Seasonal Resources - Advent & Christmas
Advent & Christmas Services
This order is based on the traditional Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols. This festival of readings and carols is a minor service, particularly suitable for Christmas Eve or as close to Christmas Eve as practicable, but it may be held at any time during Advent.
Word | PDF | PPT standard | PPT widescreen
Service with the Christmas story
From 1990 the Commission on Worship has each year provided service orders and resources for congregational worship without communion on Christmas Eve or another suitable time at or near Christmas. This service order is based on some of the more permanent features of these services.
This order is offered as a model, to be adapted according to local requirements. The presentation may be elaborated or simplified, and may involve children, adult readers, musical contributions, mime, lights, slides, sound effects, microphones, costumes, and props.
Word | PDF | PPT standard | PPT widescreen
Click here to get the APRA AMCOS guide to copyright holders for a wide range of Christmas carols.
Christmas Plays
The following Christmas Eve orders and Christmas plays have been prepared for congregational use. The first five were originally prepared by the Board for Congregational Life of the LCA in the 1980s. We present here an edited selection which would be suitable for a variety of situations, with thanks to the original authors. They've been reformatted into Word documents. Feel free to edit them to suit your congregation's needs.
The Elf-angelist Evangelist - a simple play for a small group of children with limited opportunities to practice.
Worship the King - focuses on Jesus the King
Three Questions for Christmas - travel back to Bethlehem for the census with Mary and Joseph!
Hands Up for Jesus! - this PPT which can be used to provide visuals during the service or as ideas for making banners.
Good News From Heaven - based on Martin Luther's famous carol 'From Heaven above'.
Happy Birthday Jesus - cast in the form of a Birthday Party.
And You Will See - deals with the theme of darkness and light and God’s rescue of his people. Written by Alison Barkley and performed by the Jesus And Me (JAM) children at St. Peter's Lutheran Church, Greenock. Accompanying ppt: And You Will See
Christmas A to Z - best suited for a Sunday School with limited resources or mostly very young children.
Someone's Coming - suitable for a reasonable number of children of different ages. Songs are suggestions only.
Surprise, Surprise - there are 10 characters who would have to be slightly older children. Young children could act some of the scenes or be angels or animals.
This Baby Changed My Life - suitable for whole congregation involvement, or perhaps youth and children of all ages, when numbers of children are limited.
The Colours of Christmas - written by Rob Handreck and first performed by the kids of St Paul's Lutheran Church, Box Hill. This is very suitable for a group of young children but can be adapted to include older children too.
News - People Saved By Baby - imagine how things might have been if today’s technology was available in 40AD, and someone just turned on the radio to hear the news...
King of Kings - written by Rob Handreck and first performed by the kids of St Paul’s Lutheran Church, Box Hill. This play traces the Old Testament story of God’s interaction with His people through a selection of kings, finishing with the King of kings.
A Studio Christmas - the director of a photo shoot is organizing a publicity shot for Christmas and begins by getting the nativity scene set up with the usual cast of Mary, Joseph, Animals, Shepherds, Wisemen, Angels and of course, the Baby.
Lutheran Tract Mission
Lutheran Tract Mission have a wide range of Advent and Christmas resources, including:
Stand-up Nativity set (40016 and 40019) These are a great way to have a nativity set in your home, aged care, hospital or children’s gift to take home. They are only $2 each.
Seek & Find (37216) Great as a gift or for Sunday morning children’s activity.
Joy and Peace to you this Christmas (37218) A large print greeting tract to use as a Christmas card to your friends and relatives
That First Christmas (37219) Tell the whole Christmas story with pictures, straight from the Bible, great as an outreach tract or for letterbox drop.
What does the baby Jesus have to do with Christmas? (37221) This is a mission-edge tract to help those unchurched or searching to understand the Christmas season.
Stickers (40018)
God’s love came down (37215) A square text card with a hole to add as a gift card to any gift or to then hang as an ornament from your tree.
