"That's It"

I didn’t think that horse was rank,

Till he tried to lay down in the tank,

And I still have him to thank,

For my swollen knuckle here.

One blew up and sent me high,

And when I hit the ground, no lie,

Broke hip and pelvis, not my thigh,

Thank God some help was near.

One cold day I climbed aboard,

Old pony bucked me off, ignored,

All his training, I explored,

The pain there in my wrist.

And sure enough my arm was broke,

It really happened fast, no joke,

Drove to the ER, all the folk,

Explained the time I’d miss.

But people say why do you ride,

Since you’ve been injured, so they chide,

Don’t know how I feel inside,

About that horseback thing.

It’s who I am and what I do,

And though it might seem odd to you,

You don’t have a single clue,

The ride makes my heart sing.

I have old scars and injuries,

But not too many if you please,

There is not a one of these,

To make me want to quit.

So cowboy up and cowboy on,

Stayin’ horseback loud and long,

Ride until my life is gone,

That’s how I feel, that’s it.

“Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer many is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day.” (2 Corinthians 4:16, NAS)

When Paul speaks of not losing heart it’s because of the joy he feels in ministry. The outward man may be going downhill, but he is being inwardly renewed to keep on going. If you love something like cowboying horseback you understand it. Paul never allowed his challenges, obstacles or pain to prevent him from joyfully doing ministry. Neither should we.

Lord, help us to keep on keeping on, in Jesus’ name.

Art by Blu Dornan, used by permission. Thanks, Blu, and God bless you.