Soul Surfer

I saw another great movie over the weekend. It's rare that we have a good, clean movie with Christian themes in the movie theater. But we've had two such movies in the theater this month. Last week, I saw "The Grace Card," which has a powerful message about overcoming racism. This time, I went to see "Soul Surfer."

It's the true story of Bethany Hamilton, a teenage surfer who summons the courage to go back into the ocean after losing an arm in a shark attack when she was 13. The movie follows her struggle and reveals her strong Christian faith and optimism that gets her back on the surfboard just weeks after the attack.

This is an amazing movie, but the actual life story of Bethany Hamilton is even more amazing. I saw her interviewed on the Huckabee show on Fox News, which made me want to see the movie.

While she was laying in a hospital bed after the attack, Bethany quotes Philippians 4:13, "I can do all things through Him who gives me strength." It's that faith that helped her continue pursuing her lifelong dream of becoming a professional surfer.

In an interview, she said, "I guess how it (faith) got me through is just knowing that God loves me and He has a purpose for my life and He wants good to come out of this."

The movie showed how she briefly questioned why God let this tragedy happen to her, but in the end she discovers that God had a purpose in it. After she lost her arm, she was able to influence other teenagers by sharing her faith and testimony. She says she's been able to reach more people than she ever could have with two arms.

We can all take a valuable life lesson away from this movie. Whatever happens to us, God can work it for good if we have our faith firmly in Him. Bethany has gone on to become a pro surfer and competes with some of the best women surfers in the world. And she continues to inspire thousands through her testimony.