|
By Jack Krayenhoff
“GOD loves politicians – but that should
not surprise us, because he loves tax collectors, too.”
 | |
| Tim Schindel |
You may doubt if the politicians appreciate being
lumped together with the Matthews of this world, but you may be sure that
Rev. Tim Schindel, who spoke those words, really wants to serve them.
So much so that he left his Kamloops pastorate (with
the full blessing of his denomination), moved to Victoria last summer and
set up an office in a church very close to the Parliament Buildings. On the
door is the name of his organization: Leading Influence Ministries.
So, why such a radical departure from a pastoral
career?
In Kamloops, Schindel served as president of the
Chamber of Commerce. This brought him in touch with political leaders.
He began to see them as people who needed encouragement
from the church, as opposed to what they usually get: lobbying, protests
and sometimes even doubt about their integrity.
He also made a discovery: contrary to the general
expectation, politicians often are not opposed to the Christian message.
But many of them feel alone, with few people they can trust as a friend.
Schindel began to realize God was calling him to become
a supporter and encourager to B.C.’s MLAs, functioning essentially as
a chaplain. At present there exists no such position as official chaplain
to the Legislature – but, ponders Schindel . . . who knows?
His first major encouragement came in February, when
the clergyman who was scheduled to open the session in prayer was
unexpectedly prevented from coming. An MLA friend of Schindel’s
spotted him in the gallery and asked him to offer a prayer
instead.
Continue article >>
|
 | |
| From the November 20 prayer service in the Parliament buildings.
Left to right are Corky Evans, MLA for Nelson; Nicholas Simmons,
MLA for Gibsons-Sunshine Coast; and Barb Schindel. |
Then, in May, Schindel organized a prayer breakfast for
MLAs in Victoria’s exclusive Union Club. It was well attended by the
politicians; in fact, four of them were cabinet ministers.
When the Legislature reconvened, Schindel occupied
himself with networking, knowing his effectiveness would be primarily a
matter of building personal relationships and trust. He finds MLAs are
pleasantly surprised when they discover he approaches them not because he
wants something from them, but because he wants to be of service.
“That is disarming,” he says, then cautions:
“but I have to be careful not to come across as
self-appointed.”
Meanwhile, a significant bridgehead has been formed. An
MLA from the lower Fraser Valley asked him to conduct a chapel service in a
meeting room in the parliament buildings. He was concerned for the much
beloved Deputy Speaker of the House, Cindy Hawkins, who had earlier been
treated for leukemia. Her remission had now come to an end, and the purpose
of the service was to pray for her.
The service was held November 20, attracting some 30
MLAs. Some came from a committee meeting, which had gone into recess
especially to allow its members to take part. One of them played his cello,
and Schindel could tell it deeply affected some participants.
When the meeting was opened to prayer for Hawkins, as
well as for other members with health problems, there was a 15-second
silence – and then seven of them, one after the other, prayed out
loud. Schindel was impressed by the obvious sincerity of their concern.
Afterwards, he received much appreciation from several
MLAs – and he feels the event bodes well for the future of his
ministry.
“The fact alone, that 30 of these extremely busy
people would take 25 minutes out of their schedule for a spiritual event,
was enormous,” he says.
Contact: leadinginfluence.com
December 2007
|
