{"id":9893,"date":"2025-11-21T18:27:22","date_gmt":"2025-11-21T18:27:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/strongermarriages\/?p=9893"},"modified":"2025-11-25T22:39:43","modified_gmt":"2025-11-25T22:39:43","slug":"why-bethany-hamilton-prioritizes-gathering-her-family-around-the-dinner-table-where-goodness-happens","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/strongermarriages\/2025\/11\/why-bethany-hamilton-prioritizes-gathering-her-family-around-the-dinner-table-where-goodness-happens.html","title":{"rendered":"Why Bethany Hamilton Prioritizes Gathering Her Family Around the Dinner Table: &#8216;Where Goodness Happens&#8217;"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure id=\"attachment_9971\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-9971\" style=\"width: 1200px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-9971\" src=\"https:\/\/wp-media.beliefnet.com\/sites\/413\/2025\/11\/Bethany-Hamilton-02_credit-Featureflash-Photo-Agency-Shutterstock.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1200\" height=\"900\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-9971\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Featureflash Photo Agency \/ Shutterstock.com<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Former pro surfer Bethany Hamilton is known around the world for her determination, her faith, and her unshakeable hope in Christ. But lately, she\u2019s reminding families of something beautifully simple: the power of gathering around the dinner table.<\/p>\n<p>In a recent Instagram video, the mom of four encouraged her followers to slow down and be present with the people they love most. \u201cIn a world that moves so fast, the table reminds us to slow down,\u201d she wrote. \u201cTo look each other in the eye. To listen. Be present. Pray. Share stories.\u201d She added that \u201cthe moments that matter aren\u2019t perfect, they\u2019re real. And they often start right here\u2026around the table.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>For many parents, the family table is one of the few places where schedules pause and togetherness is possible. Hamilton says that\u2019s exactly why it matters. In the caption of her post, she pointed to the example of Jesus Himself: \u201cJesus often met people around a table. Connection. Grace. Presence. Maybe we should follow His lead and make time for the ones we love most, because that\u2019s where goodness happens.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s a theme she talks about often\u2014being fully present, especially with her children. In another Instagram message, Hamilton reminded parents that they don\u2019t need to strive for perfection to make an impact. \u201cBeing present with our children matters. It\u2019s not about getting it all right,\u201d she wrote. \u201cIt\u2019s about showing up consistently\u2026especially with our attention and not always with a phone in hand.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She encouraged moms and dads to lean into the small, everyday interactions that make kids feel loved and heard. \u201cListening. Being curious. Opening our ears when they rant about things they are excited about. Those little moments, I imagine, matter more than we realize.\u201d Her encouragement was simple but powerful: \u201cPresence matters more than perfection. Keep showing up, keep listening, and keep being there.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Hamilton recently reflected on another meaningful moment in her life\u2014the anniversary of the 2003 shark attack that took her left arm when she was just 13. Rather than focusing on the loss, she expressed gratitude. \u201cI don\u2019t even know how many years it\u2019s been,\u201d she wrote. \u201cOddly enough I lost my arm on October 31st! But grateful to God to be here loving on my fam, adventuring through life, trusting God through the ups and downs and sharing my journey with you along the way!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That experience, she\u2019s said, only deepened her walk with Jesus. In an interview with Beliefnet, she reflected, \u201cI take my relationship with Him more seriously than ever.\u201d She added, \u201cI realize that God loves everyone sooooooo much, and that He is always looking for a voice to share about His love.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Hamilton\u2019s life\u2014whether she\u2019s at the beach with her kids, sharing wisdom online, or sitting around her own family\u2019s table\u2014continues to point back to her faith. With every encouragement, she reminds families that the most meaningful moments often come in the simplest places. And for her, that place is the dinner table, where love, presence, and God\u2019s goodness come together.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Former pro surfer Bethany Hamilton is known around the world for her determination, her faith, and her unshakeable hope in Christ. But lately, she\u2019s reminding families of something beautifully simple: the power of gathering around the dinner table. In a recent Instagram video, the mom of four encouraged her followers to slow down and be&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":462,"featured_media":9971,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fbia_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9893","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Why Bethany Hamilton Prioritizes Gathering Her Family Around the Dinner Table: &#039;Where Goodness Happens&#039;<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Mom of 4 Bethany Hamilton says family dinner is a sacred space to slow down, connect, and grow together, reminding us it&#039;s \u201cwhere goodness happens.\u201d\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, 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