One Sneak Peek Into a Mission Anchored In Purpose

They called her the 'Grand Old Lady of the Seas,' a majestic ship with a history as rich as her weathered hull. 

And it was her, this magnificent vessel, that became the unlikely instrument of Eric’s Christian ministry.

Thirty years ago, he heeded the words of the divine, which led him to build a business and give back 100% of its profits to society.

He didn’t know exactly what form it would take—but he trusted in the process. 

Today, the Grand Old Lady of the Seas sits anchored in Bintan, not on water, but on land in her very own anchor-shaped isle.

As Doulos Phos the Ship Hotel, she offers a one-of-a-kind experience, with views of the water, a pool for guests to unwind in, and the opportunity to enjoy a peaceful, activity-light vacation.

At 73, Eric reflects on this vision that took nearly a decade (and 23 million Singaporean dollars!) to bring to fruition, as a reminder that faith isn’t about immediate rewards but about trusting in a purpose greater than ourselves.

1. Obedience to the Lord

“Amongst both Christians and other people from all walks of life and religion, there is usually a bit too much of “self”. People nowadays are going to self-esteem workshops. From my personal perspective, we should try to empty ourselves as much as we can, and open ourselves to God. His will should be followed rather than our own personal wants. When I heard from God 30 years back, I felt I was just an ordinary worker, with no business acumen, but in faith my family and I believed that the Lord is guiding us, and we pursue what the Lord intended for us. 

I bought the ship in 2010 but we were not able to open the hotel until 2019. It was a long 9 years for us. Any other typical businessman would probably not put in good money to chase after bad money but in faith, we believe that the Lord was guiding us, and soon 9 long years just seem to pass by. 

I actually didn’t choose this ship, nor any other means to fulfill my calling.

When I sensed the calling many years back, the vessel to hold it could have been anything. My family went to Malaysia to seek opportunities for our mission. It could have very well been a plot of land or building. We were willing to be led to whatever the Lord prompted us to. For many years, we remained in limbo. During that time, we continued to save and amass our assets, with the hope that eventually we could put our plan into action. 

In 2010, when the then owners of the ship found it too costly to comply with new safety regulations, I heard it called to me.

In today’s world, there is a tendency to seek immediate gratification. In every journey, there are trials. Trials are not placed to discourage you, but rather to encourage and push you on. A verse in the Bible says: ‘...all things work together for good for those who love him and who are called according to his purpose.’ If we firmly believe that we are called onto His purpose, the trials will soon be behind us and we will triumph in Him. 

Many years back, I wrote as part of a poem, “...just when you think you are finally there, another mountain looms ahead of you. But keep everlastingly at it my weary friend,...”  If you keep working at it, your vision will come to pass with God’s help. 

In some ways, the journey is made more exciting with all these trials.”

2. What led him to believe in Christ

“Many people have very eventful coming into the receiving of Jesus as their Lord and Savior. Mine seemed rather uneventful. One Christmas in 1985 or 1987, my family and I attended church together with our sister, who was already a believer. After that service, the pastor had an altar call where my wife and I went up and accepted Jesus into our hearts. There was no dramatic fanfare, just a soft prompting. Our spirits were already ready to receive.” 

3. What about this ship called out to Eric

“Many years before we knew that this ship would come into our stewardship, whenever she was in Singapore in Vivo City, we would go onboard it and make friends with the crew. As mentioned in my book, we were running a floating riverboat restaurant in Sentosa. Whenever she was there, we would know, and we would then bring some food over and make friends with the crew. We fell in love with the ship. It was almost a natural thing that we would soon bid for her. 

When we decided to bid for the ship, all the difficulties started coming. That’s why my book is called The Ship and I. There were five other contenders who were trying to vie for this ship at the same time that I was. Because of her age and history, she’s dearly referred to as the Grand Old Lady of the Seas within the maritime industry. I saw myself as wooing this Grand Old Lady while the other contenders were just buying a random ship. I managed to persevere because I was wooing her. 

My wife didn’t mind because she’s a ship.”

4. Pak Frans Gunara to the rescue

“For three and a half years, we berthed our ship in a shipyard in Singapore. We had submitted six or seven proposals for different locations in Singapore from which to operate her. The various governmental agencies were all very helpful and they linked me up with authorities, but somehow it couldn’t materialise. 

A friend then asked me, ‘Why don’t you try Bintan’,  and gave me the phone number of Pak Frans Gunara. My family and myself made Pak Frans a proposal over dinner at our riverboat, and thankfully, what took Singapore three-and-a-half years to say no, took Pak Frans three-and-a-half-hours over the dinner-proposal session to invite us to Bintan to select a site, 

Our ship totally out of water would be equivalent to about eight or nine stories tall and so we couldn’t manage to get a beachfront location. 

Pak Frans then offered us a plot of water, and though thankful, I explained that keeping her on water would pose many maintenance issues, to which he quite matter-of-factly suggested that we reclaim land over that plot of water which he offered us. 

As a foreigner in Indonesia, it would be an uphill task to get the necessary permits to reclaim land, and perhaps sensing my concerns, Pak Frans graciously offered to do the reclamation for us for free.” 

5. Hauling the ship from water to land

“While Frans was getting the reclamation done, our ship was docked in a shipyard in neighbouring Batam island. With our anchor-isle ready after about one-and-a-half years, the Grand Old Lady took her last sea-voyage to Bintan on 14 October 2015. It was 9pm at night and we had to wait for high tide, before we could pass the ship through the channel of water. It took us seven long weeks to pull the ship completely from water to land. When everything was done and we had stabilised her on land, we cut an opening on the portside hull and did the entire retrofitting with her on her very own private anchor-isle in Bintan. 

Like I said, if I were strictly a businessman, I would have called it quits long ago and looked for another project. Nine long years doesn’t make good business sense. 

I remember, a friend of mine who used to be a captain of the ship when she was MV Doulos, told me,

‘You've been spending a lot of money and time on this, Eric. Better not waste any more money, I don’t want to see your family out in the streets.’ 

And so I jokingly retorted, ‘You are my good friend. Why should my family and I be out in the streets? We will just come and stay with you.’

Jovial incidents like these with fellow believers kept our faith strong when things got gloomy.”

6. Advice to the youths of Singapore

“If you feel very confident that the vision you have is really your passion, then you should pursue it long term. No matter how you do, no matter how you plan it, there will always be little trials on the path and you must persevere. You must be very sure that that is a passion and something that you truly want. 

If the passion is but a passing fad, you will find that it doesn’t stay long. In my quest to do this, there were many times where I wanted to give up, but if it is from the Lord, he will strengthen you. Often you may harbour doubts and think of doing something else, but ‘keep everlasting at it…’ 

Seek and apply wisdom. I have often been led by the Bible verse:

‘Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.”

Doulos Phos’ official website: https://www.doulosphos.com

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And that is all for today’s One Sneak Peek Into.

Stay tuned for more insights from our interview series as we continue to explore the stories of trailblazers breaking barriers and redefining success.