Friday, May 27, 2011

Soul Surfer

In light of the abundance of comments about the new movie Soul Surfer, I decided to read the autobiography on which it is based. Obviously there are going to be some objections averted because we are talking about a non-visual medium here. The frequent swim attire mentioned by some, and the loud music that would be far too frequent do not come into play in written form. Thank goodness for that.

However, I found Soul Surfer by Bethany Hamilton quite a delightful read. Written as an early teen (with a co-author), she demonstrates a spiritual insight that I found quite refreshing. I have met adults with much less spiritual sense than Bethany. During the height of her surfing "career", her world is rattle to the core by suffering a shark attack which takes nearly all her left arm. Rather than blame God, whom she clearly acknowledges as her Lord and Savior, she searches to see how He would use this event in her life to minister to others. Not that she doesn't struggle with the "why me?" question. She does, but refuses to allow this to limit her in her dreams or dampen her love for God.

I understand the hesitation that Bethany's story (and film) inspires. Yes, modesty is a big issue. Although I don't believe the apparel is flaunted as much as it could have been, I would not recommend this film for boys or men, or even girls struggling with a modesty issue themselves. The music issue is far more of a problem for me, being a musician with conservative standards. Perhaps at home DVD viewing is a better medium because of this problem.

To avoid these things all together, I recommend reading the autobiography by Bethany. She does refer to her CCM tastes in music, but please consider that she has never been taught about such things.

Please keep in mind that in all reading material, even Christian, that we must go in Biblically grounded so that we can filter those things that are not up to par. That said, I did enjoy her book. I think you will be surprised at it's candor and uplifting character.

Enjoy!

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