8 Unique and Painless Ways to Share the Gospel Online

At the BYU Campus Education Week in August of last year, Elder David A. Bednar told Latter-day Saints that their efforts to communicate gospel messages through social media channels was a good beginning, but only a small trickle. “I now extend to you the invitation to help transform the trickle into a flood,” he said. “I exhort you to sweep the earth with messages filled with righteousness and truth—messages that are authentic, edifying, and praiseworthy—and literally to sweep the earth as with a flood.”

In August, the Church’s Handbook 2 was updated to include the following: “Members are encouraged to use the Internet to flood the earth with testimonies of the Savior and His restored gospel. They should view blogs, social networks, and other Internet technologies as tools that allow them to amplify their voice in promoting the messages of peace, hope, and joy that accompany faith in Christ” (Chapter 21.1.22).

Here are eight practical things you can do now to hasten the work online:

1. Follow the prophet and apostles on social media

The prophet and apostles have accounts on Google+, Facebook, and Twitter. You can follow their pages to see inspiring posts and photos about their teachings. You can like these posts and photos, leave comments, and share them so that your friends can be inspired as well.

image via ldsliving.com

2. Talk about the joys of the gospel

As you share your life with others on social media, be sure to let the light of the gospel shine through. Here are three simple ways to do it:

– What you learned at church. Talk about what you learned at church, in seminary or institute, or in your scripture study. Share what you learned and explain how it affected your life.

– Family Home Evening. Post what you did in family home evening. Mention what you discussed, any special insights you got from the topic, and how your children responded. Also, include a link to an online resource you used in preparing the lesson. Seeing families holding family home evening is a good example for nonmembers and an icebreaker for discussions about the family and how to teach children. It also provides continual encouragement to members to hold their family home evenings.

– Your calling. Don’t be shy about telling others about the calling you have in your ward. As you mention things you do for your calling, your nonmember friends may ask questions and learn more about the Church. Encourage comments and questions. Add a link in your post that explains your calling or the topic that you will be teaching or learning about next Sunday.