The Lutheran Hour
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"God’s Plan = Jesus"
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Text: John 16:33
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Sometimes a single quotation can guide a person’s whole life. Maybe it’s a quote from a movie or a novel or some famous speech. Christians sometimes hold onto Bible verses for this reason. Words from Scripture become something of a “life verse”—a quote that frames their memories, guides their hopes, gives meaning to their life.
I was talking on the phone with a Christian woman named Bethany. She explained to me how, when she was younger, the quote most often spoken over her was from the prophet Jeremiah, from the Old Testament book of the Bible, Jeremiah 29:11. Maybe you’ve heard it quoted before. It’s one of the more popular Bible verses. Through the prophet, God says, “I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.” Hearing those words spoken over her meant a lot to Bethany at the time, with the traumatic event she had experienced.
Bethany’s last name is Hamilton. I don’t know her personally, but I had the opportunity to visit with her because I know her pastor. Bethany Hamilton was born and raised on the island of Kauai in the Hawaiian Islands. You might recognize her name because she is probably the most famous professional surfer in the world. You might know her from when she was on Oprah, or from the reality TV show, The Amazing Race, or from her #1 New York Times best-selling book, or the movie made from it, Soul Surfer, in which Bethany explains how her plans got changed. She was 13 years old, already on the rise to be a professional surfer. She went surfing early one morning, October of 2003. It was Halloween morning, actually. October 31st or, as Lutherans remember it, Reformation Day.
Bethany says that what happened next “came, literally, out of the blue.” She had no warning at all; “not even the slightest hint of danger on the horizon. The water was crystal clear and calm; it was more like swimming in a pool, rather than the deep ocean waters of Kauai.”i She had planned to surf that morning, but the conditions weren’t cooperating. The waves were small and inconsistent. And Bethany was trying to figure out what to do about her plans for the day.
She wasn’t worried about it, though. She was just rolling along with the waves, relaxing on her surfboard with her right hand on the nose of the board and her left arm dangling in the cool water, when suddenly there was a flash of gray. It was over in a blink. She said she didn’t feel any pain at the moment, just a lot of pressure and a couple of lightning-fast tugs.ii The massive jaws of a fifteen-foot tiger shark covered the top of her board and her left arm. The water around her turned bright red.
Somehow, she stayed calm, and matter-of-factly, started paddling back to the beach. Her left arm was gone, up to the shoulder, along with a large, crescent-shaped chunk from her surfboard. Friends who were close by helped her get to shore and rushed her to the hospital in time to save her life.
Not only did Bethany survive the attack—incredibly, it didn’t stop her. Just a few months later, she went back into the water, back into the ocean not too far from where she’d been attacked. Even more incredibly, she re-learned to surf with one arm, and went on to win several professional surfing competitions and, in the process, became a global celebrity. In 2018, they made a documentary about her life. Appropriately, it’s titled, Unstoppable.
Bethany has become a hero to many people (my daughter and two nieces included) as well as many other young girls, and also big tough guys with beards. Bethany is an amazing person and she has an inspiring Christian witness. And you’ll get to hear from her in the second part of our program today.
So, it seems that those words from the prophet Jeremiah, from chapter 29, verse 11, really do apply to her. Despite this tragedy, God did and does have a plan for her life, plans not to harm her, but to give her a hope and a future.
When I talked to Bethany on the phone recently, however, she told me, not about Jeremiah 29:11, but another passage of Scripture that’s become special to her: John 16:33, which we’ll talk about in a moment. Bethany still likes Jeremiah 29:11, but she also agrees that it’s sometimes taken out of context. Christians sometimes seem to hear the promise—”I know the plans I have for you”—as though God were addressing them as a singular individual, like God’s a professional sports agent or something, and God is saying to them, “I’ve got big plans for you. I’m going to open doors for you to achieve your dreams and win big and become famous,” and the like.
But that is not the context of Jeremiah. First of all, the “you” is plural. It’s not singular. God says, “I know the plans I have for you all” or “all y’all,” as they say in Texas. And the “you all” is a specific group of people, the people of Israel, the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. And the plans God has for them are bigger than personal fame. The plans God has for them are more lasting than personal prosperity. The plan God has for them is nothing short of saving the whole universe—a plan that was set in motion from the first book of the Bible, when God promised the first woman, Eve, and to her husband Adam that a Son, a King, a Messiah would come from their Offspring.
And this promised Son would crush the head of the serpent, the devil, who had deceived them, turned them away from God on a “me-centered” path, a path toward self-destruction. But this promised Son would reverse that course. He would turn people back to God. He would overturn death and heal our trauma. He would restore all things.
That’s the plan God had in mind for the people of Israel whom Jeremiah was addressing. And that plan would happen in God’s way, in God’s time, not theirs. The plan would reach fulfillment around 500 years after Jeremiah, in Jesus. If there ever was a singular individual who could claim God’s plans as His own, it was and is Jesus.
Jesus is God’s plan.
God’s plan is for Jesus, and Jesus—He is for you, for us. He proved it by laying down His life for you on the cross, and by taking it up again in His resurrection from the dead. He did this for you as an individual, and for us, all together. He is God’s plan, and we get to be included as His followers.
Following Jesus, learning to trust Him more deeply, we learn to center our lives and our plans in Him. This is why, in the recent years, Bethany has been drawn to that quote from Jesus, recorded in the Gospel of John 16:33. Jesus said it to His disciples the night before He was betrayed, arrested, and crucified. He said to them, “I told you these things so that in Me you would have peace. In the world you will have trouble. But take heart—take courage—I have overcome the world.”
Notice that Jesus isn’t promising to make your dreams come true. He isn’t saying, “Life with Me is going to be easy.” He isn’t saying, “It’s always going to make sense. He’s saying, “Look, it’s going to be difficult. There will be pressure and pain along the way. But with Me, you don’t need to worry about it.”
Today, Bethany still speaks to large groups of people all around the world. One of the places where she regularly speaks is at a retreat called “Beautifully Flawed.” It’s a retreat designed for young women who, like Bethany, have experienced traumatic limb loss.
Many of the speakers at these retreats are Christian, and many of them encourage these young women to trust that God has a plan for them. Bethany says that the retreat sometimes does have a very “Jeremiah 29:11 vibe” to it, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but sometimes the quote can be taken out of context. So, in the last several years, when Bethany speaks, she draws their attention back to John 16:33. She reminds them that when Jesus says, “In this world you will have trouble,” it doesn’t just mean traumatic events. It also means the daily mistakes we make and the sins we commit, as well as the mistakes and sins we suffer from others. In this world we will have trouble.
And the plans God has for us, they aren’t me-centered, plans you might work out with your personal agent. No, God’s plans for us aren’t me-centered, but Christ-centered. God’s plans are centered on His Son, Jesus Christ. And Jesus has overcome. He overcame sin and death and trauma. And He promises that in Him, we will too, when He returns to raise the dead and restore God’s creation so that we would have His peace.
Jeremiah 29:11 does, in fact, apply to Bethany Hamilton. But not because of her seemingly unstoppable work ethic or her surfing championships or her millions of followers on social media. God’s plans aren’t just for elite athletes. God’s plans are for everyone.
And Bethany finds herself in God’s plan in the same way that you and I find ourselves—by being baptized into the death and resurrection of Jesus, by relinquishing our me-centered plans and trusting Christ instead, by dying to ourselves so that we might be raised in Him, Christ-centered, joined as limbs and members of his body, the church, not to serve ourselves, but our neighbors. To point them to Jesus, to live freely and confidently and purposefully in God’s love so that others would know His love for them, too. By God’s grace, you can entrust your plans to Jesus. He’s blessed you with many gifts, and He will lead you through every trouble, as He’s done for Bethany.
Bethany Hamilton may be a celebrity, but she still has everyday troubles like the rest of us. Twenty-two years after surviving a traumatic shark attack, she still has to return to Jesus every week, every day, every moment to find peace in this world. She is a mother of four young children and homeschools her kids with her husband, Adam. The morning I talked to her on the phone, at one point in the conversation, one of her young children is screaming in her ear, while someone has locked the keys in the family car, and her mom comes to bring a spare key, but had accidentally grabbed the wrong set of keys and has go back to her house again, leaving Bethany to figure out what she’s going to do with her plans for the day.
I said to her, “Wow, sorry, that sounds really frustrating.” She says, “Oh, I’m not worried about it.” And I believed her.
In the Name of Jesus. Amen.
i Bethany Hamilton, Soul Surfer: A True Story of Faith, Family, and Fighting to Get Back on the Board (New York: MTV Books, 2006), 3.
ii Ibid., 70.
Reflections for July 20, 2025
Title: A conversation with Bethany HamiltonMark Eischer: You’re listening to The Lutheran Hour. You’ll find FREE online resources, archived audio, and more, at our website lutheranhour.org. Now back to our Speaker, Dr. Michael Zeigler.
Mike Zeigler: Thank you, Mark. Today I’m visiting with Bethany Hamilton. She’s a professional surfer, a speaker, writer, podcast host, wife and mother of four, and a homeschool mom as well. Welcome, Bethany.
Bethany Hamilton: Aloha. Welcome. Yeah, I’m so glad to be here. Thanks for having me.
Mike Zeigler: So Bethany, during the sermon, I shared some of your story with our listeners and a little about how I got in contact with you and your husband through your pastor, Pastor William [Pierce], who I got to know a few years back. Since you’ve been a teenager, you’ve been a very public figure. You’ve traveled around the world, you’ve done a lot of things. But, along with all that, you’re a part of the body of Christ and you’re a member of a local church. So tell us a little about what you love about your church and your pastor.
Bethany Hamilton: My husband and I transitioned to becoming a Lutheran about eight or so years ago. It was probably like a four-year transition. We just love everything about our church and service and our pastor’s wonderful. And I always like to point out that, like, even if our pastor gave a horrific sermon, we would get so much out of our service. There’s just so much depth to every aspect of the service, and we have just such a great appreciation for the Lutheran tradition and church and service and everything that comes with the Law and the Gospel and how Christ is proclaimed to us on a weekly basis. I feel like I truly understand the “come as you are.” It has nothing to do with clothes; [it’s] being a saint and a sinner and coming as we are to the altar to receive from the Lord on a weekly basis.
Mike Zeigler: Your pastor, Pastor William, he’s also been a guest on your podcast that you have recently. So if people wanted to hear more from Pastor William, they could listen to your podcast, right?
Bethany Hamilton: Yeah, we’re trying to have him be like a co-host, like, the Lord is working in and through him in so many amazing ways, not only in our church. We are trying to build our podcast so that we can proclaim the Gospel more and get more encouragement out there. I think, unfortunately, a lot of people are getting their theology from social media now, through Instagram, through influencers, through leaders on there. And so, I kind of am hoping that we can take, not only Pastor Will, but other amazing pastors out there and have thoughtful, deep conversations to enrich people’s lives and bring them out of that works-righteousness theology.
Mike Zeigler: The podcast, it’s called All Things Possible?
Bethany Hamilton: All Things Possible with myself, Bethany, and my husband Adam. We’re hosting together and we’re talking about faith, health, culture, family, relationships, that’s kind of the core of what we want to focus on. And it’s just been really fun thus far.
Mike Zeigler: This turning point with you and your husband that happened about eight years ago, about coming to this new understanding of the Gospel, the Good News of Jesus—you’d both been Christians before that, so it wasn’t a conversion, it was a deepening in your faith. So looking back now, eight years later, how do you describe or understand that turning point in your life?
Bethany Hamilton: We were having marital conflict, and there was just a lot of hardship kind of coming our way. And then we had done some counseling with a Lutheran pastor, Dr. John Bombaro, who started or founded our church, and he is a great voice in the Lutheran circles, so to say. And the way he preached the Gospel immediately brought hope to our marriage and hope to our conflict. And it was like the epitome of my burden is light. And while life didn’t get perfect and there’s still a lot of hardship, there’s still that underlying peace that only God can bring. And that’s what carries me through today as a mom, a wife, a friend, an auntie, a voice out in the public space. I just feel like it’s been a deepening of our faith and a call to look back to Christ, to be the Author and Finisher of my faith.
You know, you could get to bed and feel so discouraged. But then I’m remembering that Christ is sufficient for me, and He calls me to wake up and start a new day and show up for my children the best I can, even if I may have failed in one way or another the day before. And so I think there’s just been this breath of fresh air, so to say, and a deepening of understanding God’s Word and releasing that need to be perfect. Because I understand the Gospel and hear it more often, that then propels you to follow God’s Word. And instead of forcing that, it just comes more naturally because I hear the Gospel and I hear that Christ has died for my sins, and He is the reason I’m able to keep going, so to say. And so if anyone’s listening and you’re going through a tough season, I hope you can remember that the Lord is here for us and His promises remain yesterday, today, and tomorrow, and nothing can change that, no matter how rough life may get.
Mike Zeigler: One of the verses that I’ve heard you talk about is the basis for the sermon that we heard today, John 16:33. This is a promise from Jesus that I know you’ve learned by heart and you hold in your heart. How is that promise speaking to you lately?
Bethany Hamilton: I know there’s different translations, but the one I’ve memorized is “In Me you will have peace. In the world you will have tribulation, but take heart, I have overcome the world.” And I just love that this verse is a promise of the Gospel that the Lord says we will have tribulation, hardship, challenge, but take heart, Christ has overcome the world on our behalf. And so, it kind of releases us from that pressure of having to save ourselves. And we can look to God because this is a promise He has made for us. And for me, you know, hardship hit young, but it doesn’t stop. All of us have hard times, and they continue to come. And so, being able to look to God and remember His Word is so important. And it’s just been such a blessing in my life, that verse in particular. You know maybe life won’t be perfect, and there might be still some struggles, like anxiety, bitterness, anger, resentment, struggle with your sin. I’m very much a believer that the faith is our foundation, but then God also gives us tools to overcome these challenges. So, not being passive and letting everything just happen, but to be changed by the Gospel. When we hear that, that will help us change and grow and look to God to carry us through those burdens.
I think denominations are designed to hold fast to God’s Word and to not let these random individuals kind of take God’s Word and run with it. But there’s an accountability here and protecting of God’s Word and His truth.
Mike Zeigler: Thank you so much for your witness, Bethany, and all that you’re doing to serve your neighbor and work in God’s kingdom. Last question: Are you going to get to surf today or later this week?
Bethany Hamilton: I’m making it a goal to get my children surfing. My oldest is almost 10 and he likes surfing, and so my priority is to get him in the water.
Mike Zeigler: All right. Thank you, Bethany. God bless you. And we pray God’s blessings continue in your life.
Bethany Hamilton: Thank you. Aloha, Michael, and everyone listening.
Music Selections for this program:
“A Mighty Fortress” arr. Peter Prochnow. Used by permission.
“Crucifer” by Sydney H. Nicholson, arr. Peter Prochnow. Used by permission.
“My Faith Looks Up to Thee” courtesy of The Hymnal Project of the Michigan District, The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod.
“One Thing’s Needful; Lord, This Treasure” From The Concordia Organist (© 2009 Concordia Publishing House) Used by permission.