Digital Only: Church Leaders’ Teachings from Social Media
15 Gifts to Consider This Christmas
See what living prophets and other Church leaders have taught on social media about Christmas, gifts from the Savior, and gifts we can give each other.
Exchanging gifts with loved ones can be a fun tradition during Christmastime. As we participate in the festivities of the season, it is important to maintain our focus on the true reason we celebrate: our Savior Jesus Christ. In doing so, we will see that the spiritual gifts we have been given through the gospel of Jesus Christ are far more valuable than any earthly present.
President Nelson taught:
“Let us focus on four of the gifts Jesus Christ gave to all who are willing to receive them.
“First, He gave you and me an unlimited capacity to love. That includes the capacity to love the unlovable and those who not only do not love you but presently persecute and despitefully use you. …
“A second gift the Savior offers you is the ability to forgive. Through His infinite Atonement, you can forgive those who have hurt you and who may never accept responsibility for their cruelty to you. …
“A third gift from the Savior is that of repentance. …
“… Repentance is a resplendent gift. It is a process never to be feared. It is a gift for us to receive with joy and to use—even embrace—day after day as we seek to become more like our Savior. …
“A fourth gift from our Savior is actually a promise—a promise of life everlasting. … Eternal life is the kind and quality of life that Heavenly Father and His Beloved Son live. When the Father offers us everlasting life, He is saying in essence, ‘If you choose to follow my Son—if your desire is really to become more like Him—then in time you may live as we live and preside over worlds and kingdoms as we do.’”
Church leaders have shared messages about the gifts we receive from living the gospel and gifts we can give each other as we strive to be better disciples of Jesus Christ. Consider the gifts President Nelson named above and the following gifts:
He Gave Us the Gift of a Savior, His Perfect Son
“One of the most beautiful symbols of the birth of Jesus Christ into this world is light. The appearance of the long-promised Messiah brought light to a darkened world.
“Many of you are praying for the strength to endure trials that test you to what may feel to you like your limit. God knows our every need, He loves us, and He watches over us. He gave us the gift of a Savior, His perfect Son. He is the Light of the World and the sure source of comfort, hope, peace, and joy.
“I express my love to you with my wish that you may have a joyous Christmas season and feel the love and light of Christ—this year and always.”
President Henry B. Eyring, Facebook, Dec. 15, 2023, facebook.com/henry.b.eyring.
Let Us Remember the Greatest Gift Ever Given
“Unless we see all the meaning and joy of Christmas—the whole of Christ’s life, His profound mission, the end as well as the beginning—then Christmas will be just another day off work with food and fun and festivities.
“The true meaning—the unique, joyous meaning—of the birth of Jesus Christ was not confined to those first hours in Bethlehem but would be realized in the life He would lead and in His death, in His triumphant atoning sacrifice, and in His prison-bursting Resurrection. These are the realities that make Christmas joyful.
“This year, let us remember the greatest gift ever given: the Atonement and Resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ.”
President Jeffrey R. Holland, Facebook, Dec. 24, 2023 , facebook.com/jeffreyr.holland.
All of Us Are Blessed with Unique Gifts
“I appreciate the opportunity to build and maintain relationships with those of other faiths in countries across the globe. As children of God, all of us are blessed with unique gifts and talents to serve the greater good.”
Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf, Facebook, Nov. 10, 2023 , facebook.com/dieterf.uchtdorf.
Five Gifts We Can Give Each Other
“[Here are examples of] five gifts we can give each other:
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The gift of tolerance by rejecting hatred
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The gift of acceptance by rejecting demonizing entire peoples because of the actions of a few
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The gift of understanding by not judging others solely on outward characteristics
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The gift of civility and decency by rejecting condemnation, maligning, and vilifying of others who disagree with us
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The gift of advancing society by respecting all people, especially those who have a different viewpoint
“Jesus came to earth as a humble baby yet is the Light of the World. He came to bring peace, love, and joy. The lightings around the Washington D.C. visitors’ center symbolize His and the Father’s great gifts to us.”
Elder Dale G. Renlund, Facebook, Dec. 1, 2023, facebook.com/DaleGRenlund.
We Can Receive Jesus Christ’s Precious Gift of Repentance
“A favorite Gong Christmas tradition is to read Charles Dickens’s ‘A Christmas Carol’ aloud as a family.
“I’ve often wondered why, when we refer to Scrooge, do we think primarily of a grumpy old miser, someone who scoffs at Christmas as a big ‘humbug’?
“Why don’t we acknowledge more the new Scrooge? The new Scrooge who generously sends the prize turkey as a Christmas surprise? The new Scrooge who reconciles with his cheerful nephew Freddie? The new Scrooge who raises Bob Cratchit’s salary and cares for Tiny Tim?
“Are there those around us, perhaps we ourselves, who could be a different person if only we would stop typecasting or stereotyping them as their old self?
“No person and no family is perfect. We each have foibles and faults—things we wish to do better. This Christmas, perhaps we can receive—and offer—Jesus Christ’s precious gifts of change and repentance, of forgiving and forgetting, for each other and ourselves.
“Let us make peace with the past year. Let go of the emotional angst and noise, the frictions and annoyances, that clutter our lives. May we grant each other our new possibilities instead of fixating on our past limitations. Let’s give the new Scrooge in each of us a chance to change.”
Elder Gerrit W. Gong, Facebook, Dec. 10, 2023, facebook.com/gerritw.gong.
God Gives Us the Gift of Remembrance
“As you reflect on big and small ‘good gifts’ that have come into your life, how have you seen the hand of the Lord rescuing you, reinforcing you, and providing you with relief?
“God gives us the gift of remembrance so we do not forget the Giver, so that we come to feel His limitless love for us and learn to love Him in return. The ancient prophet Moroni exhorts us to remember that ‘every good gift cometh of Christ’ (Moroni 10:17). Our Savior gives gifts not as the world offers—temporary, partial, and prone to erosion over time. Jesus Christ extends enduring gifts.”
Sister Tracy Y. Browning, Facebook, Dec. 13 2023, facebook.com/Primary2ndCounselor.