Three Ways To Love Your YMCA Around The Holidays

October 31, 2024|CityMovement

Looking for ways to love and serve your YMCA around the holidays? If you are a CITY Movement church or are meeting in a YMCA or community center currently, you have an incredible opportunity to reach out to your community this time of year. While you might be tempted to worry about end of the year giving, large Christmas productions or the perfect moment with the Christmas Eve Candles, here are three ways to direct the attention of your congregation to the YMCA community around them:  

  1. Jump in

What do I mean by “Jump In”? Jump in to whatever the YMCA is already doing. Yep. It’s a mindset shift for most church people. We like to run our own events. We like to make our own slides and posters and t-shirts. But think about it. With running your own events, while there are certainly some freedoms that come with it, there are some burdens. What if you just encouraged your church to show up and “jump in” at the events that are happening at the Y? For example, most YMCA’s have some sort of Thanksgiving event, Christmas event and staff party. What if you chose one of them to come and serve and meet the people that are already there? You might learn that the people that come to those parties would never come to your church event. 

  1. Look around

When you are planning for your church in the crazy months of November and December, the very first look I would recommend is upward. Pray and ask the Lord for wisdom and direction for how to lead your congregation in a worshipful and missional manner. But for the next look, sometimes it is helpful to “look around” and see what other CITY Movement churches are doing. Here’s a few examples: 

  • Advent Prayer Calendar |  This one is happening in a few CITY Churches in the Cincinnati, Ohio area. Their churches are inviting their congregation to pray specifically and intentionally for their Y. Want to join “The Advent Toothbrush Challenge”?y
  • Harvest Dinner  |  Many YMCA’s around the country have a meal for their members. Most meals are served by the staff. This is a great chance for churches to step in and serve the food, allowing the staff to connect with the families and giving them a little respite at the same time. 
  • Staff Gifts  | The most consistent relationships that we have and nurture as CITY Movement churches is often the staff of the YMCA. Being on staff at the YMCA is often a thankless job. More often than not, there is not a huge budget for thanking the staff in practical ways. Budget for your church in such a way to give the staff a Christmas gift during this hectic season. It doesn’t have to be massive, just thoughtful. A Christmas mug filled with some chocolates goes a long way.
  1. Sit Down

This last one might be the most important, but it certainly won’t make the headlines. The encouragement to “sit down” speaks of the ministry of noticing people. The Holidays seem to always bring up memories of lost loved ones. It can stir up emotions of loneliness. Some people dread Christmas because of the hurt and inability to meet expectations. This holiday season, would you be willing to sit down with someone and listen to their story?  Notice where they are and share the hope of Jesus with them. Find someone who is hurting and look to show them mercy and grace.  Don’t be too busy to sit down.