A is for Artios
October 2019
Some years ago, a team of intercessors assembled to deal with the spirit of suicide at the Bedok Reservoir, which notoriously became the number 1 spot for people to drown themselves. As I was born and raised in the East, Cindy asked if I could join them.
I met them at the reservoir park, amongst whom were two Christians from India. They miraculously spoke the same Indian dialect as a drunk who was making a racket in the park. He divulged between sobs that he was going to kill himself that night as he cannot get over his breakup with his girlfriend. Right after the two men ministered to him, he sobered up and was all smiles when he accepted the invitation to receive the Lord as His Saviour.
(Afternote: After this intercession, Bedok Reservoir no longer holds the dubious honour of being the suicide place to go, to this day).
Warriors on the Hill
After the work was done, I mentioned in passing that I no longer stay in the East, where I had prayer walked and watched for a long time, as the Lord had told me to move inland from the coast towards the Bukit Timah hill.
The two Indian men exclaimed in excitement, “It is exactly what we did too! We moved out of Bayshore Park and now we are at the Raintree!” It is an apartment in the mid-hill section, just a few hundred metres away from my new home.
This made me rather pleased – to have more warriors on the hill, the highest point in Singapore. Apparently during World War II, one of the first thing that the invading Japanese army did was to plant their flag and build a Shinto shrine on this hill.
I prayer walk this place quite frequently, walking up and down the roads that lead to the different residential developments, blessing it, sending out light and pushing out darkness and evil. I am gratified that I am not alone.
Some years later, I found out from Cindy that the two men have left and returned to India at the end of their employment stint in Singapore.
Eyes on the Property
I was dismayed.
I started to look out for properties on sale in this development. My husband and I saw a few but we were not pleased with them. The very astute agent kept our contact and about two years later, she showed my husband a unit that meets all our requirements. Excitedly, my husband showed me photos he took of the apartment, which is rarely available, as I was not able to make it.
Resistance to the Purchase
The moment we expressed our interest in the property we were met with a lot of resistance, as though the devil is doing everything to prevent us from buying the property.
The tenants made it very difficult for the seller’s agent to arrange any viewing. The owners’ method of setting the buying process was also unconventional, requiring prospects to bid from a floor price they have set. We shared our displeasure as it seems like a ploy to pit one buyer against another, raising the stake every time someone makes an offer.
This practice is quite unheard of in Singapore, especially now after the many cooling measures taken by the government to keep prices in check.
Unable to get another appointment to view, to the exasperation of both the sellers’ and our agents, I decided to walk to the condo with my husband. He pointed out the unit from the main entrance. I asked God for confirmation.
The Sign
I took a picture of the condo logo and felt comfortable with the symbol of the bird, which a preacher said it represents grace.
As we turned around to walk down the hill, I saw it. The sign.
On the pavement, just about 10 metres from the guard post, is the cross!
I felt that this may be it. Still, I was not prepared to make an offer as I was going away for our COBS retreat over the Deepavali long weekend and the tenant allowed viewings only on Saturday mornings.
My husband also agreed that it is better that I see the unit as well. We agreed to leave it to the hands of God and if it is sold by the time I get back, then it is not meant to be.
To our surprise, the agent called to tell us that viewing is possible that very afternoon, as the tenant is also going away for the weekend too! I loved the unit the moment I entered – the air was light and the layout is very ideal, with views of the greenery and the forest in every room. As we departed, I felt led to take a picture of the unit number.
Something About the Number 739
I felt there is something about the number. I texted YY and she came back with verses from the Book of Isaiah. Reading it several times over, I made no sense of it and decided to ask the Lord myself.
He asked me to look up the number 739 from the Strong’s Concordance.
My spirit leapt at each definition of this Greek word, “Artios” – “fitted, complete, perfect, ready”! Another ‘A’ word for the year.
Calling Down my Trusty Red Marker Again
I knew this is the one! I prayed and called down my trusty red marker from heaven and marked the unit – it is mine and no one else shall have it without my permission!
This word is also spiritually timed to perfection. I thought that this word ends the year of ‘A’s perfectly as we ready ourselves to wait on the Lord for the word for 2020.
Warring Strategically
We discussed our bidding strategy. I went away on my retreat. When I returned, we got the good news. The owner has accepted our offer and we got the property!
Looking back, I realized God had turned the hindrances to buying this property to our advantage - the unpopular bidding system, the difficulty in arranging an appointment to view and the last-minute appointment only we could make it since we lived so close to it.
Praise the Lord!
Pleased and intrigued once again by God, I am all set for 2020!
“Artios”! Fitted, complete, adequate and equipped for the coming year!
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