Scott Hamilton's Wife Led Him to Jesus

Olympic gold medal-winning figure skater Scott Hamilton has faced struggles in his life,especially his battles with cancer and three brain tumors. And while he now exudes a spirit of Christian hope, he didn't always have that firm grounding. Though he always felt he had a guardian angel looking out for him, he didn't understand the Bible when he first picked it up to read it. "One day," recalled Scott during an interview with me, "I sat and opened my heart to allow God in because I didn't know how to reach Him. I was hoping He would reach me. . . . When I was up against [tough times], I would pray. I didn't know how I was praying or who I was praying to. Anytime I had a problem, if I verbalized it, that solution would come to me."

After meeting and dating Tracie, the woman who would become his wife, Scott's spiritual seeking found both a direction and a destination. One day, Tracie asked him, "Where are you in your relationship with Jesus Christ?" Scott replied, "Where do you want me to be?"

Since they both realized they wanted their relationship to move forward, Tracie introduced Scott to her minister, who recommended that Scott read the Bible again, but this time focus on how God interacted with the people in its stories. That became the key to Scott's new understanding of Scripture.

"Then, when I got to the red letters in the New Testament," he explained, "I understood that every single thing I need to know was given to me by Jesus. Every way of solving a problem, every way of redeeming a relationship, every way of rising above any affliction. . . . I look at it as the four legs of a chair. It's got the four pillars of the foundation of our lives. 1) The physical, we've got to be healthy. 2) Emotional, we've got to feel good about ourselves. 3) Intellectual, we've got to be interested in growing and our understanding of who we are in the world and how we fit in it. 4) And then the last piece is the Spirit. . . . If any one of those four legs are missing, you’re probably going to fall down."

Scott then shared a story of a watershed moment which revealed to him how much he truly relies on his faith: "A couple of Memorial Days ago, I felt ill suddenly. I got to the point where no one could figure out what was wrong with me, but I could not stay awake. I felt my life force slipping away. . . . I knew I was going to die, and I was 100% comfortable with that. I was like, 'Thank you.' What a gift that was to understand that when I get to the end of these days, I'm going to be okay, and I'll be able to accept it and to embrace it, because of what I've learned about who I am in Christ."

Ultimately, Scott's focus is on giving back. He created the Scott Hamilton Cares Foundation to fund research for cancer treatment options, and he hopes that his "Live Your Days" podcast encourages viewers to live their lives to the fullest. He concluded, "My brain tumor started to grow back a little bit, and we're keeping an eye on it. [But] I'm not going to just sit down and think about that thing all day long. I have options. . . . I'm still fighting and I'm still craving every opportunity to live joyfully and productively."

This essay is a recent "Light One Candle" column written by Tony Rossi, Director of Communications, The Christophers; it is one of a series of weekly columns that deal with a variety of topics and current events.

Background information:

The Christophers

Scott Hamilton CARES Foundation