"God's Cattle"

From the land of honeysuckle,

And that old bodock tree,

And canebreaks in the bottoms,

So thick you cannot see.

Cherokee rose bushes,

As big as any truck,

And cattle wild as whitetails,

If you find ‘em you’re in luck.

They shipped ‘em from the sunshine state,

Cross-breds every one,

Showing just a little ear,

And constant on the run.

Hadn’t seen too many people,

And snorty as could be,

Ran ‘em for about a year,

Grass finished out, you see.

Now I ride open spaces,

With horizons spreading far,

But the pastures of old Dixie,

I remember how they are.

‘Bout one head to the acre,

‘Cause we got so much rain,

The summer was the strongest time,

When so much weight they’d gain.

Out here the ranching’s different,

‘Cause it can get so dry,

Takes a lot more country,

When we get to July.

But I am just so thankful,

To have this chance, you see,

Tending to God’s cattle,

It sure agrees with me.

The Lord has made us stewards,

We pray we do it well,

Taking care of livestock,

In all of this excel.

Just a cowboy with a conscience,

And the reason is His love,

The cattle on a thousand hills,

Belong to God above.

““For every beast of the forest is Mine, the cattle on a thousand hills.” (Psalm 50:10, NAS)

The idea is that the Lord owns everything, including wild and domesticated beasts. God has called us to be stewards, not owners. It’s not that we cannot purchase or hold title to anything. It’s about what’s happening in our hearts. If we see God as owner and ourselves as stewards or caretakers of what He owns, we can truly enjoy everything He entrusts to us without getting confused. Someone has said whatever you own, owns you. How true! But when we recognize God’s ownership, everything changes.

Lord, teach us to steward well, in Jesus’ name.

Art by Mark Maggiori, used by permission.