This morning, our chapel team opened our service with the singing of O Canada and the Land Acknowledgement. Our first worship song was “Trading my Sorrows” , a song by Darrell Evans that highlights God’s faithfulness and joy to help us persevere during difficult times.
Next, our Grade 7A class went to the front of the gym. They started with a band presentation and played a piece which was arranged by one of the 7A students. This was followed by a short dance by four students in the class. Then, the entire class recited their Bible verse, taken from Hebrews 10:22-24. Two students then explained that the band and dance performance were different ways we can show our faith, and when things get tough, we can persevere and still keep believing and trusting in God.
For the Teacher Interview portion of our service, Miss Luk and Mrs. Laird shared their experiences when they chose to persevere. Highlights included:
- Steps to tackle challenges:
- Do not complain
- Think of things in a positive way
- Pray to God for guidance
- Break large tasks into mini tasks
- Have a “I can do this” mindset
- Bible verse to help with perseverance: James 1:2-3
- Perseverance looks different for Christians because
- We can rely on God and the prayer support of our Christian brothers and sisters
- God has a purpose and a plan for everything. He will help us through challenging times.
After the teachers shared their thoughts, the students spent some time discussing what is a practical way they can choose to persevere through something in their lives today.
The Chapel Team then led the audience in singing “One Thing Remains” by Brian Johnson, Christa Black Gifford and Jeremy Riddle.
Our guest speaker this morning was Pastor Mark Griffith. He identified the following four steps to build perseverance:
- Set a clear goal
- Break the goal into smaller steps so that it is easier to achieve
- Track your progress
- Celebrate your “wins” when you have achieved your goal(s)
Then, he shared the story of Noah and the Ark to reinforce the concept of perseverance. Noah set his goal to obey God’s command to build an ark. He broke down this huge assignment into smaller steps such as getting the materials, construction and gathering the animals. After the 40 days of rain ended, he checked on the progress by sending out a raven and a dove. When the waters abated, Noah celebrated by building an altar and praising God! Pastor Griffith also chose two students to participate in a game that reinforced his four steps to perseverance. He concluded in prayer, thanking God for His goodness and asking Him to help the children develop perseverance in the tasks before them.
The Chapel Leaders closed the service by leading the audience in reciting our aspirational passage.
