Original post by Brian M. Griffin, Nov. 12, 2025
Just when you got low-key good at planning the perfect Gen Z Christmas party, along comes Gen Alpha to the youth group. Now you’re not sure if “low-key” hits different (or when you started talking this way).
In other words, you might be feeling a little out of date as you think about the holiday season with your youth group this year.
You’re not alone.
Our FYI team has been hearing new questions from leaders as Generation Alpha (young people born roughly 2010 or later) arrives in their middle and high school ministries. Who are these kids? How are they different? And what needs to change so we can better reach and disciple them?
Over the past year, we’ve explored what others have learned about today’s generation and conducted our own research with nearly 3,000 young people on the cusp of Gen Z and Gen Alpha. In January, we’ll release our first research report and unpack the findings in an exclusive online training. Registration opens December 1, 2025. Fill out this form to be the first to know when registration goes live.
Today, we’d love to gift you with a sneak peek of our findings with these ideas for planning Advent and Christmas activities with Gen Alpha in mind.
What’s special about Gen Alpha that connects with the holiday season?
Advent is an ancient Christian tradition that marks the four weeks leading up to Christmas Day by focusing on themes of hope, peace, joy, and love. It’s a season to remember that waiting is part of the deal for Christians and a time to wonder about the mystery of the incarnation, God becoming flesh.
From what we know so far about Gen Alpha as they age up into their teens, we can connect these themes with some unique generational dynamics to better reach and disciple them. Here are just a few research highlights I’ll explore in the seasonal ideas that follow:
- Family remains in the forefront. Influenced by both Millennial parenting styles and all that time at home during the pandemic, Gen Alpha is more likely to view family as their main source of identity, belonging, and purpose. They turn to family members first for support, guidance, and faith—and those caregivers need churches’ partnership.
- Belonging drives just about everything for young people, including discipleship. Most teen spirituality is not solitary, but social.
- Listening is discipleship, not just an inroad to something more important. And good listening is critical as we support young people’s mental health and wellbeing.
- Wonder opens up faith through experiences of the sacred, which young people need to make meaning and form a lasting faith of their own.
- Embodied faith moves young people toward meaning and connection. This generation is starting to rebalance their online and offline lives—some even preferring adolescence in analog—and we can help.
Plan family-forward
According to recent research, Generation Alpha turns to family more than any other source for guidance in areas such as faith, gender, sexuality, and big life decisions. (Yes, including boys, who still say they turn to parents first for help when facing tough situations.) While previous generations of teens looked to peers or adults beyond the home, a majority of this generation go to family first. In part, this reflects the impact of intentional Millennial parenting that emphasizes emotional awareness, self-expression, and choice. It’s also likely a function of the pandemic’s shrinking of social circles during Gen Alpha’s childhood. Most households just spent a lot more time together.
While holiday advertising, movies, and social media can heighten expectations, we can best support families by partnering to help them stay connected rather than competing for teens’ time and attention.
Advent ideas centering families:
- Provide families with short Advent devotional guides that include discussion questions connecting seasonal themes to faith. Include conversation starters about topics like holiday memories, the struggles and rewards of waiting, finding joy when there’s so much suffering in the world, and how different generations experience hope or peace during challenging times. (Don’t stress about design and print—these can be delivered by email one week at a time.)
- Challenge students to interview grandparents, parents, or extended family members over the holidays, asking about meaningful Christmas traditions, family stories of hope, or how their faith has sustained them through challenges. Give students a list of sample questions and invite them to get creative through digital storytelling projects or collecting recipes at family meals.
Make Christmas memories that boost belonging
Belonging is a hallmark of adolescence and has been a focus in our research for years. Young people are asking, “Am I safe to be myself here? Will I be seen and valued?” This vulnerable need for belonging shapes how they engage with church, school, and digital spaces—including during the season of Advent.
The holidays are about belonging because they are about making memories. When a teenager creates a memory with other teenagers, that shared experience makes them feel like they belong. So in your ministry’s memory-making this year, focus on activities that boost belonging.
Advent ideas focused on belonging:
- Instead of “Secret Santa,” create “Christmas Circles” of 4-6 students and a leader who journey through the season together, sharing weekly check-ins about hopes, fears, and what they’re waiting for in their own lives alongside the unfolding biblical narrative. (If you already have regular small groups, just work this practice into the rhythm for the season.)
- Make a new memory through a holiday party, service opportunity, or by launching a new group tradition. If you have longstanding traditions in your ministry around this season that can’t be altered (without losing your job), look for ways to help newer students feel included and make memories that enfold them into the larger group narrative.
Lead by listening
New research this year from Future of Faith found that when a young person feels heard, it is a direct catalyst for belief. Two-thirds of teenagers report spiritual growth when they share their beliefs and are received with listening rather than judgment, compared to only one-third who report the same after listening to a sermon. In other words, listening itself is an act of faith formation.
Listening well is also a key to supporting young people in their mental health struggles. Persistent sadness or hopelessness are common for many teens, and while professional intervention is necessary for clinical needs, caring adults can often do a lot of good by offering a consistent listening ear to a young person.
Advent’s themes of hope, peace, joy, and love can stir up negative responses in young people who aren’t feeling very on-theme in their own lives. When we can acknowledge this and make space to listen to what students are going through, we can be part of their circle of care.
Advent ideas for listening and supporting mental health:
- Host an “Advent-SADvent” gathering (or “Silent Night,” if you don’t think SADvent would go over well in your context) where students can honestly express disappointment, grief, depression, or anxiety about the holidays. This could look like a quieter evening focused on prayer and reflection, or a moment in your regular meetings that acknowledges more painful experiences of the season. It can be helpful for students to remember that Jesus chose vulnerability in becoming fully human and identifies with our hurt as well as our joy. (Bonus: If you live in the Northern Hemisphere and logistically can plan this for December 21st, tap into the “longest night” connection with lament.)
- Practice “Advent sabbaths” by creating pressure-free zones during the busy holiday season. Offer quiet spaces for reflection, rest, and wonder to give students a break from grind culture. Advent’s theme of waiting teaches patience as a spiritual discipline rather than a failure to have life figured out.
- Prioritize follow-ups with students who seem to be struggling, ensuring an adult on your team takes time to truly listen to whatever might be going on.
Make room for wonder
Adolescents develop more capacity for abstract “transcendent” thinking between ages 14-18, and research shows that practicing this emerging skill in the teen years is linked with more significant identity development and life satisfaction in young adulthood. Creating space for abstract reflection and meaning-making in youth ministry is important.
If the Christmas season is about anything, it’s about wonder! The great news is that we can lean into the mystery of Christ’s incarnation and sacred miracle at the center of this story.
Advent ideas for tapping into wonder and awe:
- Facilitate discussions around Advent’s “big questions,” such as Why did God choose to come as a vulnerable baby?, What does it mean to wait well?, or How do we find hope when the world feels dark? Reflecting on artwork or walking in nature can help cue up these conversations by stirring a sense of openness and awe.
- Introduce contemplative practices like Lectio Divina with seasonal Bible passages or a guided meditation on Mary and Joseph’s journey to Bethlehem. Or, turn the traditional Advent wreath lighting into a prayer practice, spending time in silence reflecting on each week’s theme and inviting students to journal or draw these reflections. (Here are 6 more ways to read the Bible together during this season.)
Keep faith embodied
While they’ve grown up very connected online, post-pandemic research shows Gen Alpha increasingly wants in-person connection. Nearly a majority of young people say they prefer unstructured, in-person time with friends over organized activities.
When we’re working with young people, it’s important to make experiences interactive and embodied. Movement and hands-on learning aren’t just classroom strategies at school; they’re essential to help young people engage now and remember later.
Advent ideas for action and connection:
- This season hits all the senses. Take advantage of the abundance of candles, greenery, textures, and scents to create tactile worship and prayer experiences for students. Allow them to physically participate in lighting candles, building nativity scenes, or creating Advent wreaths with their hands (here are a few recommended ideas).
- Organize “Advent wandering” experiences like prayer walks, outdoor caroling, or serving at a local nonprofit where students can embody the gospel through physical presence and action. Frame Advent service projects around “small incarnations”—simple, daily acts of love—rather than large-scale events, helping students see that God uses ordinary moments and doesn’t require them to reach the whole world.
Praying For Our Weary World At Christmas
Prayer helps young people deepen their connection with God, and can help them embrace the hope Jesus brings to their circumstances. Through this prayer station activity, you’ll lead your group to notice any weariness they might be experiencing and reflect on Jesus’ birth as an opportunity for weary hearts to rejoice. Your teens can use the exercises introduced in these prayer stations any time they want to celebrate the hope and light Jesus brings to their lives.
Formation 