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I became a servant of this gospel by the gift of God's grace
given me through the working of His power.
Ephesians 3:7
About Us
Preacher Paul & Linda with the 4,500 Bibles
donated by Light-for-the-Lost Literature Ministry
In 1977, The Division of Home Missions of the Assemblies of God endorsed Paul and Linda Scholtz
as Chaplains to Professional Rodeo. Being blessed with the ability to translate the Good News of the Gospel of Jesus Christ into Cowboy,
these veteran ministers have served in this force for over 25 years, along with their son P.R. (Paul Robert).
Being ranch and rodeo raised, the Scholtz family is thoroughly absorbed by the rodeo culture,
and have themselves participated for many years in the difficult sport of professional rodeo, with it's
25,000 contestants and members, and upwards of 12 million spectators. Paul has ridden saddle broncs for over 23 years and Linda is a
professional trick rider.
Preacher Paul, Pickup Man at the Rodeo
Preacher Paul is the first to admit that he
wasn't always a religious man. As a youngster he learned at night to
rodeo in pastures by painting horses with turpentine to make them
buck. "You make a lot of bad habits and bad enemies doing that," he
said. "I was a pretty rotten character. I had stolen slugs of
stuff, and had a library of pretty bad books."
One evening he went to a revival as
a favor to a friend who could win prizes for every guest he brought.
"But while I was there I thought to myself, 'Who told that preacher about me?'
I became a Christian that night. And I gave up any ideas of
being a rodeo cowboy because it was, according to all you hear, a dark black sin".
Paul spent three years at college and a year in Vietnam before enrolling in Central Bible
College in Springfield, Mo., in 1972-76. It was there at college that he met his wife, Linda,
who was a ranchers daughter.
College officials didn't warm right away to
the idea of a minister who spent his time with the cowboys. We all know how
Hollywood has traditionally stereotyped the cowboy as a drinking, stealing womanizer -
which was much different from the college officials idea of a Christian. "They were in culture
shock when I arrived," says Paul. "I wasn't your normal every day Bible
student. I didn't wear a suit or horn-rimmed glasses, and I showed up
with my saddle and a gunny sack for a suitcase."
Needless to say, Paul had a way of being a burr
under the college dean's saddle. He had horses on the football
field, hung his saddle on the third floor of the dorm, and his preaching
illustrations definitely reflected the cowboy culture.
Preacher Paul Bucking It Up for Jesus!
The college
was located across from a rodeo arena, where Paul and his wife occasionally
talked to the cowboys about Christ and gave them Bible tracts. One
day, while helping a stock contractor, Scholtz was asked to conduct a
funeral for a horse. One of the contractor's favorite horses had
bucked off a rider, run into a fence and killed itself. The
contractor couldn't bear to see his horse sent to a rendering plant and
wanted to bury it with a funeral, and a cowboy congregation.
While most clergy would have
sidestepped that request, Scholtz saw it as a chance to minister to the
cowboys. During the sermon, he talked about death, faith, and the
need to prepare for heaven. After the funeral, Paul was called into the college
dean's office. But instead of chewing him out, the dean
said that maybe they had overlooked rodeo as a ministry field.
A couple weeks later, another
stock contractor asked Scholtz if he and his wife would accompany him as
rodeo chaplains. "We said we'd go until we starved out," said
Scholtz. That was 25 years ago. "We're not getting rich, but
we love what we're doing."
The Scholtz's are supported by churches, individuals, and by
working the rodeos. Paul is also a pick-up man, horseshoer, and
saddle maker.
Preacher Paul, Pickup Man at the Rodeo
Linda’s trick riding
has given her many opportunities to minister to others. She was even
selected to participate in the 52nd Presidential Inaugural Parade held in
Washington D.C., in 1992, where she and two other women comprising the
All-American Trick Riders presented the largest flag in the world ever
carried on horseback.
Linda Scholtz, All-American Trick Rider
Linda conducts a puppet ministry with plenty of singing and action for the rodeo
children ages 4-12 while Paul is preaching to the adults.
Paul and Linda are also very involved in helping put on several Rodeo Bible Camps sponsored by the
Fellowship of
Christian Cowboys across the country.
Numbers
of cowboys and their family members have committed their lives to Christ
every year. "Many of the cowboys and cowgirls participating in the
National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas last year, were born-again Christians,"
Scholtz said.
As they tour the circuit,
preaching to and praying with the cowboys, the Scholtz family work to help them look
beyond the rodeo years - those times when they will be "too old to ride
broncs or are too busted up to bulldog steers."
© Copyright 2004-2005.
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