2025年度もあとひと月を残すばかりとなりました。今も大学入試で頑張っている高校3年生、夢を持ち、希望を持ち目標に向かって進んでください。今日は英語礼拝でした。今日のメッセージは高校3年生だけでなく、すべての人にとって大切なことかと思います。　この人生を大切にするために。

God is not only concerned with your performance. He is shaping your character. This season is not meaningless. It is producing endurance, maturity, and strength. 

以下は今日のメッセージです。

 

CHAPEL FEBRUARY 27^TH 

OPEN IN PRAYER

Our Father in Heaven, holy is your Name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us. Save us from the time of trial and deliver us from evil. For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours, now and forever. Amen.

BIBLE VERSE

James 1:2–4 (NIV)

² Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, ³ because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. ⁴ Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

MESSAGE

Two weeks from now, many of you will be taking your final exams. Some of you already feel the pressure. There are assignments to finish, tests to prepare for, and expectations from teachers, parents, and yourselves. It is a busy season. It can also be a stressful one.

The Bible speaks directly to seasons like this. In the first chapter of James, we are told that when we face trials of many kinds, we are invited to see them differently. Not as pointless stress. Not as something to simply survive. But as something that can actually produce growth.

That idea feels strange. Most of us do not feel joyful when life is hard. When we are tired, we feel irritated. When we are overwhelmed, we feel anxious. When we are under pressure, we want it to stop.

But the message is not telling us to pretend that difficulty feels good. It is telling us to choose perspective. Joy here is not about emotion. It is about trust — trusting that something meaningful is happening beneath the surface.

Testing produces perseverance. Perseverance means staying steady when quitting would be easier. It means continuing when motivation fades. It means doing what is right even when you are tired.

Final exams test your knowledge. But pressure tests something deeper. It reveals your character. When you are stressed, do you become impatient? When you are tired, do you speak harshly? When you are anxious, do you focus only on yourself?

Pressure reveals what is inside us. And at the same time, it strengthens us — if we let it. The passage says to let perseverance finish its work so that you may become mature and complete.

That means growth takes time. It takes discomfort. If we escape every hard moment, perseverance never gets the chance to shape us. But when we stay steady — when we keep studying, keep showing kindness, keep acting with integrity — we are becoming stronger than we realize.

Two weeks from now, exams will be over. The stress will fade. But the person you become during these weeks will stay with you longer than any grade. So what does this look like? It looks like preparing faithfully instead of procrastinating. It looks like encouraging your friends instead of competing harshly. It looks like choosing patience when your emotions feel stretched thin.

God is not only concerned with your performance. He is shaping your character. This season is not meaningless. It is producing endurance, maturity, and strength. So don’t just try to survive these weeks. Let perseverance do its work. Stay steady. Finish well. Grow through it. Because sometimes the most important lessons are not the ones on the exam — but the ones being formed in your heart.

CLOSE IN PRAYER

 

Let us pray.

Heavenly Father,

Thank You for being with us in every season, especially in times of pressure and stress. As we prepare for our exams, give us focus, strength, and perseverance. Help us to stay steady when we feel tired and to treat others with patience and kindness. Remind us that You are shaping our character through every challenge. Help us to grow, to finish well, and to trust You in the process.

Amen.