As we journey through Advent and Christmas under this year’s theme, “The Hope of Every Longing Heart,” our Foxboro campus is inviting our church community to explore ways to engage in acts of kindness for our neighbors. We know there's already so many special events filling our schedules, so rather than adding to the noise and stress with too many more extra events, we are inviting you to consider how you can extend joy and hope to others through acts of kindness. We want to celebrate together the great ways we are showing love to others, so please complete our acts of kindness form with your name and how you were able to show kindness (with as little or as much detail as you'd like). You can come back to fill this out as many times as you share some kindness this season. No act is too small, and we have loads of ideas below for all ages and abilities if you need some inspiration.
At our campus, we have invitation cards you can leave with the person/people you share kindness with. It would be amazing for people to experience God's hope and grace through the practical ways we share love with them this season.
Share Your Kindness Story Here
Kindness Ideas:
IDEAS FOR KIDS:
- Draw a Christmas card for a neighbor and leave it on their doorstep.
- Donate mittens, hats, or socks to a church or school collection.
- Bake cookies (with help) and share with teachers or friends.
- Say “thank you” to your school teacher with a small handmade gift.
- Make handmade ornaments and gift them to neighbors.
- Make a bird feeder out of pinecones and peanut butter for the yard.
- Donate a gently loved toy to a local shelter.
- Share their favorite toy/game with a sibling without being asked.
- Color cheerful notes and leave them in library books for others to find.
- Write a “you are awesome” sticky note and leave it on a bathroom mirror.
- Help shovel a neighbor’s walkway or carry their mail.
- Collect spare change for a Christmas charity jar.
- Give a candy cane with a smile to someone at the grocery store.
- Sing Christmas carols (short songs) at grandparents’ or neighbors’ homes.
- Make “thank you” signs for delivery drivers.
IDEAS FOR TEENS:
- Offer free babysitting for a young family at church.
- Write thank-you notes for teachers before Christmas break.
- Make hot chocolate “kits” (cocoa packet + candy cane) and hand them out.
- Wrap gifts for a neighbor or friend who’s overwhelmed.
- Help an elderly neighbor set up Christmas lights.
- Invite someone sitting alone to join their lunch table.
- Write encouraging chalk messages on sidewalks.
- Make a TikTok/reel of positive Advent encouragements and share.
- Host a game night for younger kids in the neighborhood.
- Offer to teach grandparents or older adults how to use a phone app.
- Volunteer to serve food at a local pantry.
- Shovel or rake leaves for someone who can’t.
- Make a playlist of uplifting Christmas songs and share it.
- Hand out candy canes with Bible verses attached.
- Secretly leave encouraging sticky notes in school lockers.
IDEAS FOR FAMILIES:
- Deliver a meal to someone recovering from illness.
- Offer to decorate a Christmas tree for an elderly neighbor.
- Make an Advent “reverse calendar” by putting an item in a donation box each day.
- Bake a pie and deliver it to a community worker (fire, police, library).
- Invite a neighbor to join in decorating cookies.
- Donate grocery store gift cards anonymously to a family in need.
- Host a Christmas movie night and invite friends.
- Pray for a different neighbor each night during Advent.
- Donate gently used coats to a coat drive.
- Make blessing bags (hats, gloves, snacks) for unhoused neighbors.
- Pay for someone’s coffee or meal in a drive-thru.
- Write letters of appreciation to military service members.
- Leave a generous tip at a restaurant with a note of thanks.
- Bring Christmas cards to a hospital or fire station.
- Ring Salvation Army bells together.
- Invite someone who may be lonely to Christmas dinner.
- Adopt a family through a local holiday gift program.
- Host a “caroling walk” in the neighborhood.
- Hand-deliver poinsettias to nursing home residents.
- Leave a basket of snacks and drinks for delivery drivers.
IDEAS FOR FOLKS WITH LIMITED MOBILITY:
- Write encouraging notes or Christmas cards for neighbors.
- Text a daily Advent Bible verse or encouragement to someone.
- Call someone who may feel lonely during the holidays.
- Pray intentionally for one person each day of Advent.
- Share your favorite Advent/Christmas memory with a friend.
- Share a favorite Christmas recipe with a friend.
- Compliment three people in one day.
- Post a hopeful message on social media.
- Create a gratitude list and share it with loved ones.
- Send a voice memo prayer or song to a friend.
- Lend a favorite Christmas book or movie.
- Share extra Christmas decorations with someone who doesn’t have any.
- Knit or crochet something small to give away.
- Offer to read a Christmas story over the phone to a child.
IDEAS FOR SMALL GROUPS:
- Organize a coat or mitten drive at church.
- Sponsor a refugee family’s Christmas meal.
- Go Christmas caroling at a nursing home.
- Deliver hot cocoa and donuts to outdoor workers.
- Pack and deliver Christmas food baskets.
- Host a car wash fundraiser to support a holiday cause.
- Host a free gift-wrapping station at the mall or church.
- Provide childcare during a church event so parents can rest.
- Sponsor and decorate a Christmas tree for a local charity.
- Hold a toy drive for a children’s hospital.
- Collect baby items for a crisis pregnancy center.
- Organize a Christmas card-writing night for prison ministry.
- Serve a meal at a homeless shelter together.
- Collect socks and underwear for a shelter.
- Put on a Christmas play for kids at church.
- Partner with Meals on Wheels to deliver Christmas cheer.
- Partner with a local school to provide classroom supplies.
- Decorate a community space (town hall, library) with permission.
- Host a “cookie swap” where leftovers are donated to first responders.
- Put together care packages for missionaries.
IDEAS FOR INDIVIDUALS:
- Write 5 handwritten Christmas cards to people who impacted you this year.
- Offer to run errands for a sick friend.
- Donate blood as a gift of life.
- Pay someone’s toll on the highway.
- Pay for someone’s groceries in line behind you.
- Carry an extra umbrella and give it away on a rainy day.
- Call a relative you haven’t spoken to in a while.
- Smile and thank every store worker you interact with.
- Leave quarters at a laundromat.
- Leave a gas station gift card tucked at the pump.
- Volunteer at a local shelter or food pantry.
- Deliver homemade bread or treats to coworkers.
- Donate blankets to an animal shelter.
- Send flowers anonymously to someone going through a hard time.
- Leave a kind review for a small business you love.
