Videos Show New, Easy Ways to #ShareGoodness Online
Contributed By Ryan Morgenegg, Church News staff writer, and Camille West, ChurchofJesusChrist.org Church News
Article Highlights
- New videos illustrate how you can #ShareGoodness by sharing yourself, your life, and your beliefs.
- Remember to be positive, genuine, and respectful in everything you post.
Related Links
Over the next few months, the Church is releasing a series of brief videos that illustrate creative ways members can share goodness through social media in more personal ways than reposting Church videos and quotes.
For example, one video shows Diana Salvador making breakfast for her mother who experienced a stroke and is lying in bed. She happily works along and feeds her mother. “I believe there is a scripture that says if you take care of your parents, your life will be longer upon the land,” said Sister Salvador. “I live that scripture and that scripture comes back to me. … I believe in family with all I’ve got.”
Another video features a Spanish-speaking man named Leslie, a single dad who raised his young children alone. Often he left home at 5 a.m. and worked until 5 p.m., at which time he returned home to make dinner for his children. He says, “I believe that the difficulties we have in this life make us stronger and build character. They help us increase our faith in our Savior Jesus Christ. He takes upon Himself our burdens.”
In a recent address, Elder David A. Bednar said, “I exhort you sweep the earth with messages filled with righteousness and truth—messages that are authentic, edifying, and praiseworthy” (“To Sweep the Earth as with a Flood,” BYU Education Week address, Aug. 19, 2014).
An LDS couple in New York share their love for each other and inspiration for creating modest clothes for women and girls.
These are examples of all kinds of shareable content that can be seen online.
The videos that will be released over the next few months will contain examples from Latter-day Saints all over the world.
The main website for assistance in sharing social media, complete with examples and ideas, is social.ChurchofJesusChrist.org.
Part of sharing social media goodness is sharing a testimony of Christ.
The #ShareGoodness campaign and website were created to help members get started on Elder Bednar’s request to flood the earth with goodness. The website provides examples and ideas of what can be shared with an emphasis on staying positive, genuine, and respectful. It also poses questions to prompt people to think about what they can share from their own lives that people might enjoy, such as “What makes you feel grateful?”
Some example posts include:
• “This is the second week in a row a neighbor boy took my garbage cans out to the curb. Funny how such a small thing makes me feel so good.” #ThankYouKevin #KindnessRocks
• “When I look for good things in my life, I’m more likely to find them. And when I find them I’m more likely to put more good out there.” #CircleOfGoodness
• “My friend’s cool mom (math genius) just took time to explain this math problem to me. It’s like the math light switch came on.” #Sarah’sMomIsAwesome #ThankfulForTheHelp
• “My neighbor was walking by my house as I got the mail. She stopped and we talked for a moment. Just her kind smile and friendly words made my whole week.” #SmallKindActs
“These videos were created specifically to show how we can share ourselves and our lives with others and be the light that Elder Bednar invited us to be,” said Fernando Camilo, an awareness of social media manager for the Church. “We want members to be a force for good online. There is a lot that they can share. It doesn’t need to be hard or invasive. Members can be authentic and positive in their posts.”
“Our goal as people is to become the message that we are spreading,” Elder L. Tom Perry recently taught. “We can always do more to reach out and set examples of Christlike behavior to those who are not of our faith. … There are individuals out there who need our examples of faith,” he said. “We must never stop reaching out” (“Become the Message We Share, Elder Perry Says”).
The videos will be shared on Church social accounts like Facebook and Instagram, ChurchofJesusChrist.org, and other channels during the coming months.
