• Soul Surfer: Fulfill God's Destiny

  Contributed by Michael Mccartney on Jul 19, 2011 (message contributor)

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  Tags:  Fulfillment

  Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

* SOUL SURFER: FULFILL GOD'S DESTINY

Soul Surfer is the inspiring true story of teen surfer Bethany Hamilton. Bethany lost her left arm in a shark attack and courageously overcame all odds to become a champion again, through her sheer determination and unwavering faith in Jesus Christ.

Bethany was born to surf. A natural talent who took to the waves at a young age, she was leading an idyllic life on Kauai, participating in national surf competitions with her best friend Alana, when everything changed. On Halloween morning 2003, a 14-foot tiger shark came out of nowhere and seemed to shatter all her dreams.

Soul Surfer reveals Bethany's fight to recover from her ordeal and how she grappled with the question of her future. Strengthened by the love of her parents, Tom and Cheri, and supported by her church youth group leader Sara, Bethany refuses to give in or give up, and begins a bold return to the water.

Her story will inspire you and challenge you in your own faith in God.

There is also a book out about her life called "Soul Surfer" and also her own movie documentary called "The Heart of a Soul Surfer." In her documentary her mom shares how at age 15, which was 3 years after the shark attack, they started praying for the Lord to show Bethany what the will of God was for her life. She has now been featured on prime time TV shows, talk shows and she has spoke at a host of Christian events. She states in her documentary that her divine calling is "to share her faith, tell her story" and to help others with disabilities by inspiring them that with God all things are possible.

The movie "Soul Surfer," much like the story of Esther from the Bible, inspires us to fulfill God's divine destiny for our life.

So can I ask you a few questions today based on our subject today:

* "Do you know what the divine will of God is for your life?"

* "Are you fulfilling your divine purpose for God?"

* "Are you making a difference in such a time as this with your life?"

We need to remember that for our own stories to make a difference for eternity it requires us to know our divine purpose and then to fulfill our divine purpose for the Lord.

Bethany is doing this and Esther as well did this as role models for us to follow.