Christmas present ideas for children in Christian families

Take a moment and breath. You’re not the only one who is finding the pressure of Christmas overwhelming and the choice over gifts too much. Whilst children are buzzing with excitement about the presents waiting under the tree, many parents are feeling under significant pressure and stress. Christian retailer Eden.co.uk sees parents “trapped between bowing to the peer pressure their children feel from their non-Christian friends about which presents they want, and the parent’s desire to give them something meaningful.”

whether you’re a family who embraces seasonal “tat” or prefers more “practical presents,” the best gift you can give is your presence

Amongst all the pressures and the joy of this season, whether you’re a family who embraces seasonal “tat” or prefers more “practical presents,” the best gift you can give is your presence. When we choose to be present parents: attentive, engaged, and full of grace, we quietly point our children to the God who is always present with them, their perfect and ever-faithful Father.

As the famous Christmas song says, ’All I want for Christmas is you’ and it’s true. You can’t buy time, but you can give it freely. No matter what is on your children’s Christmas wish-list, the greatest gift you can offer them is you. Time together and memories made will always last longer, and mean more, than anything you can wrap and place under the tree.

Look for presents that spark memories you can carry through the year, that inspire conversation, and that build wholesome family rhythms and relationships

So when you’re thinking about what to bless your child or children with this Christmas, consider gifts that create and capture moments (unless you fancy gift-wrapping yourself!). Look for presents that spark memories you can carry through the year, that inspire conversation, and that build wholesome family rhythms and relationships.

Presents you can wrap, but that also promise time:

• A big family-sized blanket and a new book to read together.
• A board game, or craft activity and a box of treats for a cosy afternoon at home: your own board-game or café on a rainy day.
• An invitation paired with a gift card for a hot-chocolate date with Mum or Dad.

Bibles for Christmas:

• The Hands-On Bible (various covers for girls and boys)
• God’s Big Promises Storybook Bible (perfect for ages 2–8)
• The Action Bible
• The Brick Testament
• The Bible for Minecrafters

Get your kids into journaling this year with Bible markers, stickers, and activity books.

Cosy Christmas books!

• What says Christmas louder than C.S. Lewis’s — Narnia series?
• Newly released: The Place of Endless Lights — Katy Hollamby
• A beloved classic series: Redwall — Brian Jacques
• A beautifully retold classic: Little Pilgrim’s Big Journey

Crafts

• Craft book. There are lots of good craft books that use your recycling, like reusing egg and cereal boxes, toilet rolls and milk bottle lids.
• For hours of creative and imaginative place, Hobbycraft have giant colour-in and build cardboard boats, castles, shop fronts, trains, rockets and more.
• Sewing and felting kits. They are never too young to start sewing, and it’s great for developing fine motor skills.
• Kenetic-sand. All the fun of sand play and playdough without as much mess.

Things for curious minds

• National Geographic for kids magazine subscription.
• National Geographic also has amazing activities to encourage mind young and old to explore the world, space and How things work?
• Encourage the inner explorer with bug hunting kits, binoculars, finishing net or compass.

Games

Think beyond Orchard Toys games—the ones no grown-up really wants to play!

• Junior Ticket to Ride, Carcassonne, or Articulate
• Collaborative games like Hoot Owl Hoot or Rush to Recycle
• Dobble
• NO (in all its forms!)
• And don’t forget the classics: Snakes and Ladders, Guess Who? Backgammon, or Kerplunk.

Create an invitation for an experience

Plan time together—and gift wrap it:

• Cinema tickets
• Mini-golf
• Café gift card
• Ice skating
• Bowling

Eden gift lists

Eden have created 13 guides covering every age from 0–12. They help narrow things down for the age of your child, have a look here.

When all is said and done, it’s not the presents that matter most, but the presence of God and the gift of Jesus. The heart of Christmas is love given, time shared, and the joy of drawing closer to God and to one another. The best gift you can offer your children is yourself: present, intentional, and filled with grace, always pointing them to their Heavenly Father, who eagerly desires to spend time with them.