The wait is almost over. Christmas is just around the corner, and for those awaiting its arrival, Tuesday can’t come soon enough.

But there’s still some celebrating left to do — namely, on the night before. And if you’re looking for a church to spend Christmas Eve evening in, you might want to consider some of the services taking place right here in Carbon County.

Blue Mountain Community Church in Palmerton will fill the seats of Penn’s Peak in Jim Thorpe for the third year in a row to host their annual Christmas Eve service.

Jennifer Eckhart, associate pastor and worship director, who also oversees the Christmas Eve service, said that the church decided to move their holiday function to Penn’s Peak because their building, on Oak Street in Palmerton, simply couldn’t accommodate everyone.

“This was a great way for us to kind of take the Christmas Eve service outside of our four walls into a place that maybe people are familiar with,” Eckhart said. “We do it there (at Penn’s Peak) because we want there to be enough room for everybody. We don’t want anyone to get turned away.”

Putting together an event requires strategic planning, a substantial amount of time and quite a bit of teamwork, and these Christmas Eve occasions are no exception.

“We put together the service with many, many hands,” Eckhart said of Blue Mountain’s service. “We probably have 100 to 150 people involved in all the aspects of taking church from this building to Penn’s Peak. We have a really great crew of people who have come together to make it happen.”

Blue Mountain Community Church’s service will feature caroling, upbeat music, and a dramatic presentation written and performed by members of the church. Doors open at 4:30 p.m., and the service starts at 6 p.m.

At Sacred Heart Church in Palmerton, parishioners will congregate under the parish’s roof to perform a traditional liturgy: Mass.

“It’s an ancient liturgy that we’ll be celebrating with every Catholic church,” said the Rev. William Campion. “No matter where you are in the world, it will be the same celebration of mass.”

The church’s first mass will be held at 4 p.m. on Monday, and the second at 6:30 p.m.

The building seats 500, but Campion expects the first service will be so busy that some might have to stand throughout the ceremony.

A crowded church on Christmas Eve shouldn’t come as a shock. Citing Google Trends data between 2004 and 2013, in 2014, the Pew Research Center reported that internet searches for the word “church” spike around Christmas.

“I have two masses during the entire year that the church would be standing,” Campion said, talking about the early Christmas Eve mass and the mass on Easter morning.

But there are things to look forward with a packed house. Campion said that before each mass, there will be a prelude of singing hymns, and quite a few classics are in the line up, including “Silent Night, Holy Night,” which will be 200 years old as of this year.

“They’re hymns that everybody will love, and sing,” Campion said. “I think that when you raise up those hymns, they just stir memories in all of our lives.”

And aren’t memories, traditions, humanity — and maybe even song — what the holiday season is all about?

For Campion at least, it is.

“It’s a time filled with nostalgia. It’s a time of prayer. It’s a time of hope. It’s a time to put away our differences,” he said.