"Rodeo"

The cowboys showed their roping skill,

And the talents of their ride,

Got so they gathered time to time,

Let’s rodeo, they cried.

Those old times turned to contests,

Held all across the west,

Jackpots yielded money,

To those who were the best.

The hands finally decided,

Way back in thirty-six,

To form the fabled CTA,

To stop promoters’ tricks.

And that became the RCA,

In nineteen forty-five,

No longer cowboy turtles,

Just trying to stay alive.

Then Professional Rodeo Cowboys,

Became the ones to beat,

And the finals that are held each year,

To view are mighty sweet.

The first one held in Dallas,

Fifty-nine to sixty-one,

L.A., then Oklahoma,

For all the cowboy fun.

Last Finals there in ’84,

And then to Vegas town,

Since then every December,

The best ones come around.

Until we had the Covid,

The show in Vegas gone,

And next one is in Texas,

The whole full circle done.

Will you go to Texas,

To see the big show there,

I’m gonna try to make it,

Show up without a care.

The history that brings us,

Together for those days,

Boasts a long tradition,

The cowboys ride always.

“The old life is gone; a new life has begun!” (2 Cor. 5:17, NLT)

Old venue, new venue. Old way, new way. Anything wrong with that, you think? I know something of the history of the National Finals Rodeo and the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association. I remember when the finals were held in Oklahoma, and then moved to Vegas. Now, because of Covid, the NFR is moving to Arlington, Texas in the big, new Texas Ranger Stadium. Moving the rodeo proved to be more emotional than I thought. It reminds me of when we canceled our home town rodeo back in March. That was emotionally challenging, too, since we look forward to it every year. Anyway, bottom line, it’s a good thing not to curse your history because it is what you needed to bring you to where you are. When the scriptures talk about the old life “passing away” and everything becoming new it simply means your former life or history no longer has any hold on you. That’s what matters most.

Lord, help me to realize that You are our hiding-place, in Jesus’ name.

Art by Robert Shoofly Shufelt,, used by permission. Thanks, Robert, and God bless you.