The computer voice tracked our rapid descent with increasing urgency， giving our plane‘s decreasing altitude. “Six hundred feet！” “Five hundred feet！” “Four hundred feet！” The reports were interspersed with continuing commands to the pilots to “Pull up！ Pull up！”
No one freaked out， but the mood in the passenger cabin was more than a little tense. I asked my caregiver if he thought we needed to be translating the onboard computer warnings from English to Spanish for Captains Miguel One and Two.
“Do you think they really don’t know we‘re descending？” he asked.
I didn’t know what to think， but since no one else seemed to feel it was a problem， I followed their lead and tried not to freak out. Much to my relief， we soon landed safely. Later when one of our translators mentioned our moment of panic to our pilots， they had a great laugh.
“We knew what the computer was saying， but we always ignore it when we‘re landing，” Miguel Two said through the translator. “You should have more faith in your pilots， Nick！”
Okay， I’ll admit， for a minute there I questioned my trust in the flying Miguels. But most of the time I rest assured that God is looking out for me and my life. I‘ll give you a clue about the strength of my trust： I have a pair of shoes in my closet！ I truly believe it is possible that someday I will be able to wear them and walk in them. It may happen. It may not. But I believe the possibility is there. If you can imagine a better future， you can believe it. And if you believe it， you can achieve it.
Unlimited vision.
When I went through my period of depression as a ten-year-old， I wasn’t suffering from anything physically. I had no arms and no legs， but I had all I needed to live the rewarding and fulfilling life I have today—with one exception. Back then I was relying only on what I could see. I was focused on my limitations rather than on my possibilities.
We all have limitations. I‘ll never be an NBA star， but that’s okay because I can inspire people to be the stars of their own lives. You should never live according to what you lack. Instead， live as though you can do anything you dream of doing. Even when you suffer a setback or a tragedy， there is often an unexpected， totally improbable， and absolutely impossible benefit to be realized. It may not happen right away. You may at times wonder what good could possibly come of it. But trust that it all happens for the good—even tragedies can turn into triumphs.
SURF‘S UP
I was in Hawaii for a speaking engagement in 2008 when I met the world-class surfer Bethany Hamilton. You may recall that she lost her left arm when she was attacked by a tiger shark in 2003.
She was just thirteen years old when that happened. Prior to the shark attack， Bethany was well known among surfers， but after she survived that tragedy and returned to her sport praising God and thanking Him for his blessings， she became admired internationally for her courageous spirit and her amazing faith. Now， like me， she travels the globe to inspire people and to share her beliefs.
Her goal， she said， is “just to tell about my faith in God and to let everyone know that He loves them and to explain just how much He took care of me that day. I shouldn’t be here because I lost seventy percent of my blood that morning.”
I‘d never heard the whole story of what happened that day until our meeting， and I had not realized how close this awesome young lady came to dying. She told me how she prayed as they rushed her to a hospital forty-five minutes away and how her paramedic whispered encouraging words of faith into her ear： “God will never leave you or forsake you.”
Things were looking pretty grim. When they finally arrived at the hospital and hurriedly prepped her for surgery， they found that all of the operating rooms were being used. Bethany was fading fast. But one patient gave up his knee surgery， which was just about to get under way， so his doctor could operate on Bethany. Guess who it was？
Bethany’s own dad！
Amazing， isn‘t it？ The surgeon was prepped and ready to operate， so they just switched daughter for dad and went to work. The operation saved her life.
Since she was such a healthy， athletic girl and had such an amazingly positive attitude， Bethany bounced back faster than any of her doctors expected. She was surfing again just three weeks after the attack.
During our visit Bethany told me that her faith in God led her to conclude that losing her arm was part of His plan for her life. Instead of feeling sorry for herself， she just accepted it and moved on. In her first competition against many of the world’s best women surfers， she finished third—with only one arm！ She says that the loss of her arm is a blessing in many ways because now whenever she does well in a competition， it inspires other people that their lives have no limits！
“God has definitely answered my prayer to use me. He speaks to people when they hear my story，” she says. “People tell me that they have drawn closer to God， started to believe in God， found hope for their lives， or were inspired to overcome a diffi cult circumstance. I just praise God when I hear that because it‘s not me doing anything for them—God is the One Who is helping them. I’m so stoked that God would let me be a part of His plan.”
You can‘t help but be stoked by Bethany’s incredible spirit. Few would have blamed her if she‘d quit surfing altogether after the shark attack. She had to learn how to balance on a surfboard all over again， but that didn’t faze her either. She trusted that even though something terrible had happened to her， good could come of it.
RIDING THE WAVES
Remember this amazing girl‘s faith whenever life jumps up and takes a bite out of your plans and dreams. It will happen. We all get hit by unexpected waves now and then. Chances are your problem won’t be a shark， but whatever knocks you down， think of this gritty teenage girl who not only survived an attack from one of nature‘s most ferocious predators but bounced back more determined than ever to lead an awesome life.
Bethany inspired me so much that I asked her to help me do something I’d always wanted to try. Would she teach me to surf？ To my amazement， she promptly offered to take me out on Waikiki Beach.