Bethany Hamilton - Ask Bethany

Other books in the Soul Surfer Series:

Nonfiction:

Body & Soul

Rise Above: A 90-Day Devotional

Ask Bethany, Updated Edition

Fiction:

Clash (Book One)

Burned (Book Two)

Storm (Book Three)

Crunch (Book Four)

ZONDERKIDZ

Ask Bethany, Updated Edition

Copyright 2007, 2014 by Bethany Hamilton

Requests for information should be addressed to:

Zonderkidz, 3900 Sparks Drive SE, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49546

ePub Edition March 2016: ISBN 978-0-310-75731-3

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Hamilton, Bethany.

Ask Bethany : FAQs : surfing, faith & friends / By Bethany Hamilton with Doris Rikkers.

p. cm.

Old ISBN 978-0-310-74568-8

1. Hamilton, Bethany Religion Juvenile literature. 2. Christianity Miscellanea Juvenile literature. 3. Girls Religious life Juvenile literature. I. Rikkers, Doris. II. Title.

BR124.H36 2010

248.8'2 dc22

2010038310

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Holy Bible, New International Version, NIV. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011, by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Any Internet addresses (websites, blogs, etc.) and telephone numbers in this book are offered as a resource. They are not intended in any way to be or imply an endorsement by Zondervan, nor does Zondervan vouch for the content of these sites and numbers for the life of this book.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any other except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the publisher.

Soul Surfer is a trademark owned by Bethany Hamilton.

Zonderkidz is a trademark of Zondervan.

Art direction: Deborah Washburn

Cover design: Deborah Washburn

Interior design: Christine Orejuela-Winkelman

Interior composition: Greg Johnson/Textbook Perfect

14 15 16 17 18 19 20 /DCI/ 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Contents

To everyone who has asked me nicely, begged me, or pleaded for me to ple-e-a-s-e write back here it is.

To all of you who have been kind and wonderful and said great things to encourage me since I lost my arm in a shark attack in 2003 here are my replies to your emails, letters, questions, and comments that I could never have managed to answer separately (so-o-o sorry!). But if I ever even tried to read and answer all the letters and emails and questions that I get every day, Id be writing 24/7!

Try to think of this book as the best of me to you.

Love,

Bethany

Q. It has been a long time since I have seen your picture. What do you look like now?

Q. How tall are you?

A. I have blond hair and hazel eyes and of Irish Norwegian heritage. Im taller now than I was when I was attacked by the shark. I was 57 when I was 13, but now Im 511.

Q. How old are you?

A. Im twenty-three years old now (or in my mid-twenties).

Q. When is your birthday?

A. I was born February 8, 1990.

Q. Where do you live?

A. I live on the north shore of the island of Kauai, the Garden Island, in the state of Hawaii, in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.

Q. Were you born in Hawaii or someplace else?

A. I was born in Hawaii, on the island of Kauai, in the emergency room at Wilcox Memorial Hospital.

Q. Where do you go to school?

A. I have now graduated high school, but when I was in school, I stayed home to go to school. (That sounds funny, doesnt it?) Anyway, I went to Hanalei Elementary School in the town of Hanalei on Kauai. I started homeschooling after sixth grade so Id have more time to surf. I did my studies through American School. They have students all over the world! I pretty much had to homeschool, especially after the attack because I traveled so much. I realize how blessed I am to have been educated. As I travel, I see many places where people lack a good education. So I encourage you to always work hard in school and be thankful!

Q. Are you a Christian?

A. Yes, I am. I believe that Jesus Christ has died on the cross for my sins and has given me new life through faith in him! I enjoy getting to know God by seeking him, reading his Word, and acknowledging his presence in my life. For more about my faith, see the chapter About Faith.

Q. When did you become a Christian?

A. Ive been a Christian for as long as I can remember. I was about five when I recognized Jesus as my Savior and committed to follow him, love him, and live my life for him!

Q. Where do you go to church?

A. I go to a nice, small church on the north shore of Kauai. I love the small feel and community there!

Q. What color is your hair?

A. I have medium length, straight blonde hair. It looks just like my moms hair did when she was my age. Im always trying to take good care of it because the sun and ocean are shredding the tips.

Q. I heard you have blonde hair. Is that your natural color? Do you use peroxide or anything on it?

A. My hair is thin, so it naturally bleaches out from the sun even more than most peoples hair. I like everything real and natural, so I dont use artificial products and I try to avoid chemicals as much as possible.

On the Same Wave

Heres what the Bible tells us about outward appearance:

The LORD said to Samuel, Do not consider his appearance or his height... The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.

1 Samuel 16:7

Beauty is more about whats on the inside than whats on the outside.

Your beauty should not come from outward adornment... Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in Gods sight.

1 Peter 3:3 4

Q. I heard youre really cute, so I checked out some of the pics on the Web. Sure enough, you are. Lifes not fair. How come youre cute and popular, and Im not?

A. Oh, silly, that is a funny question! God makes us the way we are for a reason, and he never makes a mistake. You were designed with his perfect love! We just have to make the best of what weve got. And besides, its whats inside us that really counts. Kindness and love are more important than looks. My mom has me look up words in the Strongs Concordance to find their deeper meaning. I found out that real beauty is more valuable if its inside our hearts. Grace, pleasant, agreeable, precious, delight, honor, purity and godly were a few of the words that were a part of being beautiful. Sin is what really makes a person look ugly, so be beautiful with a clean heart!

Q. Whats your middle name?

A. Meilani, which means heavenly flower.

Q. Do you have a nickname, or does everybody call you Bethany?

A. B-ham.

Q. Whats your favorite holiday?

A. I like Christmas. More so the deeper meaning of it. The beauty of God sending Jesus his Son to earth for us!

Q. Whos your favorite movie star?

A. I dont really have one, but I like to laugh, so any one who can make me laugh! I like Anna Sophia Robb and Cozi Zueshlsdorff.