The tragedy (or was it divine retribution?) came quick—and so did the miracle that came afterward.
Thankappan, a Hindu fanatic who works as a cab driver, was driving his taxi somewhere in South Asia a few years ago when he happened to pass by a gospel meeting in a street corner being conducted by Pastor Paul of the Bibles for Mideast.
He got angry when he saw two men he knew—a former Muslim and a former Hindu—witnessing for Christ in that meeting. To show his displeasure, he spat at the people attending the meeting through his car window as he drove by.
Distracted by his anger, he didn't see a large lorry that suddenly emerged from his view. It was too late when he finally saw it. His cab smashed into the vehicle, knocking him out and rupturing his belly, causing his intestines to spill out.
Rescuers rushed him to a hospital where he fell into a coma. His injuries were such that doctors could not find a way to put his intestines back into his stomach cavity. To keep him alive, they were forced to create a pouch outside his body, located below his waist, where they placed his intestines before stitching back his stomach.
Thankappan recalled that while he was still in the coma, he had a vision of Jesus Christ touching him and saying, "I am giving you life again. Confess your sins and become my witness."
After Jesus uttered those words, Thankappan opened his eyes and saw Pastor Paul praying over him. His wife and other people he knew stood on his bedside with tears in their eyes.
He later learned that they were just waiting for him to breathe his last as the doctors had given up on him.
Surprisingly, he was able to open his mouth, telling Pastor Paul, "Pastor, I spat at you. I spat at Jesus Christ. I persecuted the Lord Jesus and His servants. Forgive me. Forgive me. Ask my Lord to forgive me." He then began to weep.
The doctor arrived and was amazed to see that Thankappan had emerged from his coma, speaking and crying.
"This is a great miracle!" the doctor exclaimed.
Thankappan was subsequently discharged from the hospital. Later, he was fully healed of his injuries, although the pouch containing his intestines remained hanging outside his body.
He then agreed to be baptised a Christian. He even became an evangelist, distributing Christian reading materials and witnessing about Jesus in the city where he lives. His wife also became a believer and became his helper as an evangelist.
Thankappan now preaches on street corners, showing the unusual pouch outside his body as part of his testimony. "I was an enemy of Christians, but Jesus Christ loved me, made me alive and saved me from sin and death. Now I am His servant," he declares.
