In the past week I have been to see the movie Soul Surfer two times...and I just can't seem to get enough of it! I wouldn't normally go to a movie more than once but it's actually on at the $3 movie theatre...so if it were up to me I would go every day to see it! I've heard people say they are afraid to see this movie because it might be too depressing...well for me it couldn't be more uplifting! Iris and Asa even saw it with me the second time and they just loved it. When I was a little girl I remember going to see the movie about Joni Eareckson and I will never forget it. Now as an adult I read her devotionals every day...she is a huge inspiration. I hope taking my kids to see Soul Surfer will have the same affect on them as that movie did on me so many years ago.
I guess it's easy to sit back and watch the story about Bethany and think about how remarkable it is...but it might be a different story if it were my child going through such a tragic event.
It was so amazing to see how God used her and allowed this terrible thing to happen in her life and how she has overcome her disability and praises God for everything that has happened to her. It really makes you feel guilty for complaining about the small things that happen to us in our daily lives.
So many people ask why does God let bad things happen to good people. I use to ask the same question. The biggest tragedy in my life so far was losing my dad when I was 17. I was traumatized by the entire situation. I didn't understand why God would do that to our family and I spent a lot of time being angry with God. For years I was very self destructive and really didn't care about my life. After becoming a Christian and seeing that God allows bad things to happen only to draw us closer to Him...it makes any situation easier to handle. One of my favorite songs has a line in it that says "everything has to go through God's hands before it touches me" and I love that line. God hurts when we hurt...he doesn't want us to be sad or in pain and he sure doesn't cause it. But He is in control of everything that happens in our lives and if he feels that something bad needs to occur in our lives then I have to believe that he knows what he is doing and that he has a much bigger and better plan for us. So if we don't learn and grow from our pain then the whole point of why God let it happen is missed.
I pray every day that God's will be done in my life and I also pray this for Kelly and my children. This is an easy prayer to say but it is very difficult to truly want it answered. God's will may involve some things that we have to go through that we don't want to face. To think about my child being in pain and having to go through something like Bethany Hamilton did just breaks my heart. But I have to think about God's greater plan. I have to give everything up to Him and know that whatever happens in mine and my children's lives is only to bring us closer to Him...and in the end that is all that matters. There will always be disease, death, and terrible struggles that we must face in this life...but we have to remember that there is a life after this...the only life that really matters...so how we handle life here on this earth should be all about what we can do for our Lord.
If you haven't seen Soul Surfer yet I highly recommend it....it will encourage you in so many ways!
"I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me." Philippians 4:13
