Dynamic Sidebars don’t work

When I use the default aqua sidebar, it works fine. However, when I create a custom dynamic sidebar, it allows me to place widgets in the sidebar, however they do not appear on the page. Also, when I refresh the widget page, all of the widgets placed in my custom sidebar disappear. I am saving everything in the sidebar, but they dont seem to work or retain the information.

Also, is there a shortcode to insert/list posts from a specific category onto a blog page (similar to the blog page in the live preview)?