Look Outside, Steward Leaders—It’s Pouring! By Chris McDaniel

Steward leaders don’t hoard the Rainy-Day Fund.

Steward leaders who refuse to touch a rainy-day fund when the storm is already here have confused security with stewardship. In Enough, R. Scott Rodin tells of a mid-sized nonprofit that spent a decade building a reserve large enough to cover a sudden shortfall.

When the shortfall arrived, the board chair asked the obvious question: use the fund we set aside for this exact moment. 

A long-time member objected. If they used it, the account would nearly return to zero. Then what would they have if another crisis came later? Most of the board agreed. The chair finally said what every steward leader needs to hear: look outside—it’s pouring. This is why the fund exists. They voted not to use it. Staff and programs were cut. Kingdom impact shrank. The money sat dry and secure. Rodin’s verdict is piercing: the reserve had become their idol. They trusted the balance more than the God who provided it. (Amazon)

Scarcity Dressed Up as Wisdom

The argument sounds responsible. Protect the organization. Preserve the future. Do not be reckless. But under the language of prudence often sits a scarcity mindset: God provided once, yet we cannot trust Him to provide again.

 Therefore, we bury what He already placed in our hands. Jesus told that story. The servant who hid his talent thought he was being careful. The Master called it wicked and lazy (Matthew 25:14–30, NLT). Hoarding is not the same as stewarding. A reserve that can never be spent is not a tool. It is a monument to fear.

This is not an argument against wise reserves. Faithful boards should plan, save, and refuse panic. It argues against treating the fund as untouchable. A rainy-day fund is for emergencies. When leaders will not deploy it in the rain, they are no longer protecting the mission. They are protecting the number.

What Crisis Can Teach Us If We Let It

Rodin also recounts what some ministry CEOs learned after the 2008–2009 collapse—giving dropped. They cut staff and programs as carefully as they could. A year later, many were about 20 percent smaller—and about 20 percent more effective. They had finally released work that should have been released years earlier, trimmed mission creep, and returned to the core calling. Almost none of them would have made those cuts without the crisis.

If growth equals success, no leader wants to tell a board that God may be leading them to get smaller to become more faithful. But why does it take a storm to obey what we already know?

Trust, Steward, and Trust Again

Steward leaders live a different pattern. They receive provision with gratitude. They put it to work for the calling before them. Then they trust the same God for whatever comes next. Jesus said it plainly: seek first the kingdom, and the Father who knows what you need will provide (Matthew 6:33, NLT). The manna in the wilderness spoiled when Israel tried to stockpile tomorrow’s portion out of fear. God was not against provision. He was against a heart that would rather control the future than follow Him into it.

If your board is staring at a genuine need and a healthy reserve, ask the harder question. Are we refusing to spend because wisdom requires it, or because we have found more peace in the account than in the Provider? Look outside. If it is pouring, open the umbrella. Then watch to see whether the God who filled the fund the first time can still fill it again.

Chris McDaniel, MBA, is Chief Revenue Officer and Partner at vTECH io and serves on the Christian Leadership Alliance Advisory Council. A retired U.S. Air Force Lieutenant Colonel and author of Steward Leaders Rise, he writes and speaks on biblical stewardship and the courage to trust God with both today’s resources and tomorrow’s needs. Connect with him on LinkedIn or at stewardleadersrise.com.

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