Russell M. Nelson, a global faith leader and president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, has a new message of hope, healing and unity to help lift us out of the depths of COVID-19 and eradicate other plagues such as hatred and incivility.
The prophet has offered a prayer of gratitude and also invited everyone, everywhere, to do two important things to help heal our fractured relationships and communities:
- Turn social media into your own gratitude journal for the next seven days
- Say a prayer of thanks
Expressing his own gratitude for the scientists and researchers who are developing a vaccine for COVID-19, the prophet (a former pioneering cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon) reminded us that “there is no medication or operation that can fix the many spiritual woes and maladies that we face” as a collective global society. These include the vices of hate, unrest, racism, violence, dishonesty and incivility. “There is, however, a remedy—one that may seem surprising—because it flies in the face of our natural intuitions,” President Nelson said. “Nevertheless, its effects have been validated by scientists as well as men and women of faith. I am referring to the healing power of gratitude.”
Visit GiveThanks.ChurchofJesusChrist.org to read and watch the prophet’s video message in many languages. While there, you can also read President Nelson’s personal account of when and how he received inspiration to offer this global prayer of gratitude.