Jose Henriquez was the 24th miner rescued from the Chilean mine on October 13th. His faith was apparently very important to him as he asked friends to gather and send 33 small Bibles down through a supply shaft. This enabled him to lead a Bible study for the other trapped miners during the balance of their 70 day stint underground. According to news articles, Chilean officials also assigned psychologists and a personal trainer by video conference to tend to the 33 miners that were rescued.
But Henriquez clearly recognized the importance of staying connected to God during this difficult ordeal and I suspect that he already had a personal practice of reading his Bible and connecting with Jesus. He knew that in addition to receiving food and water for physical strength that he and the other miners needed food for their souls as well, and that reading from the Word of God would provide this essential spiritual nourishment. The Psalmist says in Psalm 63:5, “You satisfy me more than the richest feast. I will praise you with songs of joy.” Jesus can meet the deeper needs of the heart and soul – the kinds of needs that these men must have had when they were a 1/2 mile underground and separated from their loved ones for over two months.
Jesus reminds us of the importance of staying closely connected to him:
“I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.” John 15:5
The Bible study led by one faithful miner and the 33 Bibles helped all the men connect more solidly with God during this difficult trial. Praise God that the strong faith of this trapped miner in the Chilean disaster influenced him to ask for Bibles so that God’s truths could help provide hope for and sustain the entire group of miners.
Questions to Reflect On:
When was the last time you experienced a very, very difficult trial and how did you handle it?
When your soul needs to be nourished, how do you feed it?
Related Resources:
Blog Post – Food, Nourishment and God’s Will
