Peter J. Daniels at Eagle Mountain International Church
November 2005 Speaking Series
Speaker: Peter J. Daniels - Australian entrepreneur, author, and Christian business leader Venue: Eagle Mountain International Church, Fort Worth, Texas Date: November 6-8, 2005 Context: Three-part series on entrepreneurship, goal-setting, and Christian business principles
Part 1: Sunday Morning - The Call to Christian Leadership
On His Transformation
"At 26 years of age I was an illiterate bricklayer and stonemason... but on May the 25th 1959 I went along to a Billy Graham crusade in Adelaide South Australia... and when I heard the gospel in clear terms for the first time I suddenly realized I was equal with all men before God and I reasoned that if I was equal with all men before God I no need to accept inequality with anyone. I was a son of a king."
"I found the best helping hand you can get is the one at the end of your own arm."
On Learning and Self-Education
"I bought three dictionaries. I put one next to my bed, I put one in the toilet - that's a good place to read - and I put one in my excuse for a motor car... I kept pointing to words and dictionaries and getting people to tell me what they meant... I went through those dictionaries forward and then backwards until I understood every single word. Then I read two thousand biographies."
"I found the mind was like a muscle and it could be developed."
On Business Failures and Persistence
"I went into business, lost everything... I paid it back and went into business again, lost it again... I paid it back, went into business third time and lost it again... What do you do when your dreams start to fade? You reach for one more dream. We should never give up, let up, or shut up until God takes us up."
On Leadership and Joshua
"Joshua was a leader. Are you? ... Leadership for Christian is not optional, it's mandatory. You are a leader in effect or you're a leader in self-imposed exile, but you are a leader."
"Leadership is loneliness... Jonah alone in the belly of the whale, Jacob alone wrestling with the angel, John the Baptist alone in the wilderness, Moses alone on Mount Sinai, Daniel alone in the lion's den... Jesus alone in the garden of Gethsemane. Leadership is loneliness."
The Challenge to America
"I come once... I'm your wake-up call. Within the next 10 or 15 years we're going to one of the biggest financial challenges in the history of civilization and you need to build a heritage for your children's children."
"You are God's rescue squad and you're retreating... We need America to stay the superpower."
Part 2: Sunday Evening - The Power of Vision and Dreams
On Caleb and Mountain-Taking Faith
"Give me this mountain! ... What is this mountain you want?"
The Story of Cliff Young: Daniels shared the remarkable story of 60-year-old Australian Cliff Young who won a 500-mile marathon against world-class athletes:
"At the end of the day Cliff Young was 15 miles in front... the doctors wanted to examine him and they found the arteries like a child... He became the greatest athlete in the history of the world. What is this mountain you want?"
"They said how can you beat a man that doesn't stop?"
On Breaking the Mold
"The cowardice of conformity... The Bible says whatever you do, don't conform but transform by the renewing of your mind... We don't follow the crowd. The crowd is always wrong. It's a minority that's right."
On Finding Your Calling
"I sought for a man among them who would make a wall and stand in the gap before me on behalf the land that I should not destroy it but I found none. The biggest gap in Christendom today is an economic gap."
On the Power of Faith
"Faith turns weaknesses into strength... Faith turns dreams into reality... Faith allows for a total perspective... Faith affirms a dependence on God... Faith means a commitment to the task."
Part 3: Monday Evening - Entrepreneurship from a Biblical Perspective
On Modern Bureaucracy vs. Biblical Action
Opening with humor about Noah trying to build the ark in modern times with permits and regulations:
"Lord I really don't think I can finish the ark for a long long time... The skies began to clear, the seas settled down and God looked at the heaven when he saw a rainbow come across the sky and Noah said to him, 'Lord aren't you going to destroy the earth after all?' He said 'No, I don't have to. Your bureaucracies have already done it.'"
The Economic Reality Check
"When you get home tonight I want you to add up all of your assets... divide by the years you have worked... that's what you've sold your life for per annum in the greatest economy in the history of the human race."
"If you are not going to make it in the United States of America, you cannot make it anywhere."
On Christian Economics
"Biblical economics is very simple. If your grandfather had left a heritage to you and his grandfather left a heritage to him... you'd own half of this city today. That's God's economics."
"I'm tired of Christians being broke. You stay in a job - you know what job stands for? Just Over Broke."
The 12 Principles of Success
- Mastery over procrastination: "Do it now!"
- Enthusiasm: "The god within - the outflowing of pleasing personality"
- Develop habit force: "You can change your life by changing your habits"
- Positive mental attitude: "Whatever things are good, think on these things"
- Pay the full price: "Success is the willingness to bear pain"
- Learn to speak on your feet
- Learn to handle your emotions
- Learn to handle criticism: "Criticism has no power - the only power criticism has is that which you give it"
- The law of attraction: "You don't get a second chance on a first impression"
- Persistence: "Having put your hand to the plow and looking back you're not fit for the kingdom"
- Handling pressure: "Problems are a sign of life"
- Decision making: "Successful people make decisions quickly and change them rarely"
On Starting a Business Without Money
"You get a pair of combination overalls... knock on the door... 'My name is John, we're just starting a window cleaning business in this area and I would like to clean your windows free of charge'... You've invoked Luke 6:38 - 'Give and it shall be given unto you.'"
Part 4: Tuesday Evening - Life Goals and Destiny
The Life Goals Formula
Daniels conducted a live demonstration with four audience members, revealing how most Christians lack clear vision:
"My Bible says without vision the people perish. You've been taught that until it's coming out of your ears... but when you really nail them down it's hard to get it out."
The Goal-Setting Process:
- Dream - Get them to dream
- Prioritize - Put dreams in order of importance
- Quantify - Be specific with numbers
- Analyze - Assess strengths and weaknesses
- Plan - Create actionable steps
- Execute - Take action today
On Finding Your Destiny
"Give me ten men, yes ten stalwart men who fight for the right they adore... Start me with ten, yes ten stout-hearted men and soon I'll give you ten thousand more."
"What makes the great great? I found it... It's a sense of destiny."
The Six Stages of Achievement
- The Dream - "A sense of grandeur toward life"
- The Vision - "The depth, capacity, and measurable impact of a dream"
- The Commitment - "The acceptance of pain as a cost toward the benefit"
- The Goal - "The dedication to think, plan, meditate and learn"
- The Mission - "The ethics and mechanics of the journey"
- The Destiny - "The imperative to exchange a life for a moral cause that will endure"
Final Challenge to the Church
"My challenge to each one of you tonight and the leadership of this church is to create 1,000 Christian business leaders for this nation within the next decade... a people's army of 1,000 Christian business leaders that can never be defeated... the marching sound of 1,000 Christian business voices that will not be silenced... the financial power of 1,000 Christian business incomes that cannot be ignored."
On Personal Transformation
"You're born for something bigger. You know there's something inside trying to get out and you keep pushing it back... God has preserved you for higher things."
"Finally, finally, finally when you do expire, whatever you've done in your lifetime - that is what you've traded your life for. And the cost of a big dream, a small dream, or no dream? It's the same price - your life."
Key Takeaways
On Faith and Business
- Christians should be the greatest entrepreneurs in history
- The church has been impoverished by a poverty mentality
- We need to "take back the economics"
- Business success allows for kingdom investment
On Personal Development
- The mind is like a muscle that can be developed
- Read biographies to build "a vocabulary of overcoming incredible odds"
- Never stop learning and growing
- Your greatest enemy is yourself
On Legacy
- Build a heritage for seven generations
- Be heroes to your children and grandchildren
- Create family traditions and values that last
- Think globally, not locally
On Action
- "Mastery over procrastination - do it now!"
- Don't wait for perfect conditions
- Start where you are with what you have
- "You can't lead from behind"
About Peter J. Daniels
At the time of these talks, Peter J. Daniels was 73 years old, having transformed from an illiterate bricklayer at age 26 to one of Australia's most successful entrepreneurs. He built one of the largest real estate corporations in Australia with offices in Singapore and Hong Kong, authored numerous books, and became a sought-after international speaker. His companies operated with no debt, and he was known for his commitment to Christian principles in business.
His life mission: "To see how much money one human being could give away in their lifetime" and "to change the world for 300 years" by putting "1 million Christians in the English-speaking world in the freehold business of their choice."