"Trailin'"
See the cattle trailing,
Cross that old country rough,
Moving first calf heifers,
And hope we find enough,
Of those that we now gather,
And push to their new place,
Calves moving with their mamas,
Wind blowing in my face.
And I think of all the people,
Who’ll never see this sight,
A horseback of a mornin’,
Through the streamin’, bright sunlight.
The bawlin’ and the moo-ing,
Wind blowing through the sage,
And my pony’s steady breathin’,
Like a symphony on stage.
And rising from within me,
There flows a thankfulness,
And I can feel God’s nearness,
Giving peace and rest.
I know it’s just a cattle drive,
No audience to see,
Far from town and traffic,
But where I love to be.
And not just ‘cause the bovine,
Give me pleasure, see,
Or even that the horses,
Seem to agree with me.
But there outside the limits,
Where people crowd and go,
The pace of this world’s culture,
Goes from fast to slow.
The noise that is inside me,
Finally quiets down,
So I can hear the Spirit,
A long, far piece from town.
And often just a word or two,
Is what my old heart hears,
But something that I’ve needed,
Relieving all my fears.
See the trailing cattle,
Cross that old country rough,
Time to hear the Spirit,
He gives more than enough.
“For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God…” (Romans 8:14, NLT)
One of the marks of God’s children is that they are led by the Holy Spirit. This does not mean that we are Spirit-led all the time. In fact, we are called to make daily choices about that. Dying daily, as Paul described it, is necessary to surrender to the Spirit’s leadership. But the point Paul is making is that children of God want to be led by God and not themselves. They may fail, or at times disobey, but they are still moving in the right direction because the Spirit is their leader. Their destination is secure because He leads.
Lord, help us to hear and be led by Your Spirit, in Jesus’ name.
Art by Teal Blake, tealblake.com. Used by permission. Thanks, Teal, and God bless you.