Christmas Media Ideas for 2023!
The 2023 holiday season is almost here! Churches, teams, volunteers, staff, and congregations are gearing up for their annual Christmas services. Whether you’re a church leader veteran or someone who’s planning a Christmas service for the first time, Shift Worship’s Christmas Idea Page is here to make holiday service planning the easiest and most memorable it’s ever been. Our special idea page is the ultimate resource of media that will bring the true spirit of Christmas to your congregation.
Preview the New Collections
Shift Worship’s priority is to always be at the forefront of providing high-quality media resources, and this holiday season is no different. The Christmas Idea Page provides an exciting sneak peek at three new collections set to be released before Christmas. Each collection was thoughtfully designed to help tell the spread the faith of Christ’s birth in a fresh and captivating way:
1. Christmas Manger – A unique twist on the classic nativity scene, this collection combines art with the timeless story of Jesus’ birth.
2. Nostalgic Christmas Villages – Take a trip down memory lane with a timeless Christmas village atmosphere.
3. Christmas Flourish – Set the Christmas tone with dynamic and colorful backgrounds.
Other Christmas Collections
In addition to these brand-new collection, Shift Worship’s Christmas Idea Page provides links and images to other collections that are perfect for your Christmas services. Whether you’re looking for traditional, contemporary, or Advent-focused resources, there’s something for every need. Each collection is designed to fit your sermon or service topic! (Pro tip: Use your membership or sign up for a free trial to customize these collections)
Benefits of Planning Holiday Services in Advance
Planning your holiday services beforehand is something that we highly recommend! Not only does it reduce stress, but it also provides the following benefits:
1. Freedom to be Creative: Creativity requires inspiration, and we all know that does not happen overnight. Planning ahead creates room for idea to flow, mistake to be made, and the best services to be produced.
2. Volunteer Engagement: Know exactly what you need this holiday season! Plan ahead for special events connected to your services, and make sure that everyone has the opportunity to see and hear the amazing creation come to life. By having a plan, you can communicate that with others, who will only assist in reaching the end goal together.
3. Create Excitement for Service: Send a preview of the service to the congregation, neighbors, friends – anyone who would benefit from the message. This preview can encourage people to attend!
4. Prepare Spiritually: Calling all pastors, and leaders! Knowing what content your service will have, you will be able to allow God to work through with you with minimal distractions.
The Importance of Christmas Services
Christmas is way more than just gifts, trees, snow, and fancy cookies; it’s the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ. Church services play a crucial role in refreshing everyone of the true meaning of Christmas (Charlie Brown who?). These services offer a space for reflection, worship, and community, allowing all attendees to connect with the heart of the Christian faith.
Christmas services also serve as an open invitation to those who might not regularly attend church. It’s a time when people are more receptive to the message of hope, love, and salvation. These services can be a bridge for those seeking spiritual answers and a sense of belonging.
Shift Worship’s Christmas Idea Page is the best place to receive an inspired and organized Christmas service planning experience. With a sneak peek at our upcoming collections and an array of existing resources, you can create meaningful, engaging, and transformative Christmas services that will leave a lasting impact on your congregation and community. So, start planning ahead and be ready to embrace the beauty and significance of Christmas this holiday season.
Shift Worship Tips: Beautiful Day Collection
Welcome to Shift Worship Tips! In this video, Mariah and Dale highlight one of our newest collections, Beautiful Day. It is a great collection to use during the spring, summer, or any time of the year when you just want to brighten up your service.
A cool thing about every collection on Shift Worship is that there are so many different visuals to choose! In the video, Dale shares how to assemble just some of the backgrounds to create a cohesive worship service. Dale uses Keynote to demonstrate how to import and organize these graphics into your service plan. You don’t need to use Keynote… our content works with all types of worship presentation software!
Starting service with a countdown is always a good way to go! It creates excitement and prepares people to be engaged in the service. After a countdown, we suggest using a Welcome slide. Did you know that Shift Worship also offers a welcome background for your live-streaming service?
Social media graphics are another great way to create cohesion with your Sunday service. Mariah uses Quick Editor in the video to demonstrate our custom design tool, Quick Editor! Once the editing is finished, you can download it straight to your computer.
(Pro tip: Make sure your ratio is 1:1 when editing social graphics)
A Creative Collision: Shift Worship Sponsors AI & the Church Hackathon Hosted By Gloo
AI & The Church Hackathon
In a world where technology is reshaping our future, innovation has never been more critical. Shift Worship recently had the incredible opportunity to sponsor AI & the Church Hackathon, hosted by Gloo in Boulder, Colorado. The event attracted an astonishing 41 diverse teams, each showcasing their creative prowess in
the field of using artificial intelligence for the Church’s benefit. The hackathon was a testament to the immense potential of AI and how to use it for good. For those who want to relive the excitement, we’ve included a link to the video of the event!
A Surge of Creativity
With 41 teams in competition, the hackathon was a whirlwind of creative energy and innovation. Participants ranged from seasoned AI experts to aspiring students, each contributing their unique expertise and perspectives. The main goals? To use AI for good, and meet the needs of the church.
The Nine Winning Products
The hackathon concluded with an awards ceremony that celebrated the most groundbreaking AI solutions. Below, we highlight the nine winning products, each a testament to the power of AI to help the church grow and prosper.
- Best Overall Value to the Ecosystem: Basil Tech
Details: Basil Tech created an app called ‘Kidechisms’, which provides a unique tool that educates children with spiritual information. The app can also assist parents with implementing the foundation of biblical doctrine as well as Christian practices.
- Best Tech: Innov8 Reach
Details: Innov8 developed a personalized AI advertising experience that helps organizations connect to churches with unmet needs.
- Best Generative AI Tool: Pastors.ai
Details: This team created an AI Voice Chatbot that responds to questions based on pastor teachings and voices. The Chatbot allows questions and communication to be met in a more intimate and comforting way.
- Best Product Design: Bible Mate
Details: Say hello to an AI Bible Study! This tool was created to help individuals study the bible with real-time answers to questions, advice, and increased biblical knowledge.
- Best Storytelling: Marriage Score
Details: Marriage Score created an AI-based app that is designed to answer questions submitted by each spouse, create customized challenges, and generate conversational responses.
- Best In Category ‘Streamlining Church Administration’: Deep Space Robots
Details: This team developed a web app called Accord.us. This app allows pastoral teams to build, schedule, and manage volunteer teams with ease and efficiency.
- Best In Category ‘Equip The Church’: Alpha International
Details: Alpha International created a chatbot within their app, Beta. With the intent of providing support and opportunities, the chatbot reduces time and investment for those practicing the Alpha Course Material.
- Best In Category Intimacy with God: Servant.io
Details: This team designed an app that assists users while they are dealing with personal struggles. Using AI, behavioral data can be u
sed to reveal new growth opportunities.
- Best In Category Beyond Boundaries: Biblechat.ai
Details: Creating an AI platform, AiForTheChurch.org- this team enabled Christian organizations to align custom LLMs to their biblical doctrine.
Relive the Excitement
If you missed the AI hackathon, or if you simply want to relive the excitement of the event, check out the video of the hackathon here. It’s a fantastic opportunity to witness the innovative solutions and creative energy that unfolded during the event!
Shift Worship would love to thank Gloo for allowing us to sponsor this amazing event that is using technology to advance and better the church!