Proverbs, Ecclesiastes

LESSON #1 TRUST, DON’T LEAN (PROVERBS 3-4)

TRUTH:

So here’s the destination that the entire lesson points to. When our students leave our class, this is what we want to have landed in their heads and in their hearts. 

If I trust God’s wisdom to guide my choices instead of relying on my own, then He will direct my path toward greater light.

FIRE IN THE BONES:

To help give you some fire in the bones here, I feel this may be one of the most important, fundamental principles of living as a disciple of Christ. And that’s the idea of trust. Trusting God over ourselves, and trusting God over the world. Our own reasoning may feel convincing at times and the world may speak with great confidence and eloquence about what it feels is right or will make us happy, or successful. Proverbs 3-4 invites us to recognize the limits of our mortal perspective and turn to a being of infinite light and knowledge for guidance.

ICEBREAKER:

Time: 2 minutes

If possible, you could display a climbing rope, carabiner, harness, or even just a photograph of someone rappelling. You could then ask if anyone has ever been rappelling before. I imagine that in most classes you’ll have at least some who had that experience. You can invite them to share what that experience was like.  And I’ve been taking people rappelling for years and almost universally, that first experience is an intimidating one.  I mean, there comes that moment when you just have to trust the person who’s instructing you and trust the gear. You might say something like:

Imagine standing at the top of a cliff preparing to rappel for the first time. The person guiding you tells you to turn around, step backward toward the edge, lean away from the rock, and place your weight (and in a way, your life) into the rope.

Almost everything inside you screams, “That doesn’t feel right.” Your instincts tell you to cling to the wall and keep your weight on your own feet. But the guide understands the rope, the anchor, the harness, and the entire system in a way that you don’t.

At some point, you have to decide whether you will TRUST.

Then ask:

At what moment does confidence in the rope or guide actually become trust?

The likely answer is: when the person places their weight into it.

TRANSITION:

2 Minutes

Now be careful not to let that illustration get away from you. We don’t dwell too much on this portion of the lesson and end up having 5 people describe their first rappelling experience. Move with purpose. Share the illustration briefly and then transition to the lesson by saying something like:

That’s the image I’d like you to keep in mind as we read a few verses from Proverbs 3 and 4. Trust becomes real when we’re willing to act and place our weight upon it.

Now, rappelling may not be the place where you struggle with trust, but I’m guessing you’ve probably felt a similar conflict in other parts of your life. Imagine God is the guide and the rope is his commandments, his gospel, his instructions. Have you ever stood on the cliff of knowing what God or the gospel was asking you to do, but another part of you thought, “I’m not sure that makes sense” or “I’m not sure I want to do that?” Then we can give them some examples to consider.

Maybe you’ve felt that with tithing. God asks us to trust Him with our finances, while our own understanding says, “I could really use that money somewhere else.”

Maybe someone has hurt you, and the Savior asks you to forgive, while every instinct inside you just wants to retaliate, hold onto the anger, or make sure they pay for what they did.

Other examples:

Living the law of chastity when the surrounding culture has basically given up on it, and treats personal desire and consent as the only necessary standards.

Accepting a calling or responsibility when life already feels full.

Don’t answer this out loud, but I want you to think of one place in your life where God’s understanding and your understanding—or the world’s understanding—seem to be at odds, pulling you in different directions. What’s your symbolic cliff? An area in your life where you’re standing on the edge, God and his gospel are telling you to lean back and trust the rope, but your own mind is screaming at you to stay still. Hold that situation in your mind, because there are two verses in Proverbs 3 that were written for moments exactly like that.

SEARCH ACTIVITY:

4-5 Minutes

Now invite your class to read Proverbs 3:5-6 looking for the answers to these 3 questions. Display them on the screen or write them on the board.

1. What are we being asked to do?

2. What are we being asked not to do?

3. What does God promise to do?

And they’ll find them. You

1. Trust in the Lord with all thine heart.

2. Lean not unto our own understanding.

3. And if we’ll follow that counsel, God promises to direct our paths.

And I know, it’s a simple principle, but incredibly profound in its implications. 

Invite your students to express the truth taught by these verses by filling in the following blanks.

If I . . .

Then . . .

Take one or two responses, and then say, “Here’s how I worded it:”

If I trust God’s wisdom to guide my choices instead of relying on my own, then He will direct my path toward greater light.

DISCUSSION QUESTION:

2-3 Minutes

A simple discussion question. Why is that so hard to do sometimes? And that should generate some really good, thoughtful answers.

“Because we can’t see what’s going to happen.”

“Because our own ideas make more sense to us.”

“We want to be in control.”

“God’s way may require us to give something up.”

“The world’s advice can sound more convincing.”

“Everyone around us may be choosing something different.”

TEACHER INSIGHT:

3 Minutes

Now this is where we might want to take a minute as the teacher and teach. You might say:

Proverbs isn’t telling us to stop thinking or seeking understanding. In fact, Proverbs repeatedly encourages us to seek wisdom and understanding. The warning is against leaning upon our own understanding or placing the full weight of our choices on a perspective that is limited.

Our perspective is limited by our own experiences, what we currently feel, what other people tell us, and what we can see right now. God isn’t limited by any of those things. He sees consequences we can’t see, possibilities we haven’t considered, and an eternal destination that’s hidden from our present view. You might notice the two uses of the word “all” in those verses. Trust him with ALL your heart, and ALL thy ways. God isn’t only asking for casual trust or to only consult Him when we’re desperate or when we already agree with Him. He wants a place in ALL our ways. That means our relationships, our priorities, standards, plans, our decisions, and most importantly, our ACTIONS.Think again about that first-time rappeller standing at the edge of the cliff. Imagine that the guide has inspected the equipment, secured the anchor, checked the harness, and carefully explained what to do. But then the rappeller says, “I don’t want to do it that way. I’ll do it my own way. I don’t need your silly instructions.”

What would the guide say? Probably something like, “Please trust me. I know how this works and I’ve done it for a long time. Some of my instructions may feel unnatural, but they’re designed to help you to be safe. If you ignore them and rely only on your own understanding, you’re placing yourself in danger.”

I wonder if we sometimes respond to God in the same way. And he just looks back at us with sadness and calmly says, “Trust me. I’ve been a God for a long time. I know what I’m doing. I know what leads to happiness and success in the end. I can guarantee your spiritual safety as long as you listen to my instructions.” Now God doesn’t promise that trusting Him will make every part of the journey easy or painless. Leaning back over the edge of the cliff is hard. But He does promise to direct our path. Trusting God means allowing His wisdom to guide what we actually do, even when our own understanding is pointing somewhere else.

SEARCH ACTIVITY: THE PROMISE OF THE PATH

2 Minutes

And here’s where you may have to look at the time and decide whether you have enough to quickly show them one of God’s promises.  Say: In Proverbs 3:6 God promised to direct our paths. Proverbs 4 gives us a picture of where his path leads.

Then invite someone to read Proverbs 4:18 and ask: What does this verse add to the promise that God will direct our path?

Proverbs 4:18

¹⁸ But the path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day.

Next, choose to either do a “Take it To Heart question” or an “I Will Go and Do.” No need to do both. 

TAKE IT TO HEART:

1-2 Minutes

If you wish to help your students take this truth to heart, I suggest you share a personal experience from your own life where you showed trust in God even when your own understanding was pulling you in a different direction. Maybe it was a time you accepted a difficult calling, paid your tithing when finances were tight, made a sacrifice that was difficult, or kept a commandment when everybody around you wasn’t. Whatever you share, be sure to illustrate how trusting God made things better in the end.  How he directed your path.

I WILL GO AND DO:

1-2 Minutes

OR, for an I will go and do, you could invite your students to ponder the following and give them at least 30 seconds of silence to think about it: Where in my life am I most tempted to trust my own understanding or the world’s opinions more than God?

Then:

What could I do to show that I’m willing to place more of my weight upon Him?

TAKEAWAY:

2 Minutes

Then conclude with the following takeaway slide which shows a person placing their weight on a rope as they lean over the edge of a cliff.  Then say something like this:

As you look at this person placing their weight into the rope, remember that this is the moment when trust becomes real. He can stand at the top all day saying he believes the rope will hold him, but eventually he has to lean back and allow it to carry his weight.

The same is true of our trust in God. There will be times when our own understanding, or the opinions of the world, will point us in another direction. We may not see every consequence or understand every turn in the path. But God sees what we can’t.

So . . .TRUST HIM. With ALL your heart, and in ALL your ways. Even the tough ones. Allow Him to direct your paths. And that path may not always be easy, but it will lead toward greater light. You will be spiritually safe. And in the end, it will lead you back to Him. Because he’s not only at the top of the cliff instructing you. He’s also waiting for you at the bottom. And when you get there, there will be a smile, a hug, and a reward greater than anything you can imagine now.

OPTIONAL LESSON IDEAS:

ADDITIONAL SCRIPTURES:

If more time is available, you could read some or all of the following verses and ask your students which promise or image is most meaningful to them.

Proverbs 4:11–12

11 I have taught thee in the way of wisdom; I have led thee in right paths.

12 When thou goest, thy steps shall not be straitened; and when thou runnest, thou shalt not stumble.

The footnotes explain that “straitened” can mean distressed or hampered.

Proverbs 4:19

19 The way of the wicked is as darkness: they know not at what they stumble.

Proverbs 4:25–26

25 Let thine eyes look right on, and let thine eyelids look straight before thee.

26 Ponder the path of thy feet, and let all thy ways be established.

QUOTE:

You could share this quote from Elder Ulisses Soares.

“It takes a courageous and a willing heart to pause and pursue an honest and meek introspection to acknowledge the presence of weaknesses of the flesh in our life that may impede our ability to submit ourselves to God, and ultimately decide to adopt His way rather than our own. The ultimate test of our discipleship is found in our willingness to give up and lose our old self and submit our heart and our whole soul to God so that His will becomes ours.”

(Conference Report, Oct. 2024 “Aligning Our Will With His”)

HANDOUT:

Since this principle is such a foundational one, perhaps a simple “take home” handout would be appropriate. Pass one out to each student and invite them to place it somewhere they will see it to remind them to trust the Lord’s guidance even when their own understanding pulls them in a different direction.

LESSON #2 A WORD TO THE WISE (Proverbs)

TRUTH:

If we seek God’s wisdom in the scriptures, it can guide us through life’s challenges and questions.

FIRE IN THE BONES:

Now what I love about this particular lesson approach is that it gives learners the opportunity to discover the relevance of the scriptures for themselves. I believe that the book of Proverbs, though ancient, speaks directly to modern problems and challenges: things like anger, friendship, honesty, work, money, self-control, and the way we talk about others. Hopefully by the end of this lesson our students understand that the value of Proverbs isn’t only for teaching people from the past. It’s speaking to them. And once our students have experienced finding personally needed direction in the scriptures, they’ll be that much more likely to return to them again and again.

ICEBREAKER:

2 Minutes

To begin the lesson, you could display a few humorous bumper stickers. I wouldn’t use too many here. We’re looking for a quick, light opening that leads us into Proverbs.

Here are four possibilities:

I THOUGHT I WAS INDECISIVE. NOW I’M NOT SO SURE.

YES, THIS IS MY TRUCK, NO, I WON’T HELP YOU MOVE.

KEEP THE DREAM ALIVE: HIT THE SNOOZE BUTTON.

DO YOU FOLLOW JESUS THIS CLOSELY?

Give your students a moment to read and react to them, and then just ask:

What makes a good bumper sticker memorable?

They’ll probably suggest things like:

• It’s short.

• It’s clever.

• It’s direct.

• It’s easy to remember.

• It says a lot in only a few words.

After taking a few quick responses, you might say something like:

I wouldn’t call Proverbs a collection of ancient bumper stickers because Proverbs is so much more than that. But they do have something in common. Proverbs takes good, inspirational advice and expresses it in a short, direct, and memorable way.

So the purpose of Proverbs isn’t to make us laugh or merely sound clever, it has a much higher purpose.

SEARCH ACTIVITY-THE PURPOSE OF THE PROVERBS:

Now invite someone from your class to read Proverbs 1:1–5. But before they read, ask them to look for the purpose of the proverbs. What do they notice?

And this is what it says:

¹ The proverbs of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel;

² To know wisdom and instruction; to perceive the words of understanding;

³ To receive the instruction of wisdom, justice, and judgment, and equity;

⁴ To give subtilty to the simple, to the young man knowledge and discretion.

⁵ A wise man will hear, and will increase learning; and a man of understanding shall attain unto wise counsels:

So they should have noticed things like:

• Wisdom

• Instruction

• Understanding

• Knowledge

• Learning

• Wise counsel

See, that’s the purpose of the Proverbs. They aren’t merely clever observations from the ancient world. Proverbs contains wisdom, understanding, knowledge that the Lord has preserved to help guide His children in all ages. Today we’re going to get a small taste of some of that wisdom. And rather than having all of us study the same subject today, I’m going to let you choose the counsel that feels most useful to you.

HANDOUT ACTIVITY:

6-7 Minutes

At this point, pass out the “A Word to the Wise” handout.

Now what this handout does is it gives your students ten different situations or questions that they might want help with. Each situation is followed by several verses from Proverbs that address that challenge in some way.

I would explain the activity like this:

Read through the situations and choose one that you would like to understand better.

Study the verses next to that situation and look for one verse or phrase that feels especially helpful to you. Then write down what you believe it teaches and why you feel that counsel could be useful. I’m going to give you about 5 minutes to do this and then give some of you a chance to share what you discovered. If you finish one question and still have time, feel free to choose another, or as many as you can.

CLASS SHARING

Time: 6–7 minutes

After they’ve studied, the next portion of the lesson is where I would protect the greatest amount of time. We want to give the students a chance to hear the different kinds of wisdom their classmates have discovered.

Then invite approximately four or five students to share:

As they share, I would be careful not to give a lengthy response after every answer. A brief acknowledgment may be all that’s needed. We want to allow their discoveries to carry this part of the lesson.

If you feel a response could benefit from a little more thought, you might ask one simple follow-up question:

What do you think that would look like in real life?

Or:

Why do you think that advice is still relevant today?

Or:

What might make that counsel difficult to follow?

You probably won’t need to ask a follow-up question after every response. Choose one or two moments where it would help deepen the discussion.

To help you be ready for a discussion about the situations on the handout, I’ll briefly go through each one of the situations with you here and provide you with a little insight to give you some background with some of the ideas taught by these verses.

1. Sometimes I wonder whether learning and instruction are really worth the effort.

Proverbs 3:13; 4:7–8, 4:13

These verses highlight one of the most common themes found in Proverbs—the importance of seeking wisdom and knowledge. The message is simple, educating our minds and spirits will bring us happiness, honor, and success.

2. I sometimes feel pressure to go along with other people, even when I know their influence may not be good for me.

Proverbs 1:10, 1:15; 13:20

The caution expressed in these verses is to be careful who you spend time with. Choose the wrong kinds of friends, and they will lead you down foolish paths.

3. I don’t always respond well when someone corrects me.

Proverbs 3:11–12; 12:1; 15:5

These verses extol the benefits of accepting correction and counsel from those that love us.  For example: A fool despiseth his father’s instruction, but he that regardeth reproof is prudent (Proverbs 15:5).   We would do well to receive helpful feedback rather than getting defensive.

4. My temper sometimes gets the best of me, and I say things I later regret.

Proverbs 15:1, 15:18; 16:32

These verses give us some great advice on controlling our tempers.  “A soft answer turneth away wrath, but grievous words stir up anger.”  And I love this idea, “He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he that ruleth his spirit than he that taketh a city.”  The greatest warriors are those that can control their words and actions, not other people.

5. I sometimes talk about people behind their backs or share things that aren’t mine to share.

Proverbs 11:13; 16:28; 18:8

Proverbs 11:13 says this:  A talebearer revealeth secrets: but he that is of a faithful spirit concealeth the matter.

The faithful don’t go around airing other people’s dirty laundry, they conceal the matter. And 16:28 gives us this gem, “a whisperer separateth chief friends”. When you go around whispering secrets, you will often succeed in separating the best of friends.

6. I know what I should do, but I procrastinate, make excuses, or avoid hard work. Proverbs 6:6–8; 13:4; 26:13–14

Now, Work vs. Laziness is another major theme of the book of Proverbs.

So Proverbs 6:6-8 says:6:6-8

⁶ Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise:

⁷ Which having no guide, overseer, or ruler,

⁸ Provideth her meat in the summer, and gathereth her food in the harvest.

So, learn from those hard-working insects you see. They don’t have a boss, or a guide, and yet they always have enough food to eat. They don’t need to be told what to do. They just get to work. And have you ever seen what happens when an anthill gets kicked over? Do the ants cry and hang their little ant heads and give up? No, they just get right back to work rebuilding. No hesitation. They don’t get discouraged or say, “Woe is me”.  Maybe we could learn something from that. Maybe we could do the same when life kicks our ant pile down. Just get back to work.

Then in 26:13

¹³ The slothful man saith, There is a lion in the way; a lion is in the streets.

Do you understand the idea behind that one? The lazy always seem to have some excuse for why they can’t do something or work. Oh, something bad might happen. There’s a lion in the streets. I guess I’ll stay here in bed.  Do we ever do the same? Come up with all the possible dangers or obstacles that could get in the way of getting something done?

7. Sometimes lying feels easier than telling the truth.

Proverbs 12:22, 19:9, 20:17

12:22 teaches that “lying lips are abomination to the Lord, but they that deal truly are his delight.”

And then 20:17

¹⁷ Bread of deceit is sweet to a man; but afterwards his mouth shall be filled with gravel.

So, it may feel good to get away with a lie at first, but eventually, it will become like having a mouth full of gravel. Lying leads to more lying, and truth always seems to find a way of coming out.

8. I’m tempted to measure my success by how much money I have or how much I own.

Proverbs 11:4, 13:7, 23:4-5

11:4

⁴ Riches profit not in the day of wrath: but righteousness delivereth from death.

So, your money will do you no good at the final judgment. Lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven instead.

13:7

⁷ There is that maketh himself rich, yet hath nothing: there is that maketh himself poor, yet hath great riches.

What’s that saying? There’s more to life than money. How many of you know somebody who is rich, but miserable? And do you know anyone that is relatively poor, but happy?  I knew of plenty of Brazilians on my mission who didn’t have much by way of physical property but were amongst the happiest of people I’ve ever met. I also know of many wealthy people who live stressed-out, empty, and unhappy lives. Money isn’t everything.

9. Sometimes what I want in the moment has too much influence over what I choose.

Proverbs 25:16, 25:28

For this one, I’m really intrigued by 25:16

¹⁶ Hast thou found honey? eat so much as is sufficient for thee, lest thou be filled therewith, and vomit it.

Now, I know that’s a peculiar phrase and idea there, but when you think about, that’s a compelling principle.  It’s possible to get too much of a good thing so this is a proverb about self-control. Just because something is sweet or good, doesn’t mean that it’s wise to just consume, and consume, and consume it. We need to learn to discipline ourselves and be temperate in all things. Whether it’s food, video games, work, money, recognition, entertainment, exercise, even spiritual pursuits. All these things are good, in balance. Anything can become a vice if taken to the extreme or overconsumed. We’ve got to develop the wisdom and self-control to only eat as much honey as we need before it causes us to vomit.         

10. The world sends many messages about what makes a woman admirable. I want to understand the qualities God honors most.

Proverbs 31:10, 31:25-26, 31:30

Now in my opinion, Proverbs chapter 31 is one of the best places in scripture to  discuss womanhood anywhere.  The entire chapter is excellent, but for this activity, I’ve shortened it down to what I feel are key verses. 

31:10 asks:

¹⁰ Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is far above rubies.

So, a virtuous woman is priceless in value. Far more valuable than jewels or any measure of financial wealth.  But what makes a virtuous woman? The entire chapter answers that questions.  A few of those qualities:

²⁵ Strength and honour are her clothing; and she shall rejoice in time to come.

²⁶ She openeth her mouth with wisdom; and in her tongue is the law of kindness.

Then verse 30:³⁰ Favour is deceitful, and beauty is vain: but a woman that feareth the Lord, she shall be praised.

“Fear of the Lord” here means reverence and deep respect. The virtuous woman loves and respects her Father in Heaven. It is His favor that she seeks, not the world’s.

So, I only share some of these insights to help you as a teacher to feel more prepared to discuss some of these verses, or to answer questions students might have concerning them. Just remember that most of the sharing and discussing in this activity is going to come from your class members.

For this lesson, I don’t recommend a formal “Take it to Heart” or “I will go and do” section because the activity itself has already lent itself to personal application.

TAKEAWAY:

So to conclude the lesson, you could show the following takeaway slide and encourage them to act on what they’ve learned with something like this:

A bumper sticker can carry a few words down a very long road. And in a much more meaningful way, a short proverb can give us wisdom that we carry through years of decisions and experiences. God hasn’t left us to travel through life without direction. He’s filled the scriptures with wisdom for the situations we face. So don’t just admire the wisdom you found today. Take one piece of it with you and act on it. A proverb may be short, but a few words from God can guide an entire life.

OPTIONAL LESSON IDEAS:

For optional lesson activities here if you end up having more time, I would just simply allow for additional discussion, invite more students to share what they discovered, or let them choose another situation to study. Depending on your class, you may want to add a quick partner share before the whole-class discussion. Now, if you have a class where your students are comfortable speaking publicly, I would skip it and protect the full time for class discoveries and discussion. But if you have a quieter class, give them about 90 seconds to share their verse and discovery with someone sitting nearby. That can help them put their thoughts into words before you invite a few people to share with everyone.

LESSON #3 AN ECCLESIASTES KIND OF LIFE (Ecclesiastes)

TRUTH:

Life is fleeting and often beyond our control, but we find meaning by enjoying God’s gifts and living faithfully before Him.

FIRE IN THE BONES:

To help give you a little fire in the bones here, I think Ecclesiastes speaks to one of the most common ways we postpone happiness. We tell ourselves, “I’ll be happy when…” When I earn more money. When I finish school. When I get married. When my children behave better. When I accomplish that goal.  The Preacher of Ecclesiastes went searching in many of those same places. He had the resources to try nearly everything people assume will make them happy, and his conclusion was that none of it could provide lasting fulfillment. It was all too temporary and too dependent on things outside his control. But Ecclesiastes doesn’t leave us with a cynical view of life. It teaches us how to find meaning within a life that’s temporary, unpredictable, and sometimes unfair. We receive the good God gives us, we enjoy it while it’s here, we do good, and we remain faithful to Him. I think that’s a message that many people in our current “quick-fix world” desperately need.

ICEBREAKER:

Time: 2 minutes

To begin, display this unfinished statement:

HAPPINESS IS ____________________.

Then ask your students:

How would you complete that sentence?

Give them a moment to think and then take three or four responses.

After hearing a few responses, you might say:

That’s really the question the book of Ecclesiastes is wrestling with. What gives life meaning? Where does lasting fulfillment and happiness come from?

TRANSITION/TEACHER SUMMARY:

Time: 4 minutes

And this is where teaching the Book of Ecclesiastes in 25 minutes becomes a bit of a challenge. This isn’t going to be an in-depth treatment of this incredibly insightful and deep book. So you, as the teacher are going to need to do some of the legwork here by summarizing a large portion of the author’s search and conclusions, then dedicating the bulk of the time to the solutions he arrives at, because I believe that’s where the major value of the Book of Ecclesiastes for a modern audience comes from.

Here’s how I would approach that. 

Read Ecclesiastes 1:2–4 to your students:

2 Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher, vanity of vanities; all is vanity.

3 What profit hath a man of all his labour which he taketh under the sun?

4 One generation passeth away, and another generation cometh: but the earth abideth for ever.

Vanity is a key word in the book of Ecclesiastes. It’s going to come up over and over again. And if you look at the footnote for “vanity” at the bottom of the page, it says “empty, fleeting, or unsubstantial”.  Have you ever felt that way about life? Life just seems empty sometimes. Purposeless. What are we doing here? Generations come, and generations go, to what end? That’s what the author is trying to discover.  Where is the meaning and purpose and enjoyment in life?

So much of the book then describes the author’s search for the answers to those questions. So he’s going to try a number of different things in his life. And here you could just display the following slide or write these things on the board and quickly review them. So he tries pleasure, he tries wealth and money, education, work, success, popularity, and youth. And he concludes that, yes, some of these things are certainly better than others, like wisdom and knowledge are better than foolishness and a hedonism. But still, none of them provide lasting fulfillment. Pleasure ends. Possessions can be lost. Someone else eventually takes over what we’ve built. Wisdom can’t prevent death. Popularity fades. Youth disappears. These things may bring moments of happiness, but his conclusion about each is that they’re all vanity. None of them can carry the full weight of the meaning of our lives.

So, what’s a person to do then?  Is life meaningless?  No.  Throughout the course of the book, he does come to some conclusions—some really insightful conclusions. We’ll now spend the rest of our time examining those insights.

SEARCH ACTIVITY:

Time: 5-6 minutes

If I had to pick just a few references from Ecclesiastes that would really be worth taking a closer look at it would be the following.

1.    Ecclesiastes 3:1-4, 11-13

2.    Ecclesiastes 9:7-10

3.    Ecclesiastes 12:13-14

To do this, invite your class to pick a number between 1 and 3. Then you’re going to give them approximately three minutes to study their assignment with two questions in mind:

1.    One phrase that stood out

2.    What that phrase teaches about how we should live

CLASS SHARING:

Time: 7-10 Minutes

After they’ve studied, invite at least one person who studied each passage to share what they found.

I want to help you to be ready to respond to and contribute to their answers and questions. Here are some thoughts on those verses.

3:1-4 contain the verses made famous by “The Byrds” if you’re familiar with that song from the 60’s.

To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:

² A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;

³ A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up;

⁴ A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;

And then, for time’s sake, I skip down to verse 11 since the interceding verses follow that same pattern.

¹¹ He hath made every thing beautiful in his time: also he hath set the world in their heart, so that no man can find out the work that God maketh from the beginning to the end.

¹² I know that there is no good in them, but for a man to rejoice, and to do good in his life.

¹³ And also that every man should eat and drink, and enjoy the good of all his labour, it is the gift of God.

What’s the conclusion? Life has seasons, and we won’t get to choose all of them. Now I don’t think that these verses are justifying things like war and hate and killing, but the author is just saying that, in your life, you are very likely to encounter both sides of the spectrum. You will experience both bad times, and good times in your life. There will be times of building and times of losing, times of laughter and times of mourning. Recognizing that can help us stop treating every difficult season as evidence that life has gone wrong or that God has forgotten us. This is mortality, and mortality includes both. But notice what the Preacher tells us to do within those changing seasons: rejoice, do good, and enjoy what God has given us. We may not control every season, but we can receive the good within our present season and continue living faithfully.

Ecclesiastes 9:7-10

⁷ Go thy way, eat thy bread with joy, and drink thy wine with a merry heart; for God now accepteth thy works.

⁸ Let thy garments be always white; and let thy head lack no ointment.

⁹ Live joyfully with the wife whom thou lovest all the days of the life of thy vanity, which he hath given thee under the sun, all the days of thy vanity: for that is thy portion in this life, and in thy labour which thou takest under the sun.

¹⁰ Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest.

So, enjoy life. Find joy in the journey. “Whate’r thou art, act well thy part” is what verse 10 is saying. If it’s a job worth doing, it’s a job worth doing well, like my Mom used to say. So live, love, work, be obedient and experience mortality, with all its ups and downs.

And then, probably most importantly, the final conclusion of Ecclesiastes:

12:13-14

¹³ Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.

¹⁴ For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.

What’s the most important thing to remember about life? Keep the commandments. Do that, and all will work out for good in the end. That doesn’t mean that what happens to us doesn’t matter or that obedience will prevent every hardship.

The point is that even when we can’t control our circumstances, we can still choose faithfulness. And because God will bring every work into judgment, those faithful choices are never meaningless or forgotten.

DISCUSSION QUESTION:

If there was only one discussion question that I would have in my back pocket as the teacher as these discoveries are being made, it would be this. You could just ask:

How do you feel about Ecclesiastes’ conclusions? Do you agree? Why or why not?

TAKEAWAY:

Time: 2 Minutes

Then conclude the lesson with an invitation and a testimony. Ask them to leave pondering the following:  What is a gift in the life God has given you right now that you could enjoy more gratefully?

Then show the takeaway slide and end with a testimony. You could say:I believe Ecclesiastes holds one of the great secrets to living a meaningful life. Happiness comes through righteousness. The more I live, the more I’m convinced of that truth. We could spend so much time waiting for life to become different that we can miss the good God has already placed within it.

Life will bring seasons we wouldn’t have chosen. There will be times to laugh and times to mourn, times to build and times to lose. We can’t control all of that. But we can receive the good with gratitude, love the people God has placed in our lives, do our work with our might, and remain faithful to Him.

So enjoy the gifts God has given you in this season. Do good. Fear God. Keep His commandments. Life may be fleeting and often beyond our control, but we can still live it with joy, purpose, and faith. 

OPTIONAL LESSON IDEAS:

QUOTE:

If you wanted to include a quote at some point in the lesson, you could share the following from President Monson.

“‘To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven’ advised Ecclesiastes, the Preacher. Such is true in our lives. Let us provide time for family, time for work, time for study, time for service, time for recreation, time for self—but above all, time for Christ.”

(Conference Report, April 1984 “Building Your Eternal Home”)

HANDOUT:

If you felt an activity would be a better use of your time with your students this week, you could shift the focus of the lesson to the things Ecclesiastes teaches that won’t bring us happiness. That can be a powerful focus as well. And one way you could do that with the following handout. Invite your students to read the selected verses and match them with the picture they feel best describes the area the author is looking for meaning or happiness in. And the answers are F, D, A, B, E and C.  Then you could have a short discussion regarding why those things (partying, money, intelligence, work, power, and youth) don’t provide lasting meaning and happiness in life. Not that they’re all bad but not the center of purposeful life. Then you could conclude with Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 and a brief testimony that righteousness is happiness.