Bloggernacle Back Bench: LDS bloggers are being seen and heard around the world (+video)

Two bloggers are cleverly using contests to spread the name of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and its beliefs to the world.

First, the blog Murilovisck from Brazil: “My name is Vicente Leite Ribeiro Murilo. I am Brazilian. I'm 25 years old and am a Latter-day Saint. My blog about news and curiosities about the church is participating in a national competition for Brazilian Blogs. TOPBLOG Brazil 2012 is the name of the contest. I'm in the top 3 blogs in the category Religion. I ran over 400 blogs and the winner will be announced at a ceremony in Sao Paulo on Jan. 26, 2013.”

How exciting! I hope he wins. I have featured his blog before, and know it is full of fascinating tidbits about the LDS Church as well as his testimony. So check out and share his blog!

Second, there's an enterprising Mormon young man named Lincoln Barlow who decided, as part of his Reflections contest (the yearly PTA art program held across the United States) to create a video entry titled “A Call to Boys Everywhere.” He explains: “By standing up for what is right, we can change moments … moments of distress and sadness can become moments of magic and happiness.” He uses two recent news stories to illustrate that “It only takes one small act … one sign that you care. It only takes one person.”

Now let me showcase a few other winning posts:

Power Pick: In Sierra Leone, the influx of missionaries from the new age change will be welcomed soon:“We have received notice of the February, March and April new missionaries coming to the Sierra Leone Freetown Mission," wrote the mission's blog. "There are many, many arriving! Please scroll through the blog from the beginning to now. It will give all of you some idea of what it is like here! This is the Best Mission in the World! We welcome all and look forward to meeting each of you!” What follows is a deluge of colorful photos depicting that beautiful country.

Techie Tip: Just in my own ward, I’ve had questions about downloading church videos to mobile devices to then share with classes. A tech post on LDS.org outlines “Helpful Resources for Downloading Video to Mobile Devices,” with videos and descriptions on how to do the following:

• Download video to Gospel Library Android

• Download video to Gospel Library iOS

• Download video to a laptop

• Connect a mobile device to a meetinghouse TV

Knowing these things is pretty much a must for teachers and leaders in this digital age, so visit that website to learn how to do those things. And then start utilizing those video resources.

Back Bench: Bloggers being seen and heard

Lincoln Barlow uses YouTube and the PTA Reflections contest to spread an important message.

Emily Warburton Jensen loves searching through the LDS blog world for developments and testimonies that best capture the ever-evolving LDS online experience. Email: ejensen@desnews.com