Sunday, Oct. 25 is Reformation Sunday. And it’s also Social Media Sunday – a perfect opportunity to share your Lutheran witness and tell your church’s story. The concept is simple: encourage your social media connected people to share about your church’s activities and the Gospel message with each other and their social circles.

All posts should include the hashtag #SMS15. You can also add our #SEPAforward hashtag and your church hashtag if you have one.

Here are some ideas that you can encourage people to try:

• Check in at church on their favorite social site
• Post their favorite thing about your church
• Tweet the sermon in real time
• Plan a Reformation sound byte for the sermon and ask people to post it
• Take and share selfies
• Pin and share pictures
• Upload short videos of your worship or church life
• Have social media active people available with laptops to help others set up social media accounts

The idea is to give people practice in telling their faith story and your church’s story within their own social media circles. You can participate even if you do not have an official social media presence for your congregation.

There are lots of ideas and resources at the Social Media Sunday 2015 public group on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/groups/SMS15/ ) with downloads under the “Files” tab.

We particularly like this litany and rite for “Blessing of Mobile Devices” written by Pastor Joelle Colville Hanson of the Northeastern Iowa Synod:

Litany

Christ has no online presence but ours,

No blog, no Facebook page but ours,

Ours are the tweets through which love touches this world,

Ours are the posts through which the Gospel is shared,

Ours are the updates through which hope is revealed.

Christ has no online presence but ours,

No blog, no Facebook page but ours.

*based on a prayer by Meredith Gould, The Social Media Gospel

 

Blessing of Moble Devices

Ask people to hold on their devices

Gracious Creator God,

We ask your blessing upon these device. We give thanks for all the people who work to bring the Digital world to us–Designers, code writers, developers, engineers, manufacturers, factory workers

May we use these devices for the sake of your love, compassion and justice, that all we say and do online reflects your glory. We pray this in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen

 

Dismissal:

Go in peace! Blog, post, tweet, Instagram, snapchat the Good News! Thanks be to God!