How to Love Your Neighbor at Christmas for Introverts
Celebrate the season in your own special way!
Whether you’re extroverted or introverted, a party animal or party pooper, God has intentionally placed you in your neighborhood to reach your neighbors in your unique way. As long as you are obedient and intentional, the method you use doesn’t matter.
Check out these tips for celebrating the Christmas story for God’s Glory – which is the true meaning of the season, isn’t it?
For the Minimalist
impromptu
- Hosting an Open House doesn’t have to take weeks of planning and cost lots of money. Host an impromptu get-together with whatever decor your family is already enjoying, and don’t plan games or ice-breakers. Post an invitation on your community Facebook page or issue an e-vite –
- “Let’s say Merry Christmas! Drop in for a visit anytime tomorrow between 3-5:00! We’ll provide beverages, bring an appetizer if you’d like.”
- Provide water, coffee, lemonade, and snacks for the kids. Friends may bring appetizers or fruit/veggie trays. Guests can come and go as they please – this takes the pressure off you and your guests, and you’ll be delighted how many people can drop in for a quick visit.
- While there’s no agenda other than enriching friendships, be intentional about building redemptive relationships by following up with new neighbors or friends in the weeks after the party.
For the Introvert
1-on-1
- If the thought of a big group in your home is exhausting, make a list of three women you’d like to get to know in your neighborhood. Christmas is a marvelous chance to intentionally build new roads to show the love of Jesus to your neighbors.
- Is there a woman who recently went through a divorce? Is new to the area? A lady you met volunteering at the school who seems interesting? Reach out to the Jewish or Muslim, Indian or Asian woman in your neighborhood. As we teach our own children, “To have a friend, you must be a friend.”
- Once you’ve prayerfully recorded three names, ask each woman to go out for coffee individually. If three coffee dates seems like a lot, remember that you don’t have to spend hours preparing your home for a party. That’s worth the price of a cup of coffee!
- You will make someone’s day and, we promise, this will make your Christmas brighter, as well.
For the Front-Porch Partier
outside
- If the thought of inviting people into the everyday drama of your home is daunting, perhaps you can commit to straightening up just the entry way and getting one bathroom spruced up? Yes? Great!
- Invest in (or borrow) a fire pit, stick it in your driveway, and have a Hot Cocoa Party!
- If you have insulated pitchers for hot water/milk, great! Otherwise, you can make cocoa ahead of time and keep it warmed in a slow cooker. Dump marshmallows, candy canes, sprinkles, and whip cream into separate bowls – and suddenly you have the VERY trendy Hot Cocoa Bar!
- Add S’mores or hot dogs to the mix, string popcorn and cranberries in the trees for the birds to enjoy, or build a snowman if your weather cooperates.
- What’s great about a driveway or front-porch party is that passersby can also stop in, spreading the joy even further.
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