Shark attack victim writes of faith in God
CULTURE DIGEST: Shark attack victim writes of faith in God - (BP)
Oct 6, 2004
By Erin Curry
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP)--Bethany Hamilton, the 14-year-old surfer who lost her left arm when she was attacked by a shark nearly a year ago, has written a book in which she credits her relationship with Christ for providing the strength necessary to recover.
Hamilton recently appeared on NBC's “Today Show” to discuss the book she coauthored with her pastor, titled "Soul Surfer: A True Story of Faith, Family, and Fighting to Get Back on the Board."
"To be honest, I never wanted to write a book," Hamilton said. But after encouragement from her family and friends, she decided it was the right thing to do in order to provide people with a larger picture of her faith and the people who have helped her get back into the water after the attack.
In the book's forward, Hamilton tells how she spent many hours pouring her heart out to Rick Bundschuh, her spiritual adviser and pastor at Kauai Christian Fellowship Church in Koloa, Hawaii.
"In the end, I'm really proud of what I've written here," Hamilton writes. "... I hope it helps people find faith in God and in their own strength and ability. I hope it motivates someone going through a tough time right now to keep on fighting until they rise above it."
Hamilton said she doesn't want people to pity her for losing an arm at such a young age. She wants them to see an example of how to cope when life doesn't go as planned. And she clearly states what her sources of strength have been.
"My strength came from my relationship with Christ and from the love and encouragement of my family and friends," she writes.
The teenager even has an answer for those who wonder why God would allow such a tragedy to happen to a young, vibrant surfer who showed so much promise as a professional competitor.
"I don't pretend to have all the answers to why bad things happen to good people," Hamilton writes. "But I do know that God knows all those answers, and sometimes He lets you know in this life, and sometimes He asks you to wait so that you can have a face-to-face talk about it.
"What I do know is that I want to use what happened to me as an opportunity to tell people that God is worthy of our trust, and to show them that you can go on and do wonderful things in spite of terrible events that happen," she adds.
Shark attack victim writes of faith in God
Oct 6, 2004
By Erin Curry
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP)--Bethany Hamilton, the 14-year-old surfer who lost her left arm when she was attacked by a shark nearly a year ago, has written a book in which she credits her relationship with Christ for providing the strength necessary to recover.
Hamilton recently appeared on NBC's “Today Show” to discuss the book she coauthored with her pastor, titled "Soul Surfer: A True Story of Faith, Family, and Fighting to Get Back on the Board."
"To be honest, I never wanted to write a book," Hamilton said. But after encouragement from her family and friends, she decided it was the right thing to do in order to provide people with a larger picture of her faith and the people who have helped her get back into the water after the attack.
In the book's forward, Hamilton tells how she spent many hours pouring her heart out to Rick Bundschuh, her spiritual adviser and pastor at Kauai Christian Fellowship Church in Koloa, Hawaii.
"In the end, I'm really proud of what I've written here," Hamilton writes. "... I hope it helps people find faith in God and in their own strength and ability. I hope it motivates someone going through a tough time right now to keep on fighting until they rise above it."
Hamilton said she doesn't want people to pity her for losing an arm at such a young age. She wants them to see an example of how to cope when life doesn't go as planned. And she clearly states what her sources of strength have been.
"My strength came from my relationship with Christ and from the love and encouragement of my family and friends," she writes.
The teenager even has an answer for those who wonder why God would allow such a tragedy to happen to a young, vibrant surfer who showed so much promise as a professional competitor.
"I don't pretend to have all the answers to why bad things happen to good people," Hamilton writes. "But I do know that God knows all those answers, and sometimes He lets you know in this life, and sometimes He asks you to wait so that you can have a face-to-face talk about it.
"What I do know is that I want to use what happened to me as an opportunity to tell people that God is worthy of our trust, and to show them that you can go on and do wonderful things in spite of terrible events that happen," she adds.
posted by DP at 11:47 PM
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