Last year, Lucas Hunt, a 16-year-old from Asheboro, North Carolina, had an idea. He wanted to create a yard sign for people to display during the Easter season.

A fellow church member came up with the design – a three-word message, “Thank You, Jesus” in black letters with a yellow sunrise in the background and helped him find a vendor. According to news reports, Lucas said, “Our goal was 800 but we didn’t think it was reachable.” They sold over 1400.

After Easter, most people wanted to keep the message displayed in their yards. “It’s an everyday thing. You pull out of your driveway, you pull in, you see it and you think of something you’re thankful for,” Lucas commented in a blog interview.

The simple message printed on a yard sign has reportedly reached over 60,000 people from 37 states and seven countries. It’s been described as the “Thank You Jesus” Movement, going viral via the internet and social media.

As their Facebook page states, “Welcome to the Thank You Jesus Movement. Our goal is to spread the name of Jesus throughout the nation and share with others how thankful we are for what he does in our lives. Please join the movement and help spread the name of Jesus around the world!”

In a newspaper article, Lucas recalled talking to the Southwestern Randolph High School chapter of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes to encourage the members to get involved. “I tell young people with our limitations there is a way,” he said. “I have no driver’s license, no job and no time to minister. But by doing this, there are 1,400 signs in yards. That’s more people than I could have talked to.”

Lucas has been amazed when he rides down the road and sees the “Thank You, Jesus” sign the yard of someone in his hometown and in the yards of people in other states. He said he feels that he has something in common with that person.

He thinks the message speaks to people on an individual basis. “One lady, I was told, was having a really hard day, with a loss in her family. She saw a sign and started crying. She realized the good that God did for her always outweighed the bad in her life.”

Lucas Hunt does not profit from the sales of the sign. Other than the printing costs, the money goes to the “Thank You Jesus Mission whose goal is to provide grants to churches & non-profit religious organizations in rural areas of North Carolina. Grants are to be used for programs such as educational training for church leaders, food banks, soup kitchens, homeless shelters etc. Our aim is to find programs that share the gospel of Jesus while helping to meet the needs of the community.”

“The bottom line is,” he said, “without God providing the people involved, all the help, that’s what made it work.” “Give thanks,” those two words are mentioned in the Bible 39 times, in particular Psalms 136. Thank you, Lucas, for helping create a visual reminder for people to give thanks!

Jan White is an national award-winning religion columnist. She can be reached at jwhite@andycable.com