DID WE OPEN “PANDORA’S BOX?”

“Pandora’s box” is a phrase from Greek mythology that refers to a source of endless trouble or complications. It comes from the myth of Pandora, the first woman created by the gods, who was given a mysterious box (or jar) and told not to open it. However, curiosity got the best of her, and when she opened the box, all the evils of the world—such as disease, suffering, and death—were released. Only hope remained inside.

This idea of Pandora’s box is closely related to the law of unintended consequences.  One relatively small decision can unleash more unexpected consequences that you can ever undo.

In the early 1970s, Loren Cunningham, who was always committed to the idea of leadership teams, asked six other leaders to join him in an International Council.  I was not in that number, but a few years later was asked to be the Director for Europe, the Middle East and Africa.  A couple of years after that, I  was added to the International Council.

These appointments required a lot of travel.  At that point, we agreed that the YWAM base we had pioneered would cover our travel costs as much as was possible.  It was a given that we would travel on the cheapest tickets possible and normally stay at a YWAM base at our destination.  A few years later that idea was expanded.  For example, we accepted that in my case the African and Middle East bases would rarely be able to contribute to my travel costs when they needed me or wanted me to come.  It was reasonable to ask the European bases to take up offerings to help me fulfil the responsibilities of my position.

I think we agreed to that idea at a regional staff gathering and it helped me, though I still had to see more finance come in through gifts from friends, offerings at events and honorariums from teaching weeks at DTS’s or other trainings schools.

Those gifts from other bases usually amounted to about $15,000 and covered the majority of my extra leadership costs.  But after a couple of years, the few bases that were participating in that system quit giving, or reduced the amount.  I started writing annual letters about what I had done in the previous year, how I had served bases throughout the region, and reminded them of their commitment to help.  That worked for another year or two and then the giving tailed off again.

Part of the problem is that YWAM had grown a lot and now there were many other leaders travelling and hoping for help from the larger bases.  I felt uneasy about continuing to ask for money, so I quit sending the letters and the offerings ceased, with just a few exceptions.  One base continued sending me $100 a month for many years and that was a welcome blessing.  And my base continued to help as they could.

Finally, the leadership of my base changed and our national office had more costs than they could cover and all the gifts from YWAM in England stopped.  That felt a bit unfair, but I recognized the temptation to self-pity and resentment and refused to go down that path. But I didn’t want to keep asking.  Eventually, I “made a deal” with God.  If he wanted me to continue my responsibilities, he would have to supply.

And he did.

I never again received any special financial help from YWAM in England or at Harpenden, where I live and am part of the YWAM community.  Looking back at that journey, I am so grateful for the way God led Marti and me.  I didn’t have to keep putting pressure on YWAMers to give offerings to my office. But the Lord provided through unexpected gifts, plus event and projects that generated funds.

Because of the Lord’s provision, I was also able to avoid financial decisions when I had a conflict of interest. A conflict of interest is where the person making the decision is also the beneficiary of that decision.  No leader should ever put themselves in that position.

Some bases have continued to fund their leaders’ travel expenses. I am not saying that is wrong, but it is fraught with temptations and difficulties. Here are a few examples:

Those expenses can grow year by year and become very large.  When others in leadership find out about it, it feels unfair and they want their leadership expenses to be covered too. Where does it stop?  I once visited a large YWAM base that was in financial difficulties and discovered that they were paying travel costs for dozens of people with leadership responsibilities.  It was impossible to draw a clear and fair cut-off point without it seeming to be arbitrary and unfair so the amount of support needed had no end.

If the leader is making the decision about how much of his/her expenses are covered, what’s to stop them from buying a more expensive airplane ticket, or stay in a more expensive hotel?  A conflict of interest will be a great temptation to make selfish decisions.

When leaders are taking money from the general income of the base, then it is hard for the leader to be transparent about that.

But I still maintain that transparency is the best protection against financial temptation and against false accusations.  Every YWAM base and team should have at least one session a year where the income and expenditures of that YWAM community are laid out plainly and openly with questions encouraged.

God has led YWAM in such a way that leadership responsibilities are not granted status by important titles, hidden benefits or other status symbols.  Once a leadership role is empowered in these ways, sooner or later ambitious or greedy, but gifted, young people will aspire to leadership for egocentric reasons.

Nothing will ever hasten the decline of a YWAM team or base more quickly than a leader who is seeking leadership for fleshly reasons.

(Maybe I overstated that.  Leaders caught in adultery or fornication can make things unravel awfully fast!)

So, let’s think about some protections against these traps.

I am not suggestion rules, because every YWAM situation will have some unique characteristics.  But a few simple guidelines can help.

As a leader, never make financial decisions from which you will benefit.  A leader must always have at least one other very principled person who does not hesitate to say no to the leader.  If you don’t have that person, then your leadership is not as healthy as it should be.  We should not be surrounded by “yes people”.  It is important to note that the person cannot be a family member.

Raise your faith.  Why not trust God to supply for the additional costs of being a leader with wider responsibilities.  More faith should accompany more leadership influence.

Be sure to be transparent, in whatever detail people want, about how your YWAM finances are used.

Be cross-culturally sensitive.  If you are from a wealthier nation, or a larger base that generously supports your leadership costs, don’t fall into the temptation to take benefits that others cannot afford.  At international YWAM events, stay in the accommodation provided for all.  If you could afford to rent a luxury car or eat in expensive restaurants, don’t!   It is unwise to display your relative prosperity to others; it can contribute to cross-cultural resentment and division.

In the Greek myth, it was impossible for Pandora, or anyone else, to capture all the chaos and evil and put it back in the box.  But for us, I think we can capture quite a lot of the unintended consequences of those early decisions and put them back in the box.  But let’s not open that box again!