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10 Easy Tips to Use Technology to be Thankful

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Thanksgiving is all about recognizing the blessings that we have in our lives. Many homes have a ritual on Thanksgiving day to go around the dinner table and say something that they are thankful for.

Here at ChurchTechToday, we want to help you use technology to take that dinner table concept and share what you have to be thankful for in a few new ways.

Give thanks

#1 – 40 Days of Facebook Thanksgiving

A new trend on Facebook has people taking 40 days to say what they are thankful for and post them every day on their Facebook status. Churches, bloggers, and ministries may want to consider joining this trend with their ministry’s Facebook page and share what they are thankful for with everyone else.

#2 – Be Thankful and Funny

A hilarious video making company called JibJab came on the scenes a couple of years ago and has revolutionized ecards. The concept is simple: upload a photo of your face, pick out the video you want to send someone, add a few emails and a personalized message, and click send.  In minutes you can have a great Thanksgiving ecard to send to your family, friends, or congregation members.

#3 – Sending eCards To Loved Ones

Using the iPhone or iPad Cards app (or Mobile Champs Greeting Cards for Android (Free), you can take pictures of those you love, put together a postcard to thank them, and get it mailed out that very day. It costs $2.99 for each, but that is nothing compared to Hallmark cards that take time to go get, address, and mail it out. Perfect for pastors to send to volunteers or to instantly capture moments with loved ones on Thanksgiving day.

#4 – Blogging Thanksgiving

Churches and bloggers can put together blog posts about being thankful for what God has done for their community and ministry. Take an extra bit of time to mention specific people that have impacted you this year and offer a prayer for those that read your posts.

#5 –  Collect Thanksgiving Online

You may want to collect Thanksgiving sentiments from friends and family online and then share them with those that you know and love. Ask people to comment on a Facebook status update or email them to you. Churches may want to post them on the projector screen on Sunday for all to see. Families may want to print off a list to hand out to everyone that comes to a Thanksgiving dinner. Whatever the reason, share the thankfulness.

#6 – Use Evernote To Organize

Evernote is always known for being able to organize your thoughts. Between today and Thanksgiving day, why not use it to make a list of things that you have been thankful for in your life up to that point. It is one thing to reflect on being thankful and a whole other process of writing it down in the moment when emotions and feelings are present.

#7 – Messages of Thanksgiving on Social Media

Social media is a powerful tool and you have the ability to post Scriptures of thanksgiving to share with people. You can use Bufferapp or Hootsuite to put together a scheduled list of tweets and status updates to share even when you are home with your friends. Here are a few Thanksgiving Bible verses to share.

#8 – Create A Slideshow of Love

Use the photos of the year that you have taken, the moments that you have enjoyed, and loved ones you lost and gained. Websites like Roxio’s Photoshow or Animoto allow you to upload photos and videos to automatically make a slideshow to have at the next family gathering or at church.

#9 – Videos for Missionaries and Soldiers

With the video camera on your smartphone, it is not hard to put together a quick video to say thanks to specific people. It would not need to be edited and can be emailed or posted on to the people’s Facebook page. Not sure who to write to? Send a quick video from your church to the missionaries you support. Maybe you have a loved one in the military? Share a moment of gratitude for what they are doing for our nation. Let them all know you are praying and continuing to think of them.

#10 – Send Text Messages to Friends and Family You Can't be With on Thanksgiving Day

Text messaging is a simple way to reach out to friends and family you can't be with on Thanksgiving Day. Take a moment to create an image using the Ripl App and share a Bible verse, word of thanks, or encouragement. Ripl allows you to upload your own photo, overlay words, add music, and make the image a still or gif. Post easily to social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram and share the same image via text with anyone you want to connect with.

What tip to use technology to be thankful would you include to this list?

 

Lauren Hunter
Lauren Hunterhttps://laurenhunter.net
Lauren Hunter is a writer who loves the big picture of God’s journey we are all on together. In 2007, she founded ChurchTechToday, a website for pastors and church leaders to harness technology to improve ministry. Married to her high school sweetheart, Lauren lives in Northern California with her husband and their four children. Her latest book is Leaving Christian Science: 10 Stories of New Faith in Jesus Christ. She can be found online at https://laurenhunter.net.

1 COMMENT

  1. It’s wonderful to see platforms like Youth at Work Partnership promoting the use of technology in creative ways like video greeting cards. I found video greeting card while looking for a thoughtful gifts for a friend and I tried it through this https://www.giftlips.com/

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