KID’S MINISTRY ST. PATRICK’S DAY GAME

Here is a free kid’s ministry game for 1st-5th graders on St. Patrick’s Day, with a short lesson based on Jeremiah 29:11.

The big idea of the lesson: God’s plan for our lives isn’t dependent on luck. He is in control.

A little history lesson…

St. Patrick is widely regarded as the patron saint of Ireland, and he is credited with playing a significant role in spreading Christianity there. He was born in the late 4th century in Britain. At the age of 16, he was captured by Irish raiders and taken to Ireland as a slave. During his captivity, he found found Jesus and developed a strong faith God.

After six years of captivity, he escaped and returned to Britain. And eventually returned to Ireland as a missionary. Legend has it that he used the three-leafed shamrock to explain the concept of the Holy Trinity (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) to the Irish people.

Hope the kids in your ministry enjoy this game. Good luck!

– Nick Diliberto, Ministry to Youth

Looking for kid’s ministry curriculum?

ONE YEAR CHILDREN’S MINISTRY CURRICULUM, VOL 1 – Save 72% on one year of children’s ministry curriculum for 1st-5th grade helping kids fall in love with Jesus and discover what it means to follow him!

KID’S MINISTRY SAINT PATRICK’S DAY GAME

Bible:  Jeremiah 29:11

Bottom Line:  God’s plan for our lives isn’t dependent on luck. He is in control.

SUPPLIES

• Construction paper (multiple colors, including green)
• Scissors
• Shoebox-sized container
• Blindfold
• Stopwatch
• Paper
• Pen
• Table space

GAME PREP

Before class, cut several shamrocks out of green construction paper.

Cut the other colors of construction paper in small squares.

Mix all the cut-outs in a shoebox-sized container.

The container should be approximately two-thirds full and sitting on a table beside the blindfold.

Have a pen and paper ready to record players’ shamrock count.

Line the children up behind the table.

GAME PLAY

Say:   We’re going to play a little game.

I have a box of shamrocks here, and you are going to pull out as many as you can in one minute.

You get 10 points for every shamrock you pull out, and you lose 1 point for every piece of paper that isn’t a shamrock.

That doesn’t sound too hard, does it?

Did I mention you will be pulling out the shamrocks while blindfolded?

You’re going to have to feel each piece of paper and determine its shape before choosing whether to put it back in the box or on to the table.

Let’s get the blindfold on contestant number one and get started.

*When all but one player has had a turn, put the blindfold away.

For our last player, we aren’t going to use the blindfold.

Who do you think is going to win our contest?

TEACH

Say:  We gave our last player an unfair advantage, didn’t we?

It is much easier to find the shamrocks when you can see the shapes and the colors.

You probably all wish you could have gone last.

Maybe you think last was the lucky place.

On Saint Patrick’s Day, everyone is always talking about luck.

There’s a lot of talk of leprechauns and four-leaf clovers.

The phrase, ‘luck of the Irish,’ comes up a lot, too, but Saint Patrick probably didn’t feel very lucky.

His life was very difficult.

While Saint Patrick’s Day celebrates everything Irish, the real Saint Patrick wasn’t even an Irish man.

He was a Roman citizen in Northern Britain.

His family was very wealthy, so Saint Patrick had many advantages during his early years.

At age sixteen, his life was turned upside down.

He was kidnapped and sold into slavery in Ireland, where he would spend the next six years of his life herding sheep.

Saint Patrick didn’t believe in God when he first landed in his new country, but one day he heard the voice of God.

Hearing God’s voice changed everything for Saint Patrick.

He was no longer alone.

When God made a way for him to escape, he went back to his family in Britain, but he couldn’t stay.

He knew God had something bigger for him.

God wanted Saint Patrick to take the Gospel to Ireland, and that is exactly what he did.

Saint Patrick didn’t end up in Ireland by chance.

It was part of God’s plan.

Let’s look at Jeremiah 29:11.

For I know the thoughts that I think towards you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.

The expected end God is referring to is never a bad ending.

Remember what the first part of the verse says.

He has thoughts of peace, not evil, in mind.

His expected end for us is the end that will bring the most glory to Him and further His work on Earth. 

As believers, this is the expected end we should want, right?

God had an expected end intended for Saint Patrick from the very beginning, and it was a very good one.

To get to his expected end, Saint Patrick had to endure some hard times.

God knew exactly what it was going to take for Saint Patrick to come to salvation.

He also knew Saint Patrick would someday understand why this terrible thing happened to him.

God knows everything that will happen in our lives before we even take our first breaths.

He knows the end from the beginning.

The things we often attribute to good luck or bad luck are not luck at all.

We can rest in the knowledge that God knows what is necessary for us, just like He knew what needed to happen in Saint Patrick’s life.

Let’s think back to our game for a minute.

With the blindfold on, you guys couldn’t see what you were picking up.

You could feel around and try to figure out the shapes, but you didn’t really know for sure what you had until the end.

It was much easier without the blindfold.

God doesn’t wear a blindfold.

He sees everything, and He has a plan for your life.

Trust Him.

End Lesson

Looking for kid’s ministry curriculum?

ONE YEAR CHILDREN’S MINISTRY CURRICULUM, VOL 1 – Save 72% on one year of children’s ministry curriculum for 1st-5th grade helping kids fall in love with Jesus and discover what it means to follow him!