President Nelson's Message to #GiveThanks Spreads Throughout Social Media Rapidly

I don't know about you, but for the last couple of months it has been really hard to go on social media, for various reasons. Whether it be rants about different socio and economic opinions, or arguments about political points and discourses. Regardless, social media has been a negative area for the last couple of months, and yet, it's still a place that I visit every single day. 

And then President Russell M. Nelson of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, gave a message and a challenge to all Latter-day Saint members to show their gratitude on social media with that hashtag #givethanks. 

“Over my nine and a half decades of life, I have concluded that counting our blessings is far better than recounting our problems. Jesus Christ frequently expressed gratitude. Before raising Lazarus from the dead, before miraculously multiplying loaves and fishes, and before passing the cup to His disciples at the Last Supper, the Savior prayed and gave thanks to God. No wonder the Apostle Paul later declared, ‘In every thing give thanks.'"

Since that message was given, social media has been more of a positive place for me and others that I have talked to. A lot of posts have made me smile and laugh, while others have brought a tear to my eye and humbled me due to the experiences others have shared about their lives. It's felt like social media, which was once a place of darkness and negativity, is now a place of light and positivity, and unity. 

“No matter our situation, showing gratitude for our privileges is a fast-acting and long-lasting spiritual prescription. Does gratitude spare us from sorrow, sadness, grief, and pain? No, but it does soothe our feelings. It provides us with a greater perspective on the very purpose and joy of life.”

So how can you participate in this challenge that President Nelson has given us? President Nelson stated:

“First, I invite you—just for the next seven days—to turn social media into your own personal gratitude journal. Post every day about what you are grateful for, whom you are grateful for, and why you are grateful. At the end of seven days, see if you feel happier and more at peace. Use the hashtag #GiveThanks. Working together, we can flood social media with a wave of gratitude that reaches the four corners of the earth. Perhaps this will fulfill, in part, the promise God gave to Father Abraham, that through his descendants ‘all families of the earth [shall] be blessed.’

“Second, let us unite in thanking God through daily prayer. Jesus Christ taught His disciples to pray by first expressing gratitude to God and then petitioning Him for the things we need. Prayer brings forth miracles.”

How has the #givethanks challenge helped you and your life? Have you seen a positive change in your social media and interactions with others online? Let us know in the comments!