6th June 2025
On April 11, 1970, the United States launched the Apollo 13 spacecraft as part of the Apollo space program meant to land on the Moon.
But just two days into the mission, a heart-stopping outburst was relayed to Mission Control in Houston by the astronauts 200,000 miles away.
The now-famous words were, “Houston, we’ve had a problem.”
The problem was that oxygen tank number 2 aboard the spacecraft had exploded.
The outcome was catastrophic — there was not enough power, water, oxygen, no fuel cells, no computers, no guiding system & limited communication.
It was like a sinking Titanic in space. President Richard Nixon addressed the world, “There is nothing we can do but get on our knees and pray for those three men.”
It was then that technical expertise & divine intervention worked together to ensure the astronauts’ safe return on April 17.
No doubt, all the scientists involved in this great escape displayed exemplary teamwork & ingenuity.
But there was an unseen force aiding their efforts.
One of the astronauts, James Lovell, later said in an interview, “I think we had some divine help in this flight.”
Shortly after the successful rescue, NASA produced a commemorative coin portraying praying hands with the words, ‘Apollo 13… And the whole world prayed.’
We know how unpredictable life is, and we often find that our strength, knowledge and intelligence is not enough to succeed in dealing with some of life’s toughest challenges.
It is under such conditions that we need to pray because it gives us immense strength.
Someone has quite rightly said, “Life is fragile, handle it with prayer.”
The most amazing of human achievers have admitted to the practice of daily prayer as a cornerstone of their lives. Leaders like Lincoln & Gandhi prayed regularly for strength & guidance to help them.
Eisenhower, America’s hero of the 2nd World War, who later became the President, declared, “Personal prayer, it seems to me, is one of the necessities of life, as basic to the individual as sunshine, food & water.”
I have always found prayer, the most powerful weapon against trials, the most effective medicine against sickness & the most valuable gift to someone you love.
Pray when you need it & pray when you don’t, to express gratitude.
Today, give a silent prayer for someone going through a tough time.
Life is fragile, handle it with prayer & stay blessed forever.