I Got Lost & Drifted at Sea for 3 Days

When my boat capsized and nearly everyone drowned, I thought I would die too. But God saved me.

I was only eighteen when I first set out to sea.

It wasn’t my duty to be on that boat, but I volunteered. I was young and eager, wanting to experience the open waters for myself. The opportunity came when one of the assigned crew members couldn’t make it. Without hesitation, I asked to take his place.

We boarded a small wooden boat and set sail for our mission in the South China Sea. The first day passed uneventfully, and by evening, we were preparing to return to Singapore. But right before sunset, we discovered a problem.

One of the pumps had failed, and more water was coming in than going out.

While we were scooping out water from the deck, a large ship passed by, sending powerful waves crashing into us. Our boat, already unstable, reached its tipping point.

I recognised that once it tipped beyond a certain angle, there would be no recovery—it would overturn completely.

So I jumped.

When I surfaced, I turned back, but the boat was gone. Just like that, everything disappeared, and the waters were calm like nothing happened.

I wasn’t alone, though. One of my colleagues had also survived, floating some distance away. I tried to move towards him, but the tide carried me further and further away. I quickly realised how helpless I was.

Even if ships passed by, I was nothing more than a little spot in the vast ocean. This was a busy route for cruises and cargo ships—massive vessels that would never notice a lone man bobbing up and down in the sea. The nearest fishing boats were at least 20km away.

3 Sharks and Many More Prayers

That night, four hours after we capsized, I saw fins in the water.

Three sharks, gliding silently and circling around me. That was when I realised my right hand was bleeding, cut by glass when I jumped.

My heart pounded, but I remembered that I shouldn’t thrash in the water, which signals to the sharks that I am prey. So instead, I stayed very still and prayed. 

I pleaded with God: Lord, I am only eighteen. My life is just beginning. I never even got to say goodbye to my mother properly. Please… save me.

The hours passed, but I never stopped praying.

At some point the next day, I caught sight of my friend. He had found a coconut tree trunk, eroded and split in half, floating on the sea. He clung to it for dear life, looking like Robinson Crusoe. I tried to swim to him, but my body was too weak. The tide pulled me away once again.

I remember calling out his name, desperately wishing I could be with him.

He shouted back, "Don’t worry! I’ll meet you in Singapore. God is good!" Then, even as we drifted further apart, I heard him begin to sing praises.

I held on to those words and sang praises to God, too.

Drifting in the Hands of God

I was carried by the ocean, feeling weaker with every moment. My flesh was weak and my body felt as fragile as paper, but my spirit clung to the only thing I had left—hope in God.

On the third day, I saw fishing trawlers. That meant I had drifted at least 20km from where I capsized.

Feeling surreal, I knew this was my only chance. I pushed myself forward, forcing my arms and legs to move. 

Thank God they spotted me.

Strong arms pulled me onto the boat. I was starved and barely conscious. They gave me a bowl of porridge, fresh from the fire stove onboard. I swallowed it whole, desperate for food, not even realising it was scalding hot. The fishermen yelled, warning me that I could die from eating hot food like that when I was so weak—but I felt nothing.

Eventually, I was brought back to Singapore by helicopter. I had survived. But more importantly, my faith and love for God had only grown stronger.

God’s Purpose for My Life

I did end up meeting my friend and colleague back in Singapore. He was saved too, and told me he had been called by God to be a pastor. So he left the job and did just that. To this day, he remains in ministry, preaching.

Looking back, I see God’s hand so clearly. I could have died so many different ways—drowned, lost consciousness, been eaten by sharks, struck by a ship’s propeller. But God gave me this experience and kept me alive.

Not by chance. Not by luck. By His will.

All I know is—He has a purpose for me.

To anyone reading this, I just want to say: Trust God. Whether in trials or in peace, praise Him. His ways are higher than ours.

"So then each of us shall give account of himself to God. Therefore let us not judge one another anymore, but rather resolve this, not to put a stumbling block or a cause to fall in our brother’s way." — Romans 14:12-13

"For God will bring every work into judgment, including every secret thing, whether good or evil." — Ecclesiastes 12:14