Capitol Ministries

10 CM 2017 | History S WITH MANY GOOD IDEAS, Capitol Ministries® was born out of a frustration to a baffling problem: Shortly aer newly-elected Christians Legislators landed in Sacramento, it became clear that many of them lacked the spiritual maturity to stand up for the principles they claimed to possess. Danielle Drollinger had seen this oc- cur time and again as the executive di- rector of a successful California state po- litical action committee (PAC) that had helped numerous Christians become elected to state office. She had expressed frustration to her husband, Ralph Drollinger. A for- mer professional athlete who spent the majority of his career playing bas- ketball for Athletes in Action (AIA), Ralph was experienced in the Amer- ican sports ministry movement that planted ministries to athletes in high schools, colleges, and professional sports teams. In the fall of 1996 while talking about the political problem and the successful sports ministry model, the couple realized they could begin a new organization that would birth ministries not on high school and college cam- puses, but on government campuses for Public Servants. ey envisioned planting ministries of evangelism and discipleship in capitol buildings where the Word of God would consistently be taught through weekly exegetical, in-depth Bible studies, and where Christian Lawmakers could be strengthened through support, prayer, and one-on-one ministry. eir prayerful vision was to estab- lish 50 ministries in 50 state capitols, national ministries in Washington, D.C., and ministries in foreign federal capitols, and Capitol Ministries® was born with a mission to make disciples of Jesus Christ in the political arena of the world. With much prayer, Ralph headed off to Sacramento where he found- ed Capitol Ministries®' first disciple- ship Bible study to Public Servants in the Sacramento State House, while Danielle worked from their San- ta Clarita home and cared for the three children. e Sacramento ministry quickly proved wildly successful and the couple began to recruit strong Bible teachers who had hearts for evangelism and dis- cipleship to replicate the model in other states. Capitol Ministries®' mission was reinforced and made more urgent in 2000 when Ralph discovered a recur- ring theme in the New Testament as he was preparing his weekly Bible study for Sacramento Lawmakers. Scripture per- taining to the Great Commission was replete with illustrations, examples, and commands that emphasized the impor- tance of winning governmental leaders for Christ. Among them: First of all, then, I urge that entreat- History A Sacramento skyline at night " I am happy to support the excellent work of Ralph and Danielle Drollinger and Capitol Ministries ® ." Dr. Wayne Grudem Theology and Biblical Studies Phoenix Seminary, Arizona Systema c Theology Author

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