Jesus Visions

First Christmas in Heaven Poem, Printable with Their Name

Or choose who you are remembering
Seen from behind, Jesus walks with his arm around an old woman along a hillside path under a silver sky.

A poem for the first Christmas without them, to read at the table on Christmas Eve, slip into a card for someone who is grieving, or roll up and hang on the tree. Type their first name, or choose Mom, Dad, Grandma or Grandpa, and the poem fills it in, ready to print. It is free.

For ____________, on your first Christmas in heaven

The lights are up, the table's laid, the house is warm and bright, and in the place where you would sit a candle burns tonight.

We tell the stories you once told, the funny ones and true; we fix the dish you always made, but it's not made by you.

It's your first Christmas, ____________, in heaven's quiet light, and we will miss you more than words can carry here tonight.

But Christmas is the night God came, a child in Bethlehem, so heaven could come close to us, and we can trust you to Him.

So here's one candle, burning bright, and here's your name, said clear; we thank God for the years we had, the years He gave us here.

Merry Christmas, ____________, from home, from all who hold you dear; the love you left us doesn't end, not this or any year.

With love, from all of us who miss you

A verse to read with it

And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.

Revelation 21:4 (KJV)

Ways to share it

  • Read it before the meal on Christmas Eve, then let each person share one thing they remember.
  • Print it on card stock, roll it with a ribbon and hang it on the tree beside something that was theirs.
  • Tuck a copy into a Christmas card for someone else who is missing them this year.
  • Keep one for yourself: many people read it again on the anniversary, or the next Christmas.
  • If this season feels too heavy, tell someone you trust, or talk with your doctor or pastor. In the US, you can call or text 988 at any hour.