"HBG"

I’m just someone who cowboyed,

All my early years,

And never quite got over,

Or ever shifted gears,

Away from that old lifestyle,

And the way it made me feel,

Whether horses or with cattle,

My cowboy dream was real.

God made all the difference,

When He came into my life,

Called me into ministry,

Gave me peace for strife.

And, yes, I’ve tried to serve Him,

But always had a wonder,

If somehow the cowboy way,

Could one someday fall under,

The calling of the Gospel,

And the need to preach the Word,

Could they go together,

And be faithful to the Lord.

And now I have an answer,

Though slow but sure it came,

It started on a Facebook page,

Horseback Gospel was its name.

Truth in a cowboy package,

Lots of cowboy art,

Daily Bible verses,

And poems from the heart.

And now a church is forming,

And Texas is the place,

Horseback Gospel Cowboy Church,

Where we will seek His face.

And not without big changes,

And some sacrifices, too,

And walking not by seeing,

But by faith in what He’ll do.

But assured that He is leading,

The vision is so real,

God’s Kingdom above everything,

To save, set free, and heal.

So pray for us, my brother,

And maybe come and see,

We don’t have every answer,

But we only want to be,

What the Good Lord’s planning,

And pray He has His way,

Surrender to His calling,

And serve Him everyday.

“Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations…” (Mt. 18:19, NLT)

There is no single approach to leading people to Christ and helping them grow spiritually. There are many ways, approaches, programs, methods and strategies God has used effectively. Being faithful to the Good News of Jesus Christ and building relationships is what they all have in common. Many of the church controversies and divisions have more to do with how things are done than anything else. All such things are negotiable. That’s why it’s legitimate to consider doing “cowboy church.” That’s because the cowboy approach helps us to connect with a certain demographic of people. Not just people directly involved with the livestock industry, but people who have an affinity to the country and a back-to-basics country lifestyle. We believe there is great hunger for such things in our post-modern culture, and high-tech has been more detrimental that anyone would have believed. Underlying all this is a deep hunger to know God. So if we can package our disciple-making efforts in a cowboy hat, an informal service with down-home music, it might reach someone who otherwise might never attend a “traditional” or even “contemporary” church. Let’s pray that we will all fulfill Jesus’ great commission no matter what approach we take.

Lord, help us make disciples for You, in Jesus’. name.

Art by Bruce Greene, brucegreeneart.com. Used by permission. Thanks, Bruce, and God bless you.