BECOMING A REAL CHRISTIAN BY PERSONAL EXPERIENCE

by Lucky, steward MV Cougar Ace

I was a cultural Christian, making the pretense of following Jesus Christ. Today I am a real believer in God. A specific incident is the reason I trust in God now. I especially believe that God answered my prayer on July 24, 2006 at 7pm.

In my cabin a letter written by my daughter sat on the edge of the shelf that I had designated as my personal altar. I had touched the letter only once. My daughter had taken a passage from the Burmese Bible for me, telling me to read it daily and to believe in God, the one who would save my life. "Dad, you have to pray to God when you are facing death or trouble or the situation is hopeless for you to survive. Then God will reach down to you and answer," said my daughter.

In the evening of July 24, 2006 at 6:30pm, when I had eaten dinner and gotten off work for the day, I went back to my cabin to take off my clothes to take a shower. I headed to the bathroom with only a towel wrapped around my waist. As I entered the bathroom, I heard a noise like thunder rolling and I was thrown down to the lower (stern) side of the ship immediately. I fell out through the passage way door (that had swung open) onto the life boat deck that was listing crazily toward the surface of the water. Luckily my fall was blocked by the deck railing pipe which I gripped with both hands. Moreover, I was thinking about my death and that this was my last moment of life. Suddenly I remembered my daughter's letter and cried out to God. After I gave myself over to God, I was calm and confident.

When I looked over my right shoulder, I could see the life ring directly behind me several feet along the railing. About the same time a Filipino able seaman on the starboard side called down to me loudly not to be anxious and he would rescue me in a little while. The ship was listing into the sea with about an 80 degree slope. I was not able to move my left leg, which was bleeding with the bones protruding and causing me such agony. But I was able to drag myself along on my buttocks towards the life ring by lying on my right side and then pulling myself back to the former place after retrieving the life ring. I had nothing to cover my body; I was naked as I had lost the towel in the fall. The weather was not too cold; the temperature was around 10 degrees C (50 degrees F). Where I lay against the railing I could see the alley door when I looked upwards and see only water downwards. Then the Filipino A/B dropped me a line to tie to the life ring. He pulled me up while I hugged the life ring with all my strength. He pulled on the line dragging me up the passageway toward the starboard side of the ship. One of the seamen helped me struggle into a boiler suit and then they signaled to the other guys to pull me continuously while the one man pushed me up from my hip at the same time. Although the whole event did not last very long, I will never forget it.

Since I was rescued I have continued to thank God because he answered my prayer. This showed me that God is alive, blessing me and he saving me. Otherwise, I would be at the bottom of the ocean right now. God worked through the Filipino A/B and I experienced God’s love and compassion for me. That is why I can write this story myself. There is no way for me to be alive without God intervening in this accident in my life. He gave me a real Christian life now. I now understand why my daughter insisted me to pray with faith. This incident changed me from a cultural Christian to a real believer in God.

The passage my daughter had written for me from the Bible was the 23rd Psalm. The Lord is my shepherd; I have everything I need. He lets me rest in fields of grass and leads me to quiet pools of fresh water. He gives me new strength. He guides me in the right paths as he has promised. Even if I go through the deepest darkness, I will not be afraid, LORD, for you are with me. Your shepherd's rod and staff protect me. You prepare a banquet for me, where all the enemies can see me. You welcome me as an honored guest and fill my cup to the brim. I know that your goodness and love will be with me all my life, and your house will be my home as long as I live.