Welcome to our collection of quotes by Bethany Hamilton. We hope you enjoy pondering them and please share widely.
Wikipedia Summary for Bethany Hamilton
Bethany Meilani Hamilton (born February 8, 1990) is an American professional surfer and actress who survived a 2003 shark attack in which her left arm was bitten off and who ultimately returned to professional surfing. She wrote about her experience in the 2004 autobiography Soul Surfer: A True Story of Faith, Family, and Fighting to Get Back on the Board, which was adapted into the 2011 feature film Soul Surfer. She was also the subject of a 2013 documentary, Bethany Hamilton: Unstoppable.
Life is a lot like surfing...When you get caugh in the impact zone, you've got to just get back up. because you never know what may be the next wave.
I have a unique workout schedule. I concentrate on balancing with my core and my legs. Then, like any other surfer, I try to read the ocean. It's always changing and moving -- doing its own thing -- so you need to learn how it works and how to position yourself.
Losing an arm is kinda lame at one point, but at the same time, so much good has come out of it.
My belief is where I get my strength. When I'm struggling with something, I can go to him for help and I'm excited to share that.
Being creative on the waves is challenging, but we each create art in our own way.
Fear is something that can really hold us all back from different things in life. It's important to notice what your fears are and try to conquer them.
It was what God had taught me growing up that helped me overcome my fear and get back on the board. 'Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go' (Joshua 1:9).
I think sharks are beautiful creatures, and I don't think we should stop going in the ocean because of them. You drive down the road and you get in an accident, but most people end up driving down the road again. Surfing is you're going into their home and it's just a natural part of life.
I can't change it, That was God's plan for my life and I'm going to go with it.
I have been able to be just a good light to people and just share His love. I wake up every day and try to honor God in everything that I do and I may fall short sometimes, but all I want to do is love Him.
The paramedic whispered in my ear 'God will never leave you or forsake you.'
The media can be challenging, but at the same time, without the media, I would not have been able to share my personal story. Often the media can bring beauty and encouragement to people's lives.
The way I see it, putting your faith in God is something that each person has gotta come to on his or her own.It's your own personal relationship with Him; a bond that's as unique as a fingerprint.
Life is full of what-ifs. You can't let it hold you back. If you do, you're not really living at all… just kind of going through the motions with no meaning.
It's hard for me to describe the joy I felt after I stood up and rode wave in for the first time after the attack. I was incredibly thankful and happy inside. The tiny bit of doubt that would sometimes tell me you'll never surf again was gone in one wave.
I gave my heart to Jesus when I was five-years-old and since then it's been a special relationship. To me it's not a religion; it's just talking to God, reading his word, and doing my best to honor him in everything I do.
Strive to find things to be thankful for and just look for the good in who you are!
Our health and well-being is something that we can almost control, to a certain extent. We can choose to eat healthy, we can choose to think positively, and we can choose to have good posture. All this stuff makes a difference, and the way that you look and feel, and your confidence.
My faith in God is a huge part of my life, and yeah He has blessed me with an amazing family, and group of friends. In the Bible he tells us to think positively about ourselves, to not be down on ourselves. So I just try to live the way He wants me to, and make the best decisions I can.
I'm just waiting for God to tell me what to do, but whatever it is, I want to be doing something like I am doing now-serving God and helping people.
None of us are going to have perfect lives. Our own vision of what we think is good maybe different from what He God thinks. And we forget that. We think we know what's best and we don't.
We all go through rough times. We have those obstacles that seem too large to overcome or that current that you never seem to swim out of. We have to decide what matters most to us -- our passions.
The author describes how impressed she was with the detailed storyboards that outlined her movie -- not just sketches, but real art. She then describes a Hawaiian sunset as, God painting His storyboard on the sky.
Besides surfing, I play tennis, volleyball, I swim, I run hills, or I do high-intensity, high-interval workouts. I'm up at 5 A.M. every day.
Both of my parents are surfers, of course, so they understood where my passion for surfing was at and I guess they saw the talent that I had.
Life is a lot like surfing… When you get caught in the impact zone, you've got to just get back up. Because you never know what may be over the next wave.
Courage doesn't mean you don't get afraid. Courage means you don't let fear stop you.
People can do whatever they want if they just set their heart to it, and just never give up, and just go out there and do it.
Courage, sacrifice, determination, commitment, toughness, heart, talent, guts. That's what little girls are made of; the heck with sugar and spice.
I don't know how long I'll be competing, but I'll always be surfing. I'll be surfing until I'm old.
Surfing for me is more than my lifestyle; it's my passion, my love, and it's a part of me.
I enjoy hanging out with friends, going on hikes and playing tennis. I also enjoy Bible study and making dinners. I have a pretty mellow life away from the water.
Like, with one arm I know I can surf, but competitive surfing can be really frustrating, and sometimes you don't do as well as you want to. It can be discouraging at times. But whenever I do get frustrated, I just focus on God.
God will give us the strength to be able to handle things. I mean, you can try to do it on your own, and sometimes you can pull off some stuff, but in the long run, it's much easier with Him by our side.
Doing everything with one arm, being well-known, and having a book and a movie, it's fairly abnormal. As far as just not having to worry about past experiences, I've healed very well.
I'm not a vegetarian by any means; I eat fish. But the problem with shark finning is they catch the shark, cut their fins and throw them back in the ocean, and to me, that's wrong. If you're going to kill an animal, you should use the entire animal and do it humanely. I'm definitely not a big fan.
One arm might handicap me a little in competition, but I just work with what changes I know I have to make, and I'm pretty used to it now. It mainly depends on the wave conditions... I only get half the waves everyone else rides, so mine have to be good!
I believe in Jesus Christ, and I believe He gave me the passion and determination to continue surfing. You fall off the horse, and you get back on. I had to go for it.
I think it doesn't matter if you are the best surfer in the world. I'm going to try to be the best surfer I can be. It's not all about competing and being the best. It's more about having fun and just doing what you love.
God created the heavens and the earth, the oceans and the waves for our enjoyment. Surfing is just my way of worshipping Him.
I'm a surfer at heart. Both my parents moved to Hawaii in the 1970s, where they met and became Christians. Then they taught me and my two brothers how to love the Lord -- and how to surf!
I don't care to be famous. But at the same time, you look at all the role models these little girls have, and they don't have anyone to look up to. I mean, it's weird, but if I just hid out and didn't let myself be known, who would they look up to instead, you know?
I guess I just like to challenge myself and push myself harder to do things that I don't think I can, to do things that other people do not think I can. It pushes me. I push my own personal limits.
Learning how to deal with people and their reactions to my life is one of the most challenging things... people staring at me, people asking rude questions, dealing with media, stuff like that.
Growing up, I was blessed to be part of a great church. This is where I met many friends who have encouraged me in my life to live strong for Christ. My church is a place where I can develop friendships with others that will encourage me in my walk with Christ.
Being out there in the ocean, God's creation, it's like a gift He has given us to enjoy.
Love God; love others; do your best in all you do, even if you fall short!
Whatever your situation might be, set your mind to whatever you want to do and put a good attitude in it, and I believe that you can succeed. You are not going to get anywhere just sitting on your butt and moping around.
We all need that extra friend outside of our immediate family to talk about that extra stuff you wouldn't normally talk to your parents about.
To lose your everyday life of surfing and being creative on waves, enjoying the ocean -- that's scary to me. It was essential to at least try surfing again and get out there and see how it went.
It's easy to look at the things of this world to solve our challenges and obstacles in life, but when we submit our lives to Christ, His grace, mercy, peace and love will bring true fulfillment to our lives.
Strive to find things to be thankful for, and just look for the good in who you are!
Courage, sacrifice, determination, commitment, toughness, heart, talent, guts. That's what little girls are made of.