"Fall"

We were out there penning cattle,

On a sunny, easy day,

No trouble or a worry,

Felt less like work than play.

And everything was going well,

Until this one turned back,

She thought she would escape us,

But just spur on up and track.

To push her toward the others,

All goin’ the right way,

But I’ll admit she’s movin’,

Faster than I’ll say.

And my old buddy heads her,

He’s got the lead, you see,

And then all of a sudden,

His horse has a buckin’ spree.

This horse is ‘bout as dead broke,

As any that I’ve seen,

He’ll take the little children,

So gentle and so keen.

To do the things you ask him,

With rope or kids or cattle,

And not much can get past him,

You’re safe there in the saddle.

But on this pretty morning,

When asked to turn that cow,

He just went full-out broncy,

A pitchin’ high somehow.

Can’t think of why he did it,

If someone else had said,

Old Rojo bucked your friend off,

I’d think they lied instead.

But I was right there with him,

And witnessed the whole thing,

My good friend lay there on the ground,

It just beat everything.

I tried to hold the cattle,

And asked if he’s okay,

But he really couldn’t say much,

His breath had gone away.

I don’t see how he did it,

But somehow stepped back on,

Even though his ribs were broke,

We rode on back to home.

But I won’t soon forget it,

The lessons are so plain,

Life is unpredictable,

And sometimes goes insane.

And falling off is awful,

‘Specially if you’re hurt,

You may not get back up too fast,

Or regain your alert.

But if at all it’s possible,

It’s best to step back on,

You can’t always do it,

But there’s where you belong.

To be back in the saddle,

To get back in the game,

To recover and be ready,

When the Good Lord calls your name.

“Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and sustain me with a willing spirit…” (Psalm 51:12)

God is in the restoring business. Whenever we fall, and it’s when not if, the Lord is there to help us get up and keep going. Some of the best advice I ever got was “don’t stay down so long you swear down is up.” It’s God’s will for us to get up, receive His forgiveness, and claim the grace to go forward. When David sinned, he prayed for God’s cleansing and asked for restoration. God gave it to him, and He will restore us, too.

Lord, help us to get back up when we fall, in Jesus’ name.

Art by Tim Cox, timcox.com. Used by permission. Thanks, Tim, and God bless you.