Church Staff Christmas Party

When it’s Christmas time, every business wants to show their Christmas spirit by having an office party. Sometimes as busy ministry staff we forget to have fun together in the church office. Why not also have an office party for the church staff?

The question is, what are you going to do? No one is going to want to play pin the tail on the donkey. That’s lame. A good Christmas party needs good food and some Christmas games to play while you’re mingling together as a church staff. What kinds of Christmas games are good for an office Christmas party though? You could play gift giving games or have different contests. There are also plenty of fun things to do together like decorating an office Christmas tree.

Door Prizes
First, there is always the solid “door prize give away”, where you give away prizes for those names that get pulled out of a hat. Have a few extra gifts for those that forget to bring one. This ensures that no one goes home without something if they want a gift. While this isn’t a exactly game, people love hearing their own name being called and they also love feeling like they’ve won something cool.

Gingerbread house
Another great idea for a church office party is to have a gingerbread house building contest. Gingerbread house kits are cheap and easy to get. You get a couple of kits and divide your staff into two groups. Then you have a contest to see who can build the best gingerbread house the fastest within a three or four minutes. Use a timer so that you‘ll know when to quit. Whoever has the best or most complete gingerbread house in the specified time frame gets a prize. You can also do this with mini Christmas trees and other “do it yourself” small projects, such as decorating cookies or stringing popcorn and cranberries.

Gift Exchange
Another good Christmas party game is a gift give away game. You pick names out of a hat to see whose turn it is to go. Each person has a small gift (provided by you, and it doesn’t have to be expensive) under the tree so that there is something for everyone. Then when your name is called, the person picks a gift and opens it. Once it’s opened, they can either keep the gift or give it to the next person. The next person picks out a gift for the first person and the first person HAS to keep it, even if it‘s inappropriate for their gender or size. This continues until all the names have been pulled out of the hat. It is interesting because if the first gift isn’t kept it can often continue on until all the men have pink slippers and all the ladies in the office have packages of men’s underwear. Did I say this was a church office party?

Having a church office party can be a disaster when you don’t have any good party games to play or entertainment. With the games that are described above, you can have a lot of fun with just a few simple items and some willing party goers. If this doesn’t work for your office, you can find more games online at Creative Christmas Ideas or convert other holiday themed party games into Christmas party games for adults. Blessed Holidays and good luck entertaining your church staff!

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Christmas Party Snacks and Food ideas

Once again, the holiday season is going full blast, Christmas is getting closer by the day, and you are thinking about throwing a Christmas party for your close friends and family or maybe for your youth group. One of my favorite times as a youth minster is inviting youth and church members to my place for a Christmas Celebration.

Planning for a Christmas Party?
Do you have everything planned out or are you still looking for great party ideas about locations, entertainment, drink, games, and food? All of these are very important things to consider because you want everything to be perfect and who would blame you for that. Of course, perhaps the most important thing to think about and get great ideas for is what you will provide people with to eat at your Christmas party. If you need activity ideas for your Christmas Party, check out Creative Christmas Ideas 

Christmas Party Main Course
With any party and particularly a Christmas party, the most important thing to figure out is what you will serve as a main course particularly if the party is going to be a dinner style party. Different regions of the world have main courses they serve for Christmas, but just because you live somewhere do not think you have to adhere to traditions there. Of course, the old stand bye’s like turkey, lamb, and ham are always very popular amongst diners. However, you may also want to think about serving a goose, duck, or maybe even something Italian like lasagna, which are also favorites of the season.

Christmas Party Side Dishes
Side dishes are also going to be very important to any Christmas feast and they will have to mesh well with the main course or main courses you decide to serve. With most meals, mashed potatoes and sweet potatoes are the main side dishes, but they are not the only option available to you. You really want to have contrast with what you serve with the meal so look at serving something like fresh made cranberry sauce, candied yams, stuffing. Vegetables are also necessary in a Christmas dinner and things like green beans, spinach and even broccoli are good choices and can be made more than one way to give the meal diversity.

Christmas Party Desserts
Everyone’s favorite part of a Christmas party or meal is dessert, and boy there are lots of ideas to choose from too. First off, let us look at some pies ideas for your Christmas party or meal. Pumpkin pie is of course the traditional favorite and they are very tasty too. However, you may want to think about serving a strawberry rhubarb pie or a pecan pie both of which are popular southern desserts served at Christmas time. Cheesecake is a popular dessert that is served at Christmas parties and meals and can be made with different fruit toppings and whipped cream.

Christmas Party Snacks
When throwing a Christmas party or meal snack food is always a good thing to have around so that people do not get hungry while waiting for their dinner. If there is no meal, but just a party snacks are a good idea for a couple of reasons. The first reason is that people like to eat good snacks over the holidays and particularly sweets. Second, if the guests happen to be drinking then snacks will help absorb the alcohol in their system. A couple of good snack ideas are Christmas cookies such as sugar cookies and snack mixes that contain thins like pretzels, peanuts, and dried fruit.

Hopefully, this has given you a few ideas for planning the food and snacks for your Christmas Party. After all, one of h best parts of any Christmas Celebration is the food!

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Christmas Party Entertainment Ideas

Christmas is a great time for getting all of your family, friends, church members and even colleagues together to celebrate the holidays, have a good time, and to create great memories too. A Christmas party is always going to be an excellent way of bringing these groups of people together to have a good time and you can throw a party in almost any venue you choose as well.

Christmas Party Invitations

The first decision you need to make is whom you want to invite to your party. The second decision you will have to make is whether this party is going to be for adults, youth, children, or a mix of the three. The third decision is going to be about entertainment.

 

When you are throwing a family Christmas party for youth, adults and children it is going to be a good idea to have entertainment that both of these groups will enjoy and can enjoy together. There are some classic party favorites that you can turn too for a mixed age Christmas get together such as bobbing for apples, and pin the tail on the donkey. You can get a lot of Christmas games and icebreakers from Creative Christmas Ideas

Music will of course play a big part of any party and this is especially true during the Christmas season so you should have a good selection or at least a playlist of good Christmas music to play. Singing or caroling is also a great entertainment idea for a mixed age party. If you need some handouts for caroling you can get my Christmas Caroling Songsheets

Christmas Party Venue

Over the holidays, many adults will attend at least one party to celebrate Christmas and they will want to go to a party where there is good entertainment and they can have some fun. One thing to consider is the venue you will use for the party and there a couple of good ideas if you are not going to use your home. Renting a banquet hall is one such idea and it is a good idea too. Banquet halls generally have a lot of room, food prep areas, and even a bandstand.

Should you decide to throw a Christmas party in your home or someone else’s home for adults only you will have a couple of entertainment benefits that you would not otherwise have in a public venue. One of the greatest benefits that you will have by using a private residence is that you and your guest will be in more comfortable surroundings, which will help your guests little to relax and enjoy what you have planned. You might want to consider live music and Christmas themed activities that are more suited to adults. Finally, you may want to consider using a caterer, which will not only provide the food, but clean up as well.

Office Christmas Parties

The most common Christmas party that most will attend is the venerable office Christmas party. If the responsibility falls on you to put one of these events together put together a checklist so that nothing will be forgotten. As far as entertainment goes, games and prizes are often a good idea for an office party. Live music is also another great idea when you throw a Christmas party, because it will people to interact and get to know each other better by dancing with each other. Games that remind the partygoers of past Christmas is a great idea too.

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Games and Activities helping youth discover the Reason for the Season.

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How to Make Christmas Snowflakes from Paper

Do you have any idea how easy it is to make Christmas snowflakes? There are several ways to make paper snowflakes for Christmas decorations, and there a ton of wonderful things that you can do with them. So let’s learn how to make your basic snowflake and learn some simple techniques to make the most beautiful decorations for Christmas. Once you get the hang of cutting and folding your paper, it is so easy to make your snowflakes that you will want to show your whole family and even your friends.

All of the snowflakes start out with the same basic fold, and it can be a little complicated at first but once you get the hang of it, you’re golden.

  1. The first step is to find a square sheet of paper. Yes, it must be square.
  2. Next, You fold it in half diagonally so that it forms a triangle, and then fold it in half again so that you have a smaller, four part triangle.
  3. Once you have that, you want to make another fold, but this one is a bit tricky. The corners will overlap after this fold so don’t worry about the paper being caught up in the middle. You would take the left corner and fold it over to the right at an angle, so that you form about a forty-five degree angle with the two triangle points.
  4. Then take the right point of the triangle and fold it over to the left so that the whole looks like a triangle with feet.
  5. When you have that done, cut about a quarter inch above the feet and you have the basis of your snowflake.

Once you have the base of your snowflake, here begins the fun! The next step is to take your scissors and cut out shapes around the edges. They can be triangles, squares, or anything else. If you want to have a Christmas snowflake with a hole in the middle, cut the tip off with a clean snip. If you don’t want a hole in the middle, leave it on there. Since no two snowflakes are the same, use your imagination on what you want it to look like and make any kind of cut notches that you want. Once you’ve done that, unfold and open your paper carefully and voila! You’ve got your very own paper snowflake.

snowflake.JPG

Making snowflakes out of paper for Christmas is one of the most fun projects there is. It’s simple and easy to learn, as well as fun for youth, children and the whole family. When you run out of ideas for decorations, making these snowflakes is an awesome way to compensate as well. A great idea is to take Christmas wrapping paper and make the snowflakes out of it instead of plain white paper. When you are ready to get folding, remember that patience is the answer when you are making these snowflakes and practice makes perfect to get the notches and cuts that you want. It’s easy that.

Take it to the next Level
As each snowflake is unique, this can also be a discussion starter about how God created each of us special and unique and psalm 139.

 

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Early Christmas Shopping

It was Christmas and the judge was in a merry mood as he asked the prisoner,”What are you charged with?”

“Doing my Christmas shopping early,” replied the defendant.

“That’s no offense,” said the judge. “How early were you doing this shopping?”

“Before the store opened.”

 

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No Stress Thanksgiving Party Games for the Whole Family

No Stress Thanksgiving Party Games for the Whole Family to play as they are sitting around the dinner table

Thanksgiving A to Z
– Use this Thanksgiving Activity along with ABC’s of Thanksgiving to encourage family and friends to consider the things they should be thankful for.

Mayflower Memory
– This Thanksgiving Activity for youth and adults tests the memory of those who participate.

Count Your Blessings
– Too often, when families and friends get together we try to outdo each other with a long list of complaints and things we are unhappy about. With this Thanksgiving game, youth and adults are challenged to outdo each other in listing all the blessing they have to be thankful for.

Tearable Turkey – In this simple Thanksgiving Party Game, youth, adults, and children are challenged to rip a sheet of construction paper into the shape of a turkey — behind their back.

Top Turkey Artist
– How well can you draw a turkey when you can’s see what you are drawing?

Thanksgiving Quiz
– Take the thanksgiving quiz and see how much you know about this American Holiday!

Thanksgiving Memory Game
– This Thanksgiving Party game can be used with small or large groups. The key objective is to remember a long and growing list of Thanksgiving related items.

Thanksgiving Boggle
– How many words can you make from the letters in the word “Thanksgiving”

Thanksgiving Trivia Quiz
– How much do you know about the history of Thanksgiving, the pilgrims, The foods we eat at Thanksgiving Dinner, and other things related to the Thanksgiving Holiday Celebration?


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Games and Activities in Celebration of common Holidays.

Creative Holiday Ideas has over 300 pages of ideas to help you plan your next Thanksgiving event with your youth. If you’ve ever wondered what you’re going to do for common holidays and how you’re going to do it, this resource is for you.

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Christmas Carols: Hark! The Herald Angels Sing

Verse 1:
Hark! the herald angels sing
“Glory to the newborn King
Peace on earth and mercy mild,
God and sinners reconciled!”
Joyful, all ye nations rise;
Join the triumph of the skies;
With angelic host proclaim
“Christ is born in Bethlehem!”
Hark! the herald angels sing
“Glory to the newborn King!”

Verse 2:
Christ, by highest heaven adored;
Christ the everlasting Lord;
Late in time behold Him come,
Offspring of the favored one.
Veiled in fl esh, the Godhead see;
hail the incarnate Deity
Pleased as man with men to dwell,
Jesus, our Emmanuel
Hark! the herald angels sing,
“Glory to the newborn King”

Verse 3:
Hail! the heaven-born Prince of Peace!
Hail! the Son of Righteousness!
Light and life to all He brings,
risen with healing in His wings.
Mild He lays His glory by,
born that man no more may die;
Born to raise the sons of earth,
born to give them second birth
Hark! the herald angels sing,
“Glory to the newborn King”

 

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Games and Activities helping youth discover the Reason for the Season.

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Christmas Carols: God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen

Verse 1:
God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen,
Let nothing you dismay;
Remember Christ, our Saviour,
Was born on Christmas day,
To save us all from Satan’s power
When we were gone astray.

Chorus:
O tidings of comfort and joy,
Comfort and joy,
O tidings of comfort and joy.

Verse 2:
In Bethlehem, in Jewry,
This blessed Babe was born,
And laid within a manger,
Upon this blessed morn;
That which His Mother Mary,
Did nothing take in scorn.

Verse 3:
From God our Heavenly Father,
A blessed Angel came;
And unto certain Shepherds
Brought tidings of the same:
How that in Bethlehem was born
The Son of God by Name.

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Christmas Carols: Do You Hear What I Hear

Verse 1:
Said the night wind to the little lamb,
Do you see what I see
Way up in the sky, little lamb,
Do you see what I see
A star, a star, dancing in the night
With a tail as big as a kite
With a tail as big as a kite

Verse 2:
Said the little lamb to the shepherd boy,
Do you hear what I hear
Ringing through the sky, shepherd boy,
Do you hear what I hear
A song, a song, high above the trees
With a voice as big as the sea
With a voice as big as the sea

Verse 3:
Said the shepherd boy to the mighty king,
Do you know what I know
In your palace warm, mighty king,
Do you know what I know
A Child, a Child shivers in the cold
Let us bring Him silver and gold
Let us bring Him silver and gold

Verse 4:
Said the king to the people everywhere,
Listen to what I say
Pray for peace, people everywhere!
Listen to what I say
The Child, the Child, sleeping in the night
He will bring us goodness and light
He will bring us goodness and light

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Christmas Carols: Away In A Manger

Verse 1:
Away in a manger, no crib for His bed,
The little Lord Jesus
Laid down His sweet head;
The stars in the heavens
Looked down where He lay,
The little Lord Jesus asleep on the hay.

Verse 2:
The cattle are lowing, the Baby awakes,
But little Lord Jesus, no crying He makes.
I love Thee, Lord Jesus;
Look down from the sky
And stay by my cradle till morning is nigh.

Verse 3:
Be near me, Lord Jesus;
I ask Thee to stay
Close by me forever and love me I pray!
Bless all the dear children
In Thy tender care,
And fi t us for Heaven
To live with Thee there.

 

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Games and Activities helping youth discover the Reason for the Season.

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Creative Youth ideas: 1700+ Resources for youth leaders, pastors, ministers to help plan camps, retreats, and meetings using games, illustrations, Children's Worship, Bible Studies, object lessons, sermons, creative ideas,creative activities