#LightTheWorld Christmas Service Idea for Families

This post is sponsored by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. All opinions are my own. #LightTheWorld

Each year as the Christmas season starts, I look for opportunities for our family to focus on service. It can be so hard in this commercial, materialistic world to remember that Christmas is about celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ. I think service is the best way to show that we truly remember Him. 

This year our family will #LightTheWorld as we participate in the Worldwide Day of Service on December 1st. Here’s a quick video to explain it.

Each day leading up to Christmas, there’s a calendar that lists something Jesus Christ did to serve others and an idea for an act of service we can do to emulate his example.

The service idea for December 9th is “Jesus Visited the Lonely and So Can You.” 

Our family will be helping a widow who lives in our neighborhood set up and decorate her Christmas tree. My grandma recently commented how she doesn’t set up a tree anymore because it’s just too physically taxing on her. She hasn’t had a tree in years! That broke my heart because there’s just something so joyful about a Christmas tree. I realized that many widows find themselves in the same situation. Setting up a Christmas tree is hard. And at a time when widows are already prone to feeling lonely, it just seems like they could use all the happiness they can get. So our family decided that this was the perfect opportunity to serve. We went over one morning, set up and decorated a Christmas tree!

It was such a fun activity for us, and it meant the world to her.

We talked about all of the special ornaments and where they came from. We laughed and chatted and had a great time.

My grandma was so appreciative and has been enjoying sitting by the tree at night looking at the lights.

After Christmas, we will visit again to take the tree down. 

We will be doing this exact same service for our widowed neighbor again on December 9th as our way to “visit the lonely.” I am so grateful that my kids get the chance to learn about that good feeling you get when you bring light and happiness into someone else’s life. Hopefully it will help us feel Christ a little more this Christmas.

If you would like to participate in a meaningful service opportunity this holiday season, visit churchofjesuschrist.org where you can find your own way to #lighttheworld.