Throughout the years, our celebrations on Christmas Day will look different. But no matter our current family situations or circumstances, we can create meaningful holiday experiences by focusing on giving.
Here are 20 ideas for how to serve on Christmas Day.
1. Share the gift of your full presence.
Whether you’re playing a game, talking with a family member, or visiting a friend on Christmas, prioritize truly listening to others and helping them feel seen and heard. If you find yourself getting overwhelmed with holiday expectations or to-do lists, try shifting your focus to how this could make a memory for someone else.
2. Write a thank-you note to someone you’ve never acknowledged.
Take the time to express appreciation for a healthcare professional, mail carrier, teacher, church leader, or service worker. You could also prepare a small gift or token to share the next time you see them.
3. Serve as a “secret angel.”
Choose a neighbor to spotlight anonymously. You and your family could write down how they bring light to your lives on star-shaped paper and then tape the notes to their door for a festive surprise. Add some extra shine by leaving tea lights on their porch with themed treats like Starbursts, star-shaped cookies, or treats with star-shaped sprinkles.
Include the following invitation as a way to encourage your neighbors to decorate someone else’s porch before the New Year:
“Share the Light”
Thank you so much for shining your light!
Your unique talents came into our sight.
Now, we hope that you’ll take time to write
another whose gifts you’d like to highlight.
Together, we’ll share Christ’s love this year
by passing along light-filled, festive cheer.
4. Record a video message to send to a loved one.
Gather your family to film a Christmas song, testimonies, or words of love to share with someone who lives far away. You could even include others virtually and invite them to record messages, too.
5. Do a Christmas cleanout to find donations.
Get everyone together for an hour to clean out your kitchen pantry or cupboards and collect canned goods to donate. Check with your local food pantry or homeless shelter to confirm food guidelines and needs.
You could also pick a closet to sort through and select gently used clothing or toys to donate.
6. Share a taste of home with the missionaries.
For many young missionaries, this year will be their first or second Christmas away from their families. Consider inviting the missionaries over for treats and reaching out to their parents in advance to get their favorite recipes from home.
If the elders and sisters already have plans on Christmas Day, send them a heartfelt text thanking them for their service and asking how you can support them and the people they’re teaching.
7. Send a heartfelt email or letter.
Extend your love by reaching out to someone far from home this Christmas, such as a college student, missionary, military member, or incarcerated person. Make your note even more meaningful by sharing your favorite scripture or your testimony of the Savior.
8. Plan ahead with JustServe.org.
This website makes it easy to find local service projects and needs in your area (there are also remote opportunities available!). To find specific service needs, use the search filter under Projects to check if there are any opportunities on December 25.
9. Reach out to a ward member in need.
You could ask your bishop, Relief Society president, or elders quorum president who in your ward might need some extra love on Christmas and how to best support them.
10. Visit a care center, hospital, or homeless shelter.
To help brighten someone’s day during what might be a difficult or lonely time, you could bring Christmas cards or flowers to share or sing Christmas hymns together.
11. Bake a Christmas treat to give away.
Share homemade cookies or baked goods with your neighbors and ministering sisters or brothers.
12. Create a festive care package.
Put together themed boxes to send to missionaries or military members. To prolong joy after the Christmas cheer has died down, you can send these packages to arrive by New Year’s Day.
13. Text or call someone you haven’t spoken to recently.
Surprise a friend, family member, or acquaintance with a kind Christmas message to let them know they’ve been on your mind.
14. Try a spontaneous act of service.
The Church’s Light the World website features a Kindness Randomizer that generates ideas for how, whom, and when to serve. Before you try it with your family, commit to keeping each other accountable and completing the service suggestions—no matter what you get!
15. Bring a meal to a family in need.
Give a pre-made meal to new parents or someone who’s been having a difficult season. Consider giving them something that’s easy to store and heat up another night.
16. Get in touch with local organizations.
Contact your local bishop’s storehouse or soup kitchen to confirm whether there are service opportunities on Christmas Day.
17. Beautify your neighborhood.
Depending on where you live, this could look like shoveling snow, raking leaves, picking up trash, or pulling weeds.
18. Offer to babysit.
To serve parents in your family or ward who might feel exhausted after all the Christmas celebrations, you could offer to take their kids on a festive Christmas outing for a few hours—like driving around to see Christmas lights or playing games together.
19. Schedule a family service activity in the next two weeks.
Block off time on your family’s calendar for an end-of-year service activity. Here are some ideas to get started:
- Set up a temple trip.
- Plan an afternoon to volunteer at an animal shelter.
- Make an appointment to donate blood.
- Sign up to volunteer at your local food bank.
- Offer to help an elderly family member with miscellaneous chores, like replacing smoke alarm batteries in their home.
20. Focus on family history.
Add photos and memories to your FamilySearch account or continue to build out your family tree. You could also index names or help others with their research.
For more ideas on creating a meaningful Christmas celebration, check out the articles below:
▶ The Hebrew word that will change how your family reads Luke 2
▶ Christmas traditions from 3 Apostles to help bring the Spirit to your holiday season
▶ 11 cheerful Christmas gifts to give your neighbors
