Week 696 · about 45 minutes
Ecclesiastes 1
Ecclesiastes 1 · Memory verse Ecclesiastes 1:13
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Queues the lesson plan, this story’s coloring page (Ecclesiastes 1), the matching word search and answer key (Ecclesiastes 1 word search), the memory-verse tracer, and a parent slip.
Five-minute object lesson
Prop: a cup of water
Hold a cup of water. Read Ecclesiastes 1 in about four minutes, stopping at Ecclesiastes 1:13: “I applied my heart to seek and to search out by wisdom concerning all that is done under the sky. It is a heavy burden that God has given to the sons of men to be afflicted with.” Ask, “What does this prop have to do with Ecclesiastes 1?” Let two children answer, then say the memory verse together.
Story script
Ecclesiastes 1 is a real chapter from the Old Testament. It starts, “The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem:” That is not a motto invented for a poster. It is the first sentence a family hears when this page is opened at night.
Keep going a little further. The chapter also says, “Is there a thing of which it may be said, “Behold, this is new?” It has been long ago, in the ages which were before us.” Ecclesiastes 1 opens with these words: “The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem:” The line to keep is Ecclesiastes 1:13: “I applied my heart to seek and to search out by wisdom concerning all that is done under the sky. It is a heavy burden that God has given to the sons of men…” Carry the word “applied” from that verse into the rest of the day.
The line worth learning out loud is Ecclesiastes 1:13: “I applied my heart to seek and to search out by wisdom concerning all that is done under the sky. It is a heavy burden that God has given to the sons of men to be afflicted with.” If the rest of the chapter feels crowded, hold that one sentence until the room is quiet.
What happens first in Ecclesiastes 1? Then try this: Read “I applied my heart to seek and to search out by wisdom concerning all that is done under the sky. It is a…” once more. What does it show you about God? You do not have to finish every verse. You can close the book after the memory verse and still have read the Bible together.
Group game
Walk the room as if you are moving through Ecclesiastes 1. Every time you freeze, a child says one word from Ecclesiastes 1:13. The last child says the whole verse.
Craft
On a US Letter sheet, draw one picture from Ecclesiastes 1 and write Ecclesiastes 1:13 under it. Send it home as tonight’s reminder, not as a decoration contest.
Memory verse
Ecclesiastes 1:13
“I applied my heart to seek and to search out by wisdom concerning all that is done under the sky. It is a heavy burden that God has given to the sons of men to be afflicted with.”
Take-home prayer
Father, thank you for Ecclesiastes 1. Help us remember Ecclesiastes 1:13 when we wake up, and teach us to notice you in an ordinary night. Amen.