"Little Bay"

The little bay was terrified,

Broke to lead but not to ride,

Thought we might sell, I will confide,

And not sure what to do.

The old man smiled, tipped back his hat,

I led the bay while there he sat,

Said leave him here, and that was that,

I’ll call you when I’m through.

I dropped by so I could see,

Two weeks had passed and constantly,

I thought about how it would be,

If we could ride the bay.

He was a beauty after all,

Built real straight and not too tall,

I just showed up, I didn’t call,

I thought it was okay.

The old man met me at the gate,

I wondered if I’d aggravate,

But all he said was sit and wait,

And so that’s what I did.

And in a minute here he came,

A ridin’ that bay colt the same,

I stepped out and called his name,

Excited as a kid.

The horse was calm as calm can be,

His side-passed over beside me,

Then stepped off and let me see,

The change was very plain.

The old man said he took his time,

And four straight days on that lunge line,

The little bay was doing fine,

And showed him no disdain.

So fifth day put the saddle on,

But lunging ‘round they got along,

And soon responded very strong,

And everyday the same.

Then stepped right on and moved away,

He never flicked an ear that day,

But confident with every play,

The age-old cowboy game.

I said he’s like a different horse,

He said he applied gentle force,

And taught the pony trust of course,

On what he asked him to.

He didn’t know not to be scared,

He didn’t know the old man cared,

Time on the ground got him prepared,

To do what he must do.

The old man said just one more week,

I agreed with no critique,

And knew what I’d seen was unique,

The old man’s cowboy way.

And many ponies since I’ve rode,

‘Cause that old man to me he showed,

Through many horses he had knowed,

I learned first from the bay.

I thought of how the Lord trains us,

With our fears, He wins our trust,

Overwhelming love’s a must,

But it shows us the way.

And we are by the Master fit,

To be the ride and never quit,

The one that some, if asked, admit,

We’d never be okay, but God had the last say.

“We should live in this evil world with wisdom, righteousness, and devotion to God…” (Titus 2:12, NLT)

Paul was very concerned that the early believers would show an accurate picture of who Jesus is to the world. They would need to be taught and trained how to do this, so that in the end, they would be effective partners in spreading the Good News of Jesus Christ. Just like the old cowboy who trained the young horse, Paul invested lots of time in teaching and encouraging the people to be all that God had called them to be. He expected them to pass along what they had learned to others as well. This multiplication was the God-given strategy for making a generational spiritual impact. It’s still God’s most powerful strategy.

Lord, help us accept Your training in our lives, in Jesus’ name.

Art by Mark Maggiori, markmaggiori.com. Used by permission. Thanks, Mark, and God bless you.