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Faithfully yours - It’s time to go to work

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Published on Sunday, March 25, 2018

Neil Strohschein
Neepawa Banner & Press

Every Canadian election campaign ends the same way.  A winner is declared and the leader of the winning party goes to the podium to make the victory speech. Every speech ends the same way. After thanking all those who helped the party win, the new Prime Minister or Premier will say: “Tonight we celebrate. Tomorrow we go to work.”

I’ll be honest. When I hear a politician say that, I start to worry. I’ve witnessed enough federal, provincial and municipal elections in my lifetime to know that what politicians say when they are campaigning for election and what they actually do are two different things.

Here’s what a newly elected government should do—in my humble opinion. Don’t be in too big a hurry to be sworn in to office. Drop out of sight for a while. Take time to choose Cabinet ministers carefully. Pick the ones most qualified to lead each department. Surround them with the best deputy ministers and staff you can find, even if most of them are carried over from the previous government. Only then should you take the oath of office and begin to govern.

Then, don’t be in such a hurry to call Parliament or the Legislature into session. Give Cabinet ministers the time they need to become familiar with their portfolios. Encourage them to get out of the office and get to know the people, their needs and their concerns.

Then use the knowledge you have gained to plan a legislative session that will reflect what you have learned since being elected and that addresses the needs of all the people—not just the small percentage who cared enough to vote or the even smaller percentage who voted for you.

If you are looking for an example of someone who was able to achieve this noble goal, I would suggest you examine the life of Jesus Christ—especially what he did during his last week of life.

We all know how the week began. Jesus rode into the city of Jerusalem on the back of a young donkey. He was welcomed by an enthusiastic crowd of people, all of whom believed that he was the Messiah they were seeking. They acclaimed him as their king, promised to serve him with all their hearts and then went home and waited to see what he would do next.

To their amazement, Jesus went right on doing what he had always done; teaching the people, healing the sick and condemning the religious leaders for their corruption and hypocrisy. He showed no interest in any political office. He took no measures to liberate his people from the slavery they suffered at the hands of the Romans or to suppress the threats of his enemies.

Jesus had spend the previous 3.5 years with the people, so he knew that they didn’t need regime change or freedom from slavery to an evil empire. They needed freedom from bondage to sin; and that is what he had come to give them.

So the morning after he was acclaimed as the people’s king, Jesus said: “It’s time to go to work. Now is the time for me to do what my heavenly Father sent me here to do.” And four days later, he completed his mission. The one who had done nothing worthy of death took the sins of the world on himself and died to pay the wages of sin (death—Romans 6:23) for all humanity.

I challenge all elected leaders—government, community and religious—to follow his example of selfless service to others.