Shadowing Practice: LIFE IS SHORT | Live Every Day for God - Billy Graham Speech - Learn English Speaking with Video
Choose a practice mode
Each mode opens a full-screen practice room.
39 sentences
If sentences are too short or too long, click Edit to adjust them.
1
Time is short
2
What is your life it's even a vapor that appeareth for a little time and then vanishes away
3
If someone had told me when I was 20 years old That life was very short and would pass just like that
4
I wouldn't have believed it. And if I tell you that you don't believe it either I cannot get young people to understand how brief life is how quickly it passes It seems like yesterday. I was in school
5
Every one of us here has been given the same amount of time in a day
6
Fourteen hundred and forty minutes a day
7
168 hours per week
8
Seventy years God allows us and it's interesting to me with all of our medical science. We've never passed that magic mark
9
The average American male today lives
10
seventy years and four months The average female 73 years and six months
11
More people live to be 70
12
but the average age
13
of an American is still 70 as taught in the scriptures
14
What a thing it is when you think that you have just one short life to spend and it will soon be over
15
I'd write down my priorities in life and I'd get committed to certain priorities
16
Now is the accepted time the things we ought to do the classes we ought to take the books we ought to read do it now The family that needs you spend more time now
17
Write that letter home now that you've been meaning to write
18
Money you ought to give give now time for study do it now people you ought to witness to do it now
19
Every time the clock ticks, it seems to say now
20
Today if you will hear his voice
21
There may not be a tomorrow for you and for me
22
Because there's a warning to time
23
Time is running out for all of us time is too short for indecision and vacillation
24
Do not halt between two opinions
25
Fools say the time is long. Every morning we have 86,400 seconds to spend and to invest
26
And each day the bank named time opens a new account for you and for me
27
It allows no balances in no overdrafts if you fail to use the days deposits the loss is yours
28
The Bible says redeem the time because the days are evil and the days in which we are living are very evil
29
If there was ever a time for the gospel that can transform the human heart it's now
30
Jesus said as long as it is day, we must do the work of him that sent us the night is coming when no Man can work The night is going to come in your life. Yet there was a serenity about the work of the Lord Jesus
31
It's the quality of life. Not the length
32
Jesus only had 33 years
33
And it ended on the cross To the world He was a failure yet that moment yet at the end of his life He said I finished the work that thou gave me to do
34
It doesn't matter whether you live another year or two years of five years
35
Will your work be finished. Is there a quality to it. Is there a dedication to it
36
Suppose all of our members tithe their time to witness for Christ as we tithe our income for the church
37
Fill your heart with the Word of God, I found that those who know the scriptures are the ones that have the power today
38
But we need men and women who walk with God And if you do that you too can finish the work that God gave you to do And help us to realize the brevity and the urgency of time
39
And may we invest what little time we have in the kingdom of God
Download App
Everything you need to speak fluently
AI PronunciationScore every sentence
IPA PracticeMaster every sound
VocabularyBuild your word bank
Vocab GameLearn while playing
Same Channel
C11
WE LEARN THIS TOO LATE | Billy Graham’s Greatest Life Advice
Daily ConversationWorking Adults
B21
GOD HAS A PLAN FOR YOU | Chadwick Boseman - Inspirational & Motivational Speech
Business EnglishUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
C112
Put God First - Denzel Washington Motivational & Inspiring Commencement Speech
University Students
FOR YOU
Recommend Video
B23
71 sentences
5 MINUTES TO LIVE - a short film
Daily ConversationWorking Adults
B21
416 sentences
Andrew Tate: TIME Is Running Out | Motivational Video
Daily ConversationWorking Adults
C1260 sentences
Life Is Short (How to Spend It Wisely)
Daily ConversationWorking Adults
B21
213 sentences
YOU CAN'T BUY BACK A DAY (Jim Rohn Seminar)
Daily ConversationWorking Adults
B25
20 sentences
Detach yourself from this world, it’ll all be dust one day #sermon #shorts #love #youtube #viral
Daily ConversationWorking Adults
B22
141 sentences
Be Willing To Sell Everything For Heaven | Fr. Dan Reehil | 17th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Daily ConversationWorking Adults
B21
137 sentences
Don't miss this sign of Allah !
Daily ConversationWorking Adults
B22
11 sentences
Unleash Your Dreams: Live Boldly & Defy Expectations! #shorts
Daily ConversationWorking Adults
B21
5 sentences
Church Leaders: Don’t Rush People Into Their Gifts #shorts
Daily ConversationWorking Adults
B21
141 sentences
IT'S NOW OR NEVER. - Powerful Motivational Speech Video
Daily ConversationWorking Adults
B21
40 sentences
Trust God's Timing | Steven Furtick
Daily ConversationWorking Adults
Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This B2 speaking lesson is built on the video “LIFE IS SHORT”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: ought, spend, Jesus, write, average. This video has 39 sentences and 640 words to shadow. The speech runs for 4:13. The speaker talks at a natural 152 words per minute, close to everyday conversation. 90% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English, so the vocabulary is easy to follow.
Key vocabulary in this video
The 15 most advanced words in the video, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| tithe noun | /taɪð/ | A contribution to one's religious community or congregation of worship (notably to the LDS church). |
| scripture noun | /ˈskɹɪpt͡ʃɚ/ | A sacred writing or holy book. |
| brevity noun | /ˈbɹɛvɪti/ | The quality of being brief in duration. |
| indecision noun | /ɪndɪˈsɪʒən/ | The inability to decide on a course of action, especially if two or more possibilities exist. |
| overdraft noun | /ˈoʊvɚdɹæft/ | The act of overdrawing a bank account. |
| serenity noun | /səˈɹɛnɪti/ | The state of being serene; calmness; peacefulness. |
| vacillation noun | /væsɪˈleɪʃən/ | Indecision in speech or action. |
| vanish verb | /ˈvænɪʃ/ | To become invisible or to move out of view unnoticed. |
| redeem verb | /ɹɪˈdiːm/ | To recover ownership of something by buying it back. |
| urgency noun | /ˈɜː.d͡ʒən.si/ | The quality or condition of being urgent. |
| vapor noun | /ˈveɪpɚ/ | Cloudy diffused matter such as mist, steam or fumes suspended in the air. |
| litter noun | /ˈlɪt.ɚ/ | Straw, grass, and similar loose material used as bedding for people or animals. |
| tick noun | /tɪk/ | A tiny woodland arachnid of the suborder Ixodida. |
| fourteen noun | /ˈfɔɹ.tin/ | A group of fourteen items. |
| dedication noun | /ˌdɛdɪˈkeɪʃən/ | The act of dedicating or the state of being dedicated. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| write down verb | To produce or set (something) down in writing; to record something. |
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now | has been given · We've never passed |
| Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it | has been given · be finished |
| Relative clauses who / which + clause — extra information about a person or thing | those who know · women who walk |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 7 contractions and reduced forms, such as I'd, doesn't, don't. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: indecision /ɪndɪˈsɪʒən/, vacillation /væsɪˈleɪʃən/, vanish /ˈvænɪʃ/, dedication /ˌdɛdɪˈkeɪʃən/
- Long words — get the stress right: indecision /ɪndɪˈsɪʒən/, serenity /səˈɹɛnɪti/, vacillation /væsɪˈleɪʃən/, dedication /ˌdɛdɪˈkeɪʃən/
How to practise with this video
- Listen to the whole video once without speaking and note the words you do not know.
- Start at 0.75× speed, shadow it sentence by sentence, then go back to normal speed once it feels easy.
- Record yourself and compare with the original, paying attention to words like tithe, scripture, brevity.
What is the Shadowing Technique?
Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.