As the carol goes, “It’s the most wonderful time of the year,” jam packed with shopping, parties and, for students: finals.

As the shoppers rush home with their treasures

Shopping malls are filled to the brim, as stores stay open longer and prices fall in hopes that more people will spend more money.

Hints start dropping and somehow shoppers have to keep track of who wants what, where the best deals are and how to hide it until Christmas.

Lists are made and “checked twice,” then on Dec. 26, the sought-after, long-desired gift is set on a shelf and forgotten or returned.

What can be given that will last longer and mean more?

There’ll be parties for hosting

As the blissful holiday approaches, friends and family, wards and clubs will all hold annual Christmas parties.

Laughter fills auditoriums, cultural halls and family rooms as people play games, and sing songs, and Santa visits, passing out candy canes and Christmas joy.

Money goes to the dressed turkey, the white elephant gift or the decorations, but while many enjoy parties, what else could be done during the holiday season spread the spirit of Christmas?

Mom and dad can hardly wait for school to start

This year, finals continue up until Dec. 20, stretching the stress further into December than recent years past.

Students have to worry about final exams, projects, white glove and graduation. Time is filled with study groups, reading, writing papers and waiting in lines at the Testing Center.

With everything students have to worry about to receive that “A” grade, when do they have time to think or care about something else?

Joy to the world, the Lord is come

Some 2,000 years ago, the first Christmas gift was given — the Savior, Jesus Christ. While these other events and responsibilities are important, it can be easy to get wrapped up in them and forget what is truly being celebrated – the birth and life of Christ the Lord.

“Christmas is a wonderful time of year. It is a time to celebrate not only the Savior’s birth but also His life and example,” The First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints wrote in December 2005.

As gifts are given and received, and “treasures” are exchanged, think of the more important treasures in life.

Christ, to the Nephite people in the Book of Mormon, said, “But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also,”

Applying this during such a welcoming time of year is no difficult feat.

Lift someone. Write a note, call a friend or tell someone he or she is appreciated.

“Giving, not getting, brings to full bloom the Christmas spirit,” President Thomas S. Monson of the First Presidency wrote in Ensign, December 1995. “Enemies are forgiven, friends remembered, and God obeyed.”

When planning parties for Christmas, remember the words of King Benjamin as he said, “When ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God”(Mosiah 2:17).

During the month of December the Happy Factory, Humanitarian Service Organization and other service groups on campus or in the community hold charity events. For a Christmas party this year, contact a service organization and host an event. Collect clothes or food to donate, purchase items for an angel tree and make a party of it and then have hot chocolate afterward and really spread the Spirit of Christmas.

“The spirit of Christmas illuminates the picture window of the soul, and we look out upon the world’s busy life and become more interested in people than things. To catch the real meaning of the spirit of Christmas, we need only drop the last syllable and it becomes the Spirit of Christ,” President Monson said.

Although time is a precious commodity for students, it is possible to make time for others. Plan it into your schedule; take time out and use it as a release or break from normal life. Take time on Sunday and devote it solely to service or spreading the true Spirit of Christmas.

“As we follow Him and reach out as He did—serving family and loved ones, seeking out those who are sick or hungry or cold or friendless—the joyful spirit of Christmas will enter our hearts,” the First Presidency wrote in A Joyful Season: A Christmas Message from the First Presidency to the Children of the World.

“Then this Christmas, and every Christmas to follow, will be filled with hope and love.”