If you are a technically-minded person like I am, chances are you are going to be very interested in this article. This article contains numbers that God gave me in a dream, and how these numbers worked out in real life. What God did was truly mind-boggling!

Salary Preparations

On July 11, 2005, I had a dream. In the dream, I was at an office building that looked like a house. I said that I thought the job was worth 12 times 5, but a man having authority said to me, Not 5, but 7! Then, I calculated 12 times 8 = 96, which I deliberated on for some time (seconds in the dream, representing longer in real life). The man with authority had said 12 times 7, but I had said to another man, 12 times 8. What a strange dream! As it turns out, the Lord was preparing me for salary negotiations at a company that I was not even thinking about. I had not applied to them, nor received any communications from them.

In the dream, the Lord was giving me some round numbers (I did not realize this right away). 12 times 5 meant 12 months times $5,000 per month. Even though this amount equals $60,000, the Lord did not state it that way, because the 5 was rounded. In real life, I was later offered $65,000/year. That’s not $60,000, but if you had to represent $65,000 using the notation God gave me in the dream, you would have to use 12 times 5. If you chose 12 times 4, that would be too low (12 x $4000 = $48,000). If you chose 12 times 6, that would be too high (12 x $6000 = $72,000). Simple math shows us that $65,000 falls into the 12 times 5 category.

When they later offered me the job for $65,000/year, I did not accept it, because the man with authority had said, Not 5, but 7! In other words, I was not to accept 12 times 5. Instead, I was to accept 12 times 7! But since the 7 was also a rounded number, it was not referring to precisely $84,000, but a possible range of numbers between $78,000 and $89,999.99 per year (simple math shows this).

Furthermore, 12 times 8 = 96 meant that there were going to be salary negotiations. In order to arrive at 12 times 7, I was going to have to aim for 12 times 8. This is a negotiating strategy. It is used in business all the time. The best negotiator is God, and he was telling me how to do it. God’s negotiating strategy would work, but I would be up against a corporate giant. Would this corporate giant budge for a “little guy” like me? They would if God was behind it!

Less Than 2 Months Later

Less than 2 months later (on August 31). I received an unexpected phone call from a man named Robert from Alcea Technologies, a recruiting firm. Robert wanted to know if I would be interested in a 4-week consulting job writing software. I said I was. The next day, I was interviewed at a place called BitHeads. BitHeads had hired Alcea to find a software developer, but BitHeads themselves had also been outsourced by another company, TimeICR, and the next day, on September 2, 2005, I started working at TimeICR.

Two weeks into my 4-week contract with Alcea, I was approached by a TimeICR executive named Ian, who asked me if I would be interested in a full-time position. In May of 2004, however, more than a year before any of this took place, my friend Jim had a dream about me and about this big-named lawyer named Rogers. In Jim’s dream, this man “Rogers” was strategizing in order to use Jim and me to fulfill his purposes.

As it turns out, TimeICR was purchased by the Rogers corporation (specifically Rogers Business Solutions) just before I signed on full-time contract with them. God had actually given Jim the name of the company that purchased TimeICR even before anyone at TimeICR knew! God was going to use Jim and me to pray together, in order to fulfill his purposes. Because his purposes were fulfilled, you are now reading this article!

Why was this man “Rogers” pictured as a big-named lawyer? I believe there is a double-entendre here. First, the biggest named lawyer of all is God, for God is the ultimate lawgiver and judge. Furthermore, the legal experts in the Bible were those who were in charge of God’s law. The Bible says that God is the Judge of the entire earth (see Genesis 18:25). It makes sense that he would be the “big-named lawyer.” Calling him “Rogers” means he is ultimately in charge of the company named Rogers and can direct that company in any way he wants. It is just like we read in the Bible,

The king’s heart is in Yahweh’s hand like the watercourses. He turns it wherever he desires. (Proverbs 21:1)

You might be asking, “If God can do whatever he wants, why does he not fix all of the world’s problems?” Good question! Jesus will indeed come back one day, even as we read in the Bible. But right now, God is currently giving people time to repent (change their ways and trust in him). God will never force anyone to trust in him. He is not like that.

The Bible says,

The Lord is not slow concerning his promise, as some count slowness; but is patient with us, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. (2 Peter 3:9)

God wants to see who will choose to love him, from their heart, because that’s what real love is. Real love is not forced or coerced.

What God did in sending me into Rogers through TimeICR, BitHeads, and Alcea, is nothing short of a miracle. But he did not even do it for my sake! He did it for yours! He wants you to know that he is king over your life, and that he knows everything about you, and has full knowledge and control over your exact situation. There is nothing that escapes his notice. Nothing is too great and nothing is too small. He knows it all!

Negotiations

When I received the offer of full-time employment from TimeICR, sure enough they offered me 12 times 5 ($65,000, as previously mentioned, the 5 being rounded). Also, the building where TimeICR was situated was just like a house — just like I had seen in the dream! I remembered the dream. I realized I could not accept this offer, because God had told me to reject it. Therefore, I entered into salary negotiations.

Initially, I spoke to Ian alone on the matter. That was before I received the official offer of $65,000 from the company.

Ian said, “How much do you want?”

I thought to myself, The dream said 12 times 8. I did not immediately realize that the number I had been given in the dream was rounded. Yet I also felt prevented in my spirit from asking for $96,000! Therefore, I asked for $90,000.

I went back to my desk and thought about the discrepancy between $96,000 and $90,000. I think this is the point in the dream where I deliberated on 12 times 8. It happened in real life. I deliberated on it!

I was puzzled.

Had I failed? Later, I would realize that $90,000 was just inside the 12 times 8 range! The 12 times 8 range actually starts at $90,000! I made it! (That was close!)

In the end, the company upped their offer to $80,000/year — substantially higher than the original offer, and also in line with what the Lord had told me. He had said 12 times 7, which represented between $78,000 and $89,999.99. Even at that time (when they offered me the $80,000), I was still puzzled, not realizing that the numbers God had given me were rounded. Only later, when I crunched all of the numbers, did I fully understand it.

The Big Fish

In order for God’s plan to work out, he kept giving me dreams and speaking to me in other ways (there are yet others that, for the sake of space, do not appear in this article). He did this so I would be sure to know exactly what to do and when to do it during contract negotiations. Hence, God gave me the “big fish” dream on November 3, 2005, which was exactly two weeks before I would be given the full-time contract. The “big fish” was actually Ian, who was a business executive (“big fish” can be used as an expression, meaning, “business executive”).

In the dream, the Lord showed me that the “big fish” was about to “move”. Before the “big fish” moved, I had to run quickly! There was an element of timing involved. In the dream, I saw an actual big fish of about 200 feet long by about 30 feet high (yes, a very big fish)! The big fish was parallel to this wall, and so it was like a 200 foot wall next to the “big fish” wall, forming a corridor. My job was to run quickly between the two walls so I would not be crushed (so that God’s plans would not fail) when the big fish moved. Little did I realize that Ian was just about to move to another company! Ian had not told anyone, but God knew!

Ian was not the final decision-maker in this contract. Another person was. It was a woman who was in charge of finances. People involved in making financial decisions can be real sticklers sometimes, and this woman did not want to budge on the company offer of $65,000. She was probably just obeying a decision from head office that said, “We cap all of our developer salaries at $65,000.” Yet, clearly, God was telling me to refuse this offer in the dream. Why? We don’t know all the reasons, but I had to obey! After all, he is God! Since God told me to refuse this offer, of course, I did! This woman who was following head office was not happy. Three times during negotiations with Ian present, she said to me, “If I offer you $65,000 right now, will you take it?”

Three times I responded, “No, I will not take it.” God was playing “hardball” and was speaking to me during this time! He was telling me exactly what to do and what to say! All this was done with Ian present. Ian was one of the keys to making this happen, because he had all but assured me of the job at this higher rate. Hence, the “big fish” dream was given by God to tell me to move quickly before Ian left the company!

God’s Leverage

Someone might ask, why did they even feel the need to negotiate with me at all? Why not find another developer? At that point, I was too valuable to the company. They knew they could not find someone to easily replace me. Thus it was that I was in a good spot to negotiate. And it was God’s will that I negotiate, as well. God had placed me there for that very moment in order to bring about his purposes.

God wanted leverage on this company, and was able to do it through me. It was only a temporary leverage, because after I completed the work that I was originally hired for, they laid me off, to make way for other less expensive employees. At that time, I heard through the grapevine that a new-hire was getting paid about $42,000, or about half what I was making. So they could lay me off, and get “two for one” in return. None of this actually mattered to God, because God was only trying to make a point. The point was, God can do whatever he wants, whenever he wants. He is in complete control!

Not only did God perfectly lead me through this tangled web of getting exactly what he wanted from the company, but even the layoff date was perfectly timed according to his will. I will show you how this is the case. It all has to do with the 12 x 7 (with a special emphasis on the number 12). Why did God show it to me like that? Why didn’t he just show me, in the dream, $65,000 as the offer, $90,000 as the counter-offer, and $80,000 as the final salary? That would have made life so simple! I would hardly have had to even think about it. Imagine if life was that simple. But it’s not. Life requires faith. And the Bible says,

Without faith it is impossible to be well pleasing to him, for he who comes to God must believe that he exists, and that he is a rewarder of those who seek him. (Hebrews 11:6)

So then, in life, you are going to need to exercise faith! When you exercise it according to God’s will, you will see great things happening.

Hidden Treasure

When God showed me the 12 times 7, it was more than just a rounded number. It was also an exact number, but it was hidden. I will show you the hidden meaning shortly! In this same way, Jesus said,

“… the Kingdom of Heaven is like a treasure hidden in the field, which a man found, and hid. In his joy, he goes and sells all that he has, and buys that field. (Matthew 13:44)

The above quote gives us a picture of someone who is willing to give up everything they have in order to follow Christ. Even as the 12 in 12 times 7 is hidden, a hidden treasure awaits you if you are willing to follow Christ. You can find that treasure, consisting of eternal rewards, if you will but be willing to follow Christ. It is never too late!

On this note, Jesus said,

“So therefore whoever of you who does not renounce all that he has, he cannot be my disciple.” (Luke 14:33)

Are you willing to give up everything to follow Christ? I’m not saying that God is telling you to give up all that you own. The Bible does not teach that. But we must be willing to if God so leads us. Some people are called to be kings! If your heart is in the right place, however, you must be willing to do whatever God wants. He will lead you and he will guide you. Are you willing to trust him?

The apostle Paul wrote,

For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which will be revealed toward us. (Romans 8:18)

There is a reward waiting for everyone who is willing to follow Christ!

The Hidden Number

The 12 times 7 in the dream contained a hidden secret, and that hidden secret was with the number 12, because that’s how long (in months) I would be paid for. It was slightly less than trivial to figure out, but eventually I resolved it. On the day I got laid off (June 28, 2006), the Lord spoke to me and said, “Do the numbers.” So I stayed up until about 2 a.m., crunching numbers on my computer, as I carefully reviewed everything the Lord had shown me. What I discovered was truly amazing. Even the specific date I was laid off was according to God’s exact plan. I will take you through the numbers now, so you can understand them completely, so that you can declare with me, “God is truly amazing!” Even as we read, God speaking through the prophet Isaiah,

“I declare the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things that are not yet done. I say: My counsel will stand, and I will do all that I please.” (Isaiah 46:10)

Now, let’s crunch the numbers!

The Numbers

You have already seen how 12 times 5, 12 times 7, and 12 times 8 fits into this true account in terms of salary negotiations. What is not clear is why God stated it that way. I will show you one of the reasons he stated it that way.

I originally began working for TimeICR (on a 4-week contract with Alcea) on September 2, 2005. The end date of that 4-week contract was September 29, 2005. Then, I agreed to an extension from September 30 to October 28 (another 4 weeks). I had the “big-fish” dream on November 3, 2005, and two weeks later signed a full-time contract with Rogers (who by this time had purchased TimeICR).

Rogers backdated my contract almost three weeks to November 1, 2005, because I had refused to sign for another extension with Alcea. Because I had refused to sign, no money was coming in, and I was actually working for free (until they paid me). In the end, they paid me, but actually failed to pay me for one single day: October 31, 2005.

Consider that. They just refused. They said, “We already signed a contract (for $65,000) on that day which you turned down. So we have to push the new contract ahead by one day.” So they pushed it to November 1, instead. You would think that they should have taken the money out of the petty cash and paid me for the day I worked. But they did not. They simply did not pay me for the day I worked!

God was certainly aware of this, and considered it in the final accounting.

One day, there will be a final accounting of everything you have done. It is called the judgment. Are you ready for the judgment? If the thought of a future judgment terrifies you, then God is calling you to surrender your life into his hands by exercising faith in what Jesus did on the cross (he died for your sins), receive his forgiveness, and trust him like a child would trust his good father. You may not feel like you had a good father, but God is trustworthy. People err, but God never errs. God will demonstrate his goodness to you as your put your trust in him. The Bible says,

Oh taste and see that Yahweh is good. Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him. (Psalm 34:8)

You don’t need to give money, join a church, or follow any particular rituals, in order to become a child of God. Becoming a child of God is something you do by faith.

My last day of work was June 28, 2006. I also received 2 weeks pay “in lieu of notice” covering the period between June 29 and July 12, 2006. I was also provided with an 8-week severance package, covering July 13 to September 6, 2006. Since I began work (through Alcea, the contracting agency) on September 2, 2005, you will note that September 2, 2005 to September 6, 2006 represents a period of one year plus three days (as per a regular full time employee, this includes labour day which is paid). But since I did not get paid for October 31, 2005, you would have to remove one of those days, which would lower my end date to September 5, 2006.

But alas, when I was working for Alcea for those 8 weeks on contract, they never paid me for labour day (September 5, 2005) or for (Canadian) Thanksgiving (October 10, 2005). That’s because contract work and full-time work are billed differently. You cannot just add them together. That would be like adding apples and oranges. First, you would need to normalize them, because contract work does not include statutory holidays. You normalize the data by removing unpaid statutory holidays — in this case, two more days to accommodate for those unpaid days (Labour Day and Thanksgiving). This now normalizes the end-date by two more paid days, bringing us down to September 1, 2006 as the normalized (and hence corrected) end date! From September 2, 2005 to September 1, 2006 is exactly 12 months — plus or minus zero days! Incredible! This means that the 12 in 12 x 7 was actually referring to the exact number of months that I would be paid for! Does God know his math? He had better if he created the universe!

Bruce Nolan

After I had signed the full-time contract with Rogers, I went to visit Blockbuster (a video rental store). The Lord stopped me before getting out of my car. He told me to pray that I would find the right video! It was a strong burden. So I prayed fervently! Then, I went inside and asked a sales associate what he recommended as a good video. He recommended, “Bruce Almighty.” In the film, a man named Bruce Nolan is given authority by God to rule the universe for one week. I watched the movie, and remembered the name, “Bruce Nolan.”

The next day, I walked into work. Ian was now leaving and saying goodbye. He introduced me to the man who was taking his place. He said, “Dan, I would like you to meet Bruce Nolan.” Bruce Nolan? The name was familiar! Bruce Nolan was now the new VP of Business Operations. He was officially my new boss. In the movie, Bruce Nolan had been given authority by God. In real life, this other Bruce Nolan was given authority by God to be my new boss.

In the course of time, this same Bruce Nolan would visit me at my desk, and tell me that my time was up with Rogers. It was all by God’s sovereign design. That day was June 28, 2006. A day earlier, and the math would have not have worked out. A day later, and the math would not have worked out, either!

When you think about these things, it should make you think about God’s amazing power. God certainly displayed his power in my job at Rogers. Why did he do it? Was it just for the fun of it? No, I believe he did it for you, so that you could marvel in this incredible testimony. For this testimony is a true testimony. And I have not even shared all of it. Space would fail me if I tried to share everything in this one article. If you have been touched by this testimony, I encourage you to trust in Jesus today. You will certainly not be disappointed! In closing, I would like to quote the words of God spoken through the prophet Jeremiah:

“Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and show thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.” (Jeremiah 33:3, KJV)