The Impact Zone

I am not a surfer – never have been – never even played one on TV. But, I AM amazed and inspired by the story of a young surfer named Bethany Hamilton. My tween-age daughters have fallen in love with her story, and we just finished watching her movie, Soul Surfer, for the third time.

Each time I’ve watched the movie, I’ve been struck by different aspects of her story, but this time, the quote at the end of the movie really caught my attention. Bethany says:

“Life is a lot like surfing. When you get caught in the impact zone, you need to get right back up because you never know what’s over the next wave. And if you have faith, anything is possible….anything at all.”

Again, I’m not a surfer, but as I understand it, the impact zone is the place where the waves break or flip over and crash back into the ocean. It’s not a place where you want to be. If you get caught there, chances are, you’re going to get tossed around and pretty banged up. The waves just keep coming, and if you don’t get out, you’ll use up all your energy just trying to stay above water and end up too exhausted to keep going.

As I see it, you have three choices when you’re in the impact zone:

(1) You can stay where you are and hope for the best. Given the potential consequences, this doesn’t seem like a very good plan.

(2) You can turn around and try to make it back to shore. On the surface, this seems like a pretty good idea. Just get out of there and get back to safety. However, if you’ve ever been in the ocean, you know that it’s hard to out-run the waves. They have a way of catching up with you and knocking you down again. So, you may make it back to shore, but when you get there, you haven’t really accomplished much and you may actually be in worse shape than you were before you headed out.

(3) You can dive under and swim out a little further. This may seem like a dangerous option since it’s taking you away from the seeming safety of the shore, but once you get past those breakers and into the open water, you can see what’s on the horizon, and you’ll be ready to catch that perfect wave and ride it all the way in to shore.

Sometimes life can throw us into the impact zone. But, that’s not the time to quit. It’s not the time to give up, turn around, and walk away. Everything in you might be screaming, “I can’t take it anymore! I can’t deal with all the things that are coming my way right now. It’s just too much!” Take a lesson from the surfers... Don’t give up - keep pressing forward. Go a little deeper. Dive in, kick for all you're worth, and head for the open water. You can do it. And, there’s sure to be a promise waiting for you out there just beyond the horizon. As Bethany said, “… you never know what’s over the next wave. And, if you have faith, anything is possible… anything at all.”

“I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through Him who gives me strength.” – Philippians 4: 12-13