Light the World Christmas Party

This service-oriented big group Christmas party is the perfect way to kick off the season. Light the World is all about little acts of service through Christmas and thinking of others.

Every year on lighttheworld.org, there are ideas of service everyday for 25 days in starting December 1. I thought it would be so fun to have a church Christmas party centered around this idea to start the season of giving off right.

My first thought was to light up the gym with Christmas lights, but the ceiling was so high I didn’t know how to make it happen. I told my friend the idea and she said “Challenge accepted!”. She borrowed as many lights as she could find a spent a lot of time stringing them together. I think the end result is spectacular! Everyone loved it.

We turned the overhead lights down low and ate by the light of the Christmas lights. We set up the tables so there were long rows right under the lights.

The service part of the party started right with the invitation. We asked for donations to the food pantry and someone on my committee worked with foster care kids and knew what they needed. We sent out lists of desired items with the invitations and then had tables set up at the door for the donations. We had someone in charge of collecting the donations at the end of the night and taking them where they needed to go.

We had the traditional ham, mashed potatoes, rolls, salad and cookie for dinner. Then we had people assigned to dish up dinners in to-go boxes and take them to the people that were homebound. The people who weren’t able to get out and come really appreciated the meal and the visit.

We had a visit from Santa before dinner so those families who like to visit with him could and those families who choose not to visit could come later. For the gift from Santa, we bought $1 books through a couple of our kids’ teachers’ Scholastic order. That way it benefited our teachers and we got a good deal on books. We put up a sign that asked the older kids to read to share their book with a younger sibling or someone else and read to them. This benefited the younger kids by being read to and the older kids by practicing their reading. Also a bonus for parents if they get a minute to themselves!

My son had broken his leg the week before the party and was in a wheelchair. The leg was still really sore and had to be propped up all the time. Aaah life. You just never know what’s coming!

At this table, we had markers, crayons, pretty stationary and cardstock cut into cards. We had this list of ideas:

• Thank your parents
• Thank the mail carrier
• Write a card to cheer someone
• Write a note of apology to someone you may have offended
• Write a kind letter to your in-laws
• New Year’s Resolutions
• Encourage someone who is sick, suffering or having a hard time
• Make a list of the things your parents have taught you or done for you
• Uplift someone by sharing a favorite scripture or story of Jesus
• Take a note to someone homebound or in a nursing home
• Write notes to your children or grandchildren and tell them Jesus loves them
• Write a note to someone who has blessed or impacted your life
• Thank a teacher at school or church

I bought these ornaments because they were lightbulb shaped to match the theme. The kids were able to tie a scripture on it to share with someone else.

At this station, anyone could make a pipe cleaner reindeer with googly eyes and a red nose. They could share it with whomever they wanted.

At this station, the kids could make necklaces or bracelets out of plastic string and beads. They were asked to share them with their moms, teachers or whoever needed one.

I hope this inspires you to create your own service-centered Christmas party! It really was a night filled with light and set the mood for the rest of the month. If you’re looking for another great Christmas party idea, check out my post about a Grinch Christmas Party!