By Brad Layland | CEO, The FOCUS Group | Author of Turning Donors into Partners
Key Takeaways
- Most leaders focus on what feels urgent. Exceptional leaders focus on what will matter later. Wise leaders prepare before a crisis arrives.
- The best time to strengthen an organization is during seasons of stability.
- Preparation and dependence on God are not opposites—they work together.
- The future we want is often built through investments made long before they become urgent.
One of the most valuable lessons I learned from Bill Hautt, the founder of The FOCUS Group, was surprisingly simple:
“The best time to raise money is when you don’t need it.”
At first glance, that sounds backward.
Most organizations begin fundraising when they have a problem to solve, a budget gap to fill, or a building to build. They wait until the pressure arrives and then start looking for resources. Bill taught the opposite.
When an organization is healthy, when momentum is strong, when finances are stable, and when there isn’t an immediate crisis, that’s the ideal time to deepen donor relationships, cast vision, and invite people into the future. The strongest fundraising programs are rarely built in moments of desperation. They are built during seasons of strength.
Over the years, I’ve discovered that this principle applies to far more than fundraising.
Recently, I was reading the story of King Asa in 2 Chronicles 14. Most people remember Asa because he spoke one of the great prayers in scripture. Facing an army nearly twice the size of his own, he cried out:
“O Lord, there is none like you to help, between the mighty and the weak. Help us, O Lord our God, for we rely on you.” (vs. 11)
It’s a powerful prayer, and understandably, it receives most of the attention. But what struck me this time wasn’t what Asa did during the battle. It was what he did years before the battle arrived.
Scripture tells us that, “Asa did what was good and right in the eyes of the Lord his God.” (vs. 2) He removed idols, called the people back to God, and strengthened the spiritual life of the nation.
Then we read something fascinating: “He built fortified cities in Judah, for the land had rest. He had no war in those years, for the Lord gave him peace.” (vs. 6)
There was no crisis. No army on the horizon. No immediate threat. Yet Asa spent the peaceful years preparing for a future challenge he could not yet see. He built the fortifications before he needed them.
The more I reflect on that passage, the more I realize this is exactly what Bill was talking about.
The best time to raise money is when you don’t need it.
The best time to strengthen your marriage is when it’s healthy.
The best time to invest in friendships is before you’re lonely.
The best time to improve your health is before the diagnosis.
The best time to create margin is before the emergency.
The best time to develop leaders is before succession becomes urgent.
The best time to build is in times of peace.
Most people wait until the storm arrives before they begin construction.
Asa didn’t.
When the Ethiopian army eventually appeared with a million soldiers, Asa wasn’t scrambling. The spiritual foundations had already been laid. The cities had been fortified. The army had been trained.
Then, after doing everything he could do, he trusted God to do what only God could do.
I love that balance. Asa didn’t sit back and say, “God will take care of everything.” Nor did he place his trust in the walls he had built. He prepared diligently and depended completely. That may be one of the most important leadership lessons in the entire story.
Too often, we confuse God’s blessing with permanence. A season of peace can lull us into believing peace will last forever. A season of growth can make us assume growth is automatic. A season of success can convince us that success is guaranteed.
But wise leaders understand that seasons of peace are gifts to be stewarded, not excuses to coast.
When I look back on my own life, many of the best decisions I made happened during seasons when there was no apparent need, like:
Training for a marathon months before race day.
Building donor relationships years before a campaign.
Developing leaders long before they were needed.
Creating systems before growth demanded them.
Investing spiritually before facing a crisis.
At the time, none of those decisions felt urgent, and that’s exactly why they mattered.
Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about what I call “the life I actually want.”
Like many leaders, I’ve spent much of my life responding to immediate needs. There is always another meeting to attend, another problem to solve, another opportunity to pursue. Yet the older I get, the more I realize that the future I want won’t happen accidentally.
If I want deep relationships with Wendy and our children, I need to invest in them now.
If I want The FOCUS Group to thrive long after I’m gone, I need to develop leaders now.
If I want to remain healthy enough to enjoy whatever years God gives me, I need to train now.
If I want to be more generous in the future, I need to practice generosity now.
If I want a rich spiritual life during difficult seasons, I need to seek God now.
None of those things feels particularly urgent today. Neither did Asa’s fortifications.
The temptation during peaceful seasons is to enjoy them. The opportunity during peaceful seasons is to prepare.
One day, another battle will come. It always does. The question is whether we’ll be starting from scratch or drawing from foundations we’ve been building for years.
Maybe that’s the question worth asking today:
What area of your life feels peaceful right now?
And perhaps more importantly:
What should you be building there before you need it?
Because the best time to raise money is when you don’t need it.
And the best time to prepare for tomorrow is today.
About the Author
Brad Layland is CEO of The FOCUS Group, a fundraising consulting firm serving more than 150 Christian ministries worldwide. He previously served as Chief Development Officer for Young Life and is the author of Turning Donors into Partners (InterVarsity Press), which debuted as the #1 new release in Philanthropy and Charity on Amazon.
Since acquiring The FOCUS Group in 2012, Brad has helped lead fundraising initiatives for organizations including Dallas Theological Seminary, InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, Union Rescue Mission, The Bowery Mission, and Veritas School. He holds a B.A. in Communications from the University of Florida and an M.A. in Theology from Fuller Theological Seminary.
Brad and his wife Wendy live in St. Augustine, Florida, and have four children.
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