign-up sheet by downloading the pdf file below:

Find great gift options for Secret Sisters on our website. We have fabulous Christian gifts in stock for women, which may be shipped to someone anonymously if you choose that option.

Are you looking to make your life better this year? We have a visionary worksheet for you to print out, to guide you through planning your goals for the future.

Use this My Vision Board printable worksheet to write a goal for each of the following categories:

• Personal
• Health
• Family
• Relationships
• Career
• Lifestyle

Place the printed worksheet in a visible spot so you can easily refer to it throughout the year. It could be framed in your home, attached to your refrigerator, displayed on your dresser, or set on your desk. Seeing the list daily can serve as a reminder to work on your goals. You may have additional details for each goal that you can add to the back of your sheet. Get creative with it by using different colored inks for each category. Highlight words that will inspire your journey towards your future goals.

Decide how you will attain your goals. Perhaps you will work on one category at a time, focusing on improvement, then maintain it as you move onto the next category. Or your approach may be to take one step in each category every day, week, or month. It's totally up to you but include a strategy at the top of your worksheet. Then work on it.

Is there one little thing you can do every day to improve your health (like exercise or cut out sugar)? Or would taking a weekly jog be a good start? Then just increase its frequency throughout the year. (These are just examples, but determine what is personally achievable for you.)

The goals you write can be broad, like make new friends. Or they can be very specific, like have a coffee date with a friend twice a week, not repeating the same meetup within a month. Remember

that these are your personal goals, so you get to decide what they are!

This is a simple approach to making goals, and as a free printable sheet, it's an easy way to get started with the planning phase. The implementation is entirely up to you, and hopefully you will find this vision board to be useful in your quest for personal improvement.