Have you ever prayed for people who don’t believe in Jesus? That’s what believers around the world have done for the past few weeks—pray for those in Thailand, which is 94.5% Buddhist, according to the country’s 2015 census.
Yesterday, those prayers were answered in the best way possible when Thailand Navy SEALS and cave diving specialists rescued the last few boys and the assistant coach of a 12-member Thailand soccer team from a flooded cave. Few people believed this could happen.
On June 23, the team had set out on a fun Saturday afternoon hike through a cave. Within hours, heavy rains flooded the passages, making it impossible for the team to escape. A rescue operation quickly formed. Strategies included pumping water from the cave, searching for other entrances, calling in experts from other nations, drilling, and scuba diving.
They tried everything . . . and they never gave up. After 10 days, British divers found all team members alive and well perched on a shelf 2.5 miles into the underground labyrinth. The world rejoiced!
It took another eight days to get the team out of the cave. Most of the boys couldn’t swim. None could scuba dive. The cave was dark, the water treacherous, and the oxygen level low. Sadly, a former Thai Navy SEAL gave his life volunteering on a dive team that carried oxygen tanks into the cave.
I can’t imagine being the mother of one of those boys. The media showed all the families praying. To Buddha? I don’t know. But, I firmly believe that God hears all prayers. When the world prays together, miracles can happen.