The Last of May

Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth.  For you died to this life, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God. And when Christ, who is your life, is revealed to the whole world, you will share in all his glory. Col 3:2-4

The last day of May and it feels like early April around these parts. Cool, windy, very windy, hard to work outside in that. But the day is over now with the promise of a better one tomorrow. The last of the cow/calf pairs should go out to pasture tomorrow, finally that job will get done after the longest mud season that I have ever seen here. That’ll set me free somewhat, very little feeding to do all of a sudden! Had a great Memorial Day yesterday. Went to a small town parade, then the Memorial service at the town’s cemetery and then had a barbecue which settles in with me just fine. Drank a pot of coffee by myself, or durn near anyhow and shot the bull for a few hours. My kinda day off after a rough spring.

Ministry things are really picking up. I’m excited to say the least, but there’s allot of work involved with all of that too. Finding a band or two is on the agenda, and that’s looking very promising. The word is out and sometimes that’s all it takes, (plus some prayer added in there, can’t forget that).

Out here, working with beef cattle seven days a week has got to be one of the best jobs for having allot of time to just talk with God. A fella can literally go days without being bothered by anyone. Ain’t no cussing or swearing when a person is alone working. Just the sounds of nature that God put out here. Those are my favorite days, days when there’s no sound of machinery running, just the sounds of the breeze and the birds out in the pastures. Gives a fella allot of time to think. I ain’t getting any younger which was proven these last few days sorting pairs out in extreme mud conditions wearing knee high rubber boots that were never designed for human comfort. There’s some hurting going on where I don’t want things to be hurting after this past winter’s surgery, but it should be minor and go away in a day or two.

But I like to think about the things of heaven while working here on this earth. Every day is a gift and a fella just gotta use it wisely. There ain’t nothing more important than eternity, and we will all know that for sure someday, and even while owning and running this cow outfit the eternal things are the things that keep me going. There is of course that most important thing, accepting Jesus Christ as Lord and keeping Him there as Lord. And there is spreading the love of Christ once a fella is a born again, new creation in Christ. There’s being true to your word cause it don’t make much sense supposedly believing in Jesus as your Lord and Saviour and then being a liar and acting like the world.

I cannot imagine living out here, doing what I’m doing, without Jesus as the number one thing in life. Just can’t imagine it anymore. There’s some good promises in the Bible I tell you! And when you get right down to the simple Gospel, unlike what many say, its not a hard thing. The hard thing is when we start to take charge instead of just following the Gospel. When we have to do things to work our way into God’s favor, which by the way is totally impossible and every single human being on this earth will fail at it. Nope, only believe, believe in Him that took our punishment, surrender to Him, quit fighting Him, and all of a sudden a person is set free.

Now I See

The man replied. “But I know this: I was blind, and now I can see!” John 9:25b

Years ago I was my own man. Figured I knew allot. But lookin back I was heading at a roar for certain destruction and death.  I was blind, blind as any feller can be. Used to cuss out preachers, oh I was a wonder! Figured how could them slick handed fellas that never do any honest work tell me how to live. Oh but I was blind. Of course that doesn’t change the fact that some of them preachers are really lacking in the working department but I can overlook that some what better nowadays.

I know allot of folks these days in Christian circles like to tout it up that when a person becomes a Christian that your problems melt away. Some say your supposed to speak your problems away and I don’t buy that for a minute. Cause the Bible does say that troubles will come and I can attest that they sure do! Back a few years ago when I got saved it was the start to one of the hardest times in my life. Things were going OK, cattle were bringing a good price, had some money in the bank and the bills were all paid. But believe me, it didn’t get better after I got saved because the following months were the start of a three year deep drought. And with the amount of cattle we had here that spelt trouble. The drought was region wide so the chances of even buying hay at a reasonable price was impossible. Through those long three years I watched feed crops wither up and die, I watched the pastures become a barren dirt lot, just someplace to haul feed out to in order to keep the cattle from starving. It was rough. Folks used to tell me when I would mention about the drought, “don’t speak those words, it’ll get worse if you do.” Well, I wasn’t born yesterday and I know a person that has gone over the edge of religion when I see em. I’d look em right in the eye and say, “everything is dying, the crops are shot, there is no hay to speak of, the corn burned back down to a small withered plant.”

But the one thing I held in faith was that God would see us through, and He sure did that. It was rough, no denying that, but God came through time after time when everything looked like it was going down the tubes. Now years later I dwell on all of that. How God seen us through. I am so thankful that it wasn’t me that had to get us through it, God did the impossible so many times. Things that I could have never arranged.

Yep, I was once blind but now I see! Jesus loves a fella and won’t let simple faith down. Jesus understands folks like me that make a living this way. Jesus was a country preacher, it was in the big city where trouble came.

 

Just a Little One

This has been an unusual spring in these parts. Fairly cool, really wet, with mud season lasting weeks longer than normal. Today was a challenge fixing a fence crossing a swollen creek. Normally we don’t have a problem like that this late in spring but this type of year happens every once in a while. But I’m not complaining because I know that the opposite is allot more miserable, drought, even the word sends shivers up my spine. When a person is almost living like a swamp rat there are certain benifits, such as grass that’s durn near belly deep, hay crops that are unbelievable, and of course, no shortage of water. One last problem though is to try and get the remaining majority out of the calving lot, which is seven acres and out to four separate summer pastures. Never had this problem before where the mud towards the main gate is so deep we can’t get the calves through safely. Well, we’ll come up with some cowboy logic in the next few days!

 “I tell you the truth, those who listen to my message and believe in God who sent me have eternal life. They will never be condemned for their sins, but they have already passed from death into life.” John 5:24

Yep, a fella keeps on pluggin out here in cow country. Sometimes too wet, sometimes drought. Just when a person figures its all coming together nicely something will change and a person goes into emergency mode. But as long as a fella is in this world that’s the way it’ll be. But through it all when a fella has faith in Jesus everything else is of much less importance. Cause I know that in the end, which is really the beginning of something we can’t even imagine, things are gonna turn out alright! When we sign up with Jesus there ain’t no looking back. We’re finally with the right outfit! And that settles my nerves to no end!

Cast Our Cares On Him!

 For “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” Romans 10:13 New Living Translation

The one thing I’ve noticed, and I’ve noticed this allot traveling around to farms and ranches is the fact that most folks call themselves Christians. Fine and dandy. I’ll get the same response most of the time, “I was baptised as a baby, I’ve gone to church, I went through confirmation decades ago, so yes, I am a Christian. I ask if they think they are headin to heaven if they got hit by a car today, or gored by a herd bull, or just flat out fell dead on the spot for no apparent reason and the answer will be far less certain. Then there is some shuffling of feet, some looking down and not meeting a fella eye to eye. They don’t know.

Well, the Gospel says different than what many a church goer have been led to believe and that’s why the Gospel is called the Good News. Not the maybe news, or if you are good enough news, cause I don’t care what anyone says, the Bible says there ain’t one person on this planet right now who is good enough. Don’t matter whose family your in, what church you or some grandparent of yours attends or attended. Nothing matters except one thing, and that is if a person believes that Jesus Christ took the punishment that they, (we), deserve, and we call on Jesus to be our Lord, we are saved.

This little cowboy book tells it like it is!

My truck always has a good supply in it for handing out to folks that want one. And they can be ordered here for free by just e-mailing me. That info is on the sidebar page link called Need a Bible.

This little Bible called The Way For Cowboys is a wonder! The Good News is a wonder! Jesus said that His way is easy, His burden light. It ain’t some heavy load, its real life! He says to cast our cares on Him, not keep them for ourselves. Cast our cares on him and accept His offer for eternal life, it don’t get any better than that!

Whosoevers

Calves are hitting the ground on this outfit and today was a beautiful sunny day for once and all I had to do was watch from a distance, which makes life much more enjoyable by the way. Yesterday was bull hauling day, panned up a couple old herd bulls and loaded them up in the cattle trailer, separate compartments by the way, and hauled em to the salesbarn. The trip went good, they were unloaded, the papers filled out for country of origin and away we went home again. Looks like the place has calmed down considerably since those couple of trouble making bulls went to town. No bull fights today, no bulls bellering, down right peaceful around here. Sometimes them bulls would be tempting me to go out there with the 30-30 and put an end to em but I’m glad I didn’t cause the pay wouldn’t be the same as the salesbarn check….

Just came in from a 14 hour day outside. Started the morning with frost covering everything and by afternoon there was no need for a jacket. Sure is comfortable being able to shed the arctic gear! Getting back outside working just shifts my mind into gear with some good old faith matter too! Sometimes a fella goes for hours and hours out there by himself and it really helps when the day is beautiful out! But I was thinking while loading and hauling manure, (well, when you got a few hundred head of cattle there is a side effect called hundreds of tons of manure), I was thinking about this verse from my Cowboy Bible which is always handy.

 “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” Romans 10:13

I kinda like that Cowboy Bible, small enough to carry around but I can still read it without reading glasses if I stretch my arms out far enough. Anyway, that verse says “anyone” and the old King James Version which I truly love says “whosoever”. Well, there’s allot of us whosoevers around and to tell the truth I always figured I would just go to hell where I belonged cause I truly couldn’t get anything out of church years ago. I’m talkin the dead letter church, all ceremony, all show. Where you first had to be good enough, which by the way, if they’d really follow that rule all the self appointed bigshots would have failed and the church could have been used for a salesbarn or a feed store or something important like that and useful.

I love the Gospel because its for someone like me. Just a country fella, with the smell of manure on him from the cattle, (especially in the wet weather we’ve had the last couple of weeks). I ain’t fancy, just love raising and running a cattle outfit. Perfectly happy in what I’m doing. I wear Wrangler jeans and shirts, both working or for anything remotely considered social. Although my social is probably a barbecue under an oak tree. Well, that’s high society, my regular social life is at the feed store or farm and ranch supply store. But Jesus didn’t hang around all that much with the bigshots of His day, He went to the feedstores, fish markets, and probably what would have been a salesbarn two thousand years ago and preached and taught the day workers amongst the noise and smells of the place. Now they say, those who know more than me, that we should be like Jesus. So then how come we get all snotty and dignified when we think we’ve arrived in the faith? Hmmm?

Would Jesus be preaching in a stiff, unloving church or would He be at the feedstores, at the co-ops, at the farms and ranches, at the rodeos and other places where the high and mighty do not hang around? My bet is that He’d be in the places that the regular folk are at. He’d be with the folks that are usually shunned by proper churches. He’d be hanging around a feller like me even! I love the Gospel, just love it. Where the regular folks can come to Jesus because He came to us first. Them Gospels in the Bible are chock full of Jesus hanging with the regular folks, the outcasts, the down and outers. And when we call on the Name of the Lord, He comes!