Names have meaning and often carry a message. This is also true when boats are given a name. “AFRICA MERCY” is the name of a ship that travels around the world, giving free surgeries to people who have no doctors or hospitals nearby. In the 1800s, clipper ships were given names that described how fast they sailed, such as “THE COMET” and “THE FLYING CLOUD.” The boat in our story today had a very special name. See if you can guess what it is by the end of the story!
Tyler and Heather had been good friends since the fourth grade and had decided to spend the day swimming off the coast of Vilano Beach, Florida. At first, it was a lot of fun, and they were really enjoying themselves. But what they did not realize was that a riptide was carrying them out to the open sea!
When they finally realized that they were in serious danger, they had already drifted almost two miles out to sea! Tyler and Heather tried to help themselves by spending the next two hours in an effort to swim to shore. But it was no use! No matter what direction they swam, they made no progress. After two hours of fighting the waves and holding on to each other to stay above water, they were at the end of their strength.
In desperation, they cried out to God for help. They knew they could not last much longer. Do you think that God heard them? Even before they cried out to God for help, He was providing the perfect answer to the trouble that they had gotten themselves into! God tells us in the Bible, “Before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear” (Isaiah 65:2424And it shall come to pass, that before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear. (Isaiah 65:24)).
Captain Wagner had decided to take his boat from South Florida to New Jersey, even though the sea was rough and it was windy. It would be an adventure, he thought. About two miles out, above all the wind, waves and engine noise, he thought he heard a desperate scream!
Looking carefully, he spotted arms waving in the air above the waves. It was Tyler and Heather, who by this time were very close to drowning. They were both so weak that they could not climb the ladder to the swim deck of Captain Wagner’s boat. The crew had to literally pull them out of the water. Captain Wagner later said, “Exhausted and near the end, the boy told me he called out for God’s help. Then we showed up.” He then told them the name of the boat that had rescued them was “THE AMEN.” Boys and girls, do you know what Amen means? It means “So be it,” or “Let it be so”!
In a Facebook posting, Captain Wagner wrote, “I told them the name of my boat. . . . That’s when they started to cry. The two young people were gracious and grateful to us and to God. We know it was really God all along. There’s a verse in the Bible that says, “Call upon Me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify Me” (Psalm 50:1515And call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me. (Psalm 50:15)). This is true whenever we call out to God to forgive our sins. Because of Jesus’ death on the cross for our sins, God will instantly forgive us when we call out to Him in true repentance. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:99If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9)). Come to Him now!
We are happy to say that everyone in this story gave thanks and glory to God for His kindness in saving two young lives. When Tyler was interviewed a few days later, he said, “From us crying out to God, asking Him to send someone to save our lives, and then a boat named ‘AMEN’ rescued us! There is no way that it wasn’t God’s answer!”