21世纪杯全国大学生英语演讲比赛季军演讲稿

 　　刘诗秋:华南理工大学选手，第16届21世纪杯全国英语演讲比赛季军。

　　演讲稿：

　　Honorable judges, ladies and gentleman, good morning.

　　I want you to tell me something. What’s the first thing that pops into your mind when you hear the word faith, a sacred and heart-warming word that’s supposed to remind you of all the beauties and goodness of life, the key that used to keep us going when confronted with all sorts of hardships and obstacles. However, when I hear the word faith, the thing it reminds me of is so remote and intangible. In this rich and peaceful era, there aren’t as many disasters or wars, especially for us young people whose lives are much easier and wealthier than our fathers’. So is faith gradually losing its significance in the human world nowadays?

　　Like many of others, I used to think of faith as of no importance at all, and I deemed myself as a faithless person. I thought I can live my life perfectly¹ fine without intentionally² grasping something as my faith. Until one day I met an American Christian³ named John, who later became a very good friend of mine. John is an extremely faithful Christian, and he thinks of Jesus Christ as his lord. He, as a pastor⁴, tried to convert me into a Christian when we first met. So he lectured me with his extensive knowledge of history and philosophy every time we hung out. In spite of his amazingly detailed⁵ description of the history of Jesus, what really got me intrigued⁶ is not the story he told, instead, is John himself as probably the first and most faithful person I’ve met in my entire life. I can feel the sparks in his eyes when he talks about biblical things, and I am so touched by the integrity of him when he says:” Jesus Christ is the ultimate pursuit of my life” without any hesitation⁷ or doubt.

　　The more we got along, the more I became jealous of him, because he always seems to be joyful⁸ and optimistic. When I ask him how he manages it, he said:” I’ve had bad days too, but I also know that God is with me. So I know that it’ll all be okay.” Suddenly it occurred to me how lucky it is to have something you can completely put your trust into, something that will bring you strength when your mind is weak, something that reminds you “ it’s not so bad” when you’re filled with sorrow, something that gives your existence significance and bring it up to a higher level. So I was literally⁹ converted, not into a Christian, not into someone faithful either, but into someone who wants to be as faithful at least.

　　That was the first time I am exposed to the power of faith. To put it simple, your life is complete only if you have faith. You must find something important and significant in your life, your purpose, your pursuit, whatever you call it. I’m not saying faith must relate to religion or God. It could be anything. It could be your career goal, your children, your lover, fellowship, or a certain kind of life style, anything, as long as you dare to trust your life in it with your heart of hearts.

　　Now I’m still faithless. I haven’t become a Christian or find what matters to me most yet. But what John gave me is whole new perspective to see life. So I’ll strive to really feel and touch the beauty in life and won’t take it for granted. And that’s also what I encourage all of us to do. Keep looking for the faith of your own, and when you do, you’ll know it’s all worth it.

1 perfectly   

adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。
• Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。

2 intentionally   

ad.故意地，有意地

参考例句：

• I didn't say it intentionally. 我是无心说的。
• The local authority ruled that he had made himself intentionally homeless and was therefore not entitled to be rehoused. 当地政府裁定他是有意居无定所，因此没有资格再获得提供住房。

3 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

4 pastor   

n.牧师，牧人

参考例句：

• He was the son of a poor pastor.他是一个穷牧师的儿子。
• We have no pastor at present:the church is run by five deacons.我们目前没有牧师：教会的事是由五位执事管理的。

5 detailed   

adj.详细的，详尽的，极注意细节的，完全的

参考例句：

• He had made a detailed study of the terrain.他对地形作了缜密的研究。
• A detailed list of our publications is available on request.我们的出版物有一份详细的目录备索。

6 intrigued   

adj.好奇的，被迷住了的v.搞阴谋诡计(intrigue的过去式)；激起…的兴趣或好奇心；“intrigue”的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• You've really intrigued me—tell me more! 你说的真有意思—再给我讲一些吧！
• He was intrigued by her story. 他被她的故事迷住了。

7 hesitation   

n.犹豫，踌躇

参考例句：

• After a long hesitation, he told the truth at last.踌躇了半天，他终于直说了。
• There was a certain hesitation in her manner.她的态度有些犹豫不决。

8 joyful   

adj.欢乐的，令人欢欣的

参考例句：

• She was joyful of her good result of the scientific experiments.她为自己的科学实验取得好成果而高兴。
• They were singing and dancing to celebrate this joyful occasion.他们唱着、跳着庆祝这令人欢乐的时刻。

9 literally   

adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实

参考例句：

• He translated the passage literally.他逐字逐句地翻译这段文字。
• Sometimes she would not sit down till she was literally faint.有时候，她不走到真正要昏厥了，决不肯坐下来。