aboutben
I grew up on a dairy farm near Park River, ND where I went to elementary and high school. I was raised in a Christian home by two loving parents and have one brother and sister. From a very young age, I was always a lover of sports and working out. I played basketball, football, and track as I grew up into my teenage years and had aspirations to play college basketball. Going into the Spring of my sophomore year, everything seemed to be going perfect until one cold April day.
On April 6, 2007 (Good Friday), my life changed forever in a matter of seconds. I was in a car accident, which left me with a 5% chance of survival due to the severity of my injuries. However, I was found by my parents shortly after being ejected out of the passenger door going face-first into the field. Many miracles then occurred on that day and the days after to save my life. Despite my life being saved, I was supposed to be a much different person than before my accident due to my traumatic brain injury and was told I would have limitations in school and would probably never be able to play sports again.
Coming out of the hospital, my only goal was to play basketball again and be the person I was before my accident. So, throughout my high school years, I had the belief I would come back and do what they said was impossible., With that belief, I did come back the very next year and play, but because of different setbacks each year such as, Post-Concussion Syndrome, I was never fully able to live out my dreams. However, God gave me something much better in return, which set me on the path I am on today.
During my senior year in high school, my faith began to grow, and I began to understand for the first time that sports was not as important as I previously thought and had a belief that one day, I would do something that was much bigger and better than sports but did not know what it was yet. In college, I began receiving requests to come share my story at different venues, which gave me the thought "Maybe this is what I was saved to do.". As time went on, it was apparent to me that I was supposed to share it in some capacity, but after having multiple flashbacks of my near-death experiences from my accident in the field and during surgery, it was made clear that I was truly living out that 'bigger and better plan'.
During my junior year in college, I was inspired to write down my story and my book, Finding Faith in the Field, was released a year later. After its release, my career as a motivational speaker began to really take off and that's where I am at today. Along with being a public speaker, I am also a health coach and an entrepreneur while starting my own clothing line. I have many other inspirations and dreams that I am currently working on such as a second book and adapting my book into a movie. So, if there is one thing that my life has taught me, it is that with God, all things are possible.
Benjamin Hylden
"God has a plan."
This is a very simple and straightforward thing to say, but yet, very powerful and true. My mom would tell me that from day one as I came out of my coma after my accident and still does to this day. Many times, it was hard to believe because of the pain I was going through and not understanding why it was happening to me, but it has proven to be true as I now look back and see that the trials I was enduring at the time were truly blessings in disguise. So, we may not always understand or believe it, but God truly has a plan for us all.
