Most boards have that one (or two or more) person who is always asking, "What if?" He or she is a dreamer, wondering aloud why the ministry doesn’t consider a major undertaking often costing tens of thousands of dollars.

If the board is struggling to purchase pregnancy tests, the dreamer asks, "Why don’t we get an ultrasound machine, too?"

And should the ministry have the ultrasound machine, the dreamer says, "What would it take to bring on a full-time physician?" Regardless of where the ministry is in terms of finances and services, the dreamer believes it can do more, often much more.

A board must have its strong financial stewards, we know that. We want someone who listens to Dave Ramsey on the radio and is a Summa Cum Laude graduate of Financial Peace University. Every dollar is important and as a board, we need to see that each of those dollars is invested wisely.

Yet sometimes as we look to be careful with funds we overlook the dreamer. At budget time it is easy to dismiss the dreamer's thoughts, answering kindly but strongly, "We can’t afford that right now." If we shut down the dreamer with comments like these, he or she might burn out. Worse yet, our ministry will likely miss out on God's best. When considering our dreamer, consider the following:

The dreamer is God's gift to our ministry
Like every board member the dreamer brings a gift. In this case, God brings the dreamer so we can see what can be, even if circumstances show a different reality at the time. The dreamer keeps our vision healthy and strong.

The dreamer is just as important as the careful steward
There's no doubt we need those on the board who watch the funds carefully. Yet the dreamer stretches our faith, another key aspect of spiritual growth in the ministry.

The key is balance
Some careful stewards are also big dreamers. Some big dreamers are also watchful over every dollar. None of us fits in a box. Yet generally, stewards are watching funds closely so they are less likely to think in terms of expansive projects. And dreamers, looking at big ideas, may be less likely to focus on every dollar. A generalization? Perhaps. But the odds are that we won’t find both a dreamer and a financial watchdog in the same person.

We need both personality types on the board, and both need to be heard. As we listen to both exercise their gifts, we see that neither gifting is right or wrong. That is why we have more than one person on the board. As a group we pray and seek God and His wisdom in each matter.

Saying "No" to the dreamer
The dreamer may hear the word "No" at times, and that's okay. But let's remember that the dreamer may see something the rest of us do not. So if the dreamer wants a budget item that is more expansive than the board is prepared to take on in the coming budget year, seriously consider placing this item in the Visionary Budget.

A Visionary Budget is that place where we put those items that, if extra funding comes through, we as a board would love to consider. And who knows? Perhaps at some point during the year we will turn to our dreamer and say, "Your idea is back on the table. Let’s give it a second look."

Kirk Walden
Publisher of Life Trends Monthly
For more on a “Visionary Budget” contact Kirk at kirk.walden@comcast.net