"Over"

All the ranching families,

And all the cowboy teams

Came to Amarillo,

With winning in their dreams.

And it was quite a rodeo,

And western all the way,

And we saw top hands workin’,

Like they do everyday.

The sortin’ and the brandin’,

And the wild cow milkin’, too,

And don’t forget the bronc rides,

And all that cowboys do.

And then the last performance

The weekend’s final round,

And then the last bronc’s ridden,

And folks headin’ out of town.

The cattle all are loaded,

Go to where they go,

The horses, too, and people,

Place full, now empty, so,

I get that wistful feelin’,

That I got every year,

When back home in Alabama,

The end of rodeo drew near.

So long we had looked forward,

And savored every minute,

And ridin’ and a-ropin’,

Just glad we could be in it.

And then the show got over,

And we just all go on,

With memories of moments,

That help us get along.

But have you ever wondered,

Why the good times have to end,

I don’t mean just a rodeo,

But so much more, my friend.

I even think of life itself,

It has a final date,

And God knows how and when it is,

When they throw life’s final gate.

And if it weren’t for Jesus,

It all would be too sad,

But because He died and rose,

We can actually be glad,

When we hear they’ve rung the buzzer,

On our final round,

And we then hear the Master,

Call us up to higher ground.

The good times won’t be over,

In fact they’ve just begun,

And never, ever end again,

‘Cause heaven’s race we’ve won.

“Anyone who believes in Me will live, even after dying…” (John 11:25, NLT)

Jesus said this to a woman named Martha after her brother, Lazarus, had died. She was grief-stricken, and could not understand why Jesus did not arrive in Bethany in time to heal him. Have you ever thought God was late in giving you the miracle you expected? Have you ever wondered why? Most, if not all of us, have at one time or another wondered…Yet Jesus took the opportunity to give all of us hope when He spoke these words to Martha. Jesus knew He would raise Lazarus from the dead, and perform the miracle that most likely led to His betrayal, arrest, and death on the cross. But as desperately sad as this sequence was, life prevailed! Jesus was raised from the dead to give us eternal life. And that’s just the point. We will live, even though we die. There is no greater miracle. There is no greater hope.

Lord, fill us with the hope of eternal life, in Jesus’ name.

Art by Tyler Crow, tylercrow.com. Used by permission. Thanks, Tyler, and God bless you.