When most people think of ministry leaders and churches embroiled in controversy, they typically think of sex scandals. But I believe a close second would be money scandals. We have all heard the horrific tales of televangelists misusing and abusing finances. Most Christian leaders I know don't make it a goal to be irresponsible with the money and resources God has entrusted to them, yet we still find poor stewardship happening among phenomenal, godly people. So, how do we avoid this pitfall in our own lives?
I recently talked about this with the Executive Pastor of my church, Ken Fisher, for the final episode of the Leadership Culture Matters podcast series - an episode concerning the tenth leadership characteristic we strive to maintain: Stewardship is standard practice. Becoming people who honor the Lord with all the resources He has blessed us with is both a needed and attainable goal.
You probably don't use the word steward daily, but biblically, it carries the same meaning as the word manager. If you go to a local grocery or department store and you have a need or concern beyond what the clerk can answer, you may ask to speak to the manager. When the manager walks up, you don't assume they own the store you are in. They do not. But they are the manager, meaning the person who does own the store has said, “You are in charge of this inventory. Treat it as though your job depends on you being a good steward of it.”
In the same way, we do not own our money. Everything in our lives is from the Lord, meaning that we, as Christians, are called to steward our resources well. Ken shared that when financial decisions are made, whether in our personal lives or our businesses, ministries, or churches, we need to be sure they are done in a way that honors the Lord. We must put Him first in all of our decisions, utilizing the resources we have to the fullest for His Kingdom.
How do we begin growing in stewarding our finances and other resources well?
Clarify Your Vision
When I asked Ken what wisdom he would offer about faithful stewarding money and resources to young men and women starting out in business or ministry, he shared that developing good stewardship habits starts with figuring out what your goal is. As a leader, you need to be laser-focused on what you are trying to accomplish. If you can make that clear, then you and those you lead can start making decisions that will help you move toward those goals.
Whether it is in the corporate world or the church world, financial problems are typically the symptom of a lack of clarity and vision. Clear vision leads to clear priorities. Clear priorities lead to good stewardship.
Ken also shared that transparency is vital when it comes to having a clear vision. You need to take the time to have discussions about the direction you are going and how you plan to invest in those goals. If you lack clarity and transparency, people will fill in the blanks and simply go in the direction they assume best - a pattern that will never result in a healthy organization.
How clear is the vision where you lead? Are you transparent about your goals and how you plan to achieve them?
Resist Pride and Laziness
When it comes to handling finances for your business, ministry, or church, two of the greatest enemies of good stewardship are pride and laziness.
Pride shows up in an attitude of, "I've got this. I know the answers. I know what to do with our resources." Humility says, "This isn't my money. This is God's money. How can I not seek His wisdom?"
Laziness is the absence of the extra step. One example would be if the need arises for extension cords, and you go buy one hundred dollars worth of them. But because you and your team never organized the supply closet, you don't realize that at the bottom of the pile of junk in that closet are more than enough extension cords purchased last year. That lack of organization has now caused money to be spent that could have been better utilized in other areas.
So even the organization of your ministry areas, the cleanliness of your office, your willingness to think through the resources you already have and utilize volunteers instead of patching holes with dollars, those things done in small incremental steps can add up very quickly to you being more efficient. Those extra steps of intentionality can make the difference between being a good steward and being someone who is wasteful.
Is your stewardship being impacted by pride or laziness? What is one practical step you can take today to become a better steward - whether that's of your time, money, or other resources?
At the end of the day, there is no clearer barometer of our priorities than how we spend our money. People can say they are passionate about something, but if you look at their bank account, it quickly reveals what they truly care about. What does your spending reveal?
I am so thankful for Ken's wisdom and reminders about keeping the Lord first as we make decisions surrounding our resources. As we make choices repetitively based on honoring the Lord, we can start building our muscles toward becoming not just good, but great stewards. You can hear more of our conversation in the full episode Stewardship is Standard Practice Ft. Guest: Pastor Ken Fisher here.
Did you miss any of the other episodes? It's not too late to listen! You can find all ten episodes here.