"What Happened?"

 What really happened to him,

Looks like his life has changed,

A wild and crazy cowboy,

Who horseback far had ranged,

And when it came to ropin’,

Or ridin’ the rough string,

No one else could top him,

It just beat everything.

Hard drinkin’ and the party,

At the honky tonk and bar,

Out there raisin’ all the cane,

The wildest one by far.

But now they say he’s all calmed down,

He bows his head and prays,

And though he’s still a horseman,

It’s the church house where he stays,

On Sunday and at other times,

He helps out with the kids,

And if you didn’t know it,

You’d never guess the things he did.

They say a horse fell with him,

And while he was knocked out,

The devil came to take him,

That’s what this is about.

But he cried out to Jesus,

And called upon His name,

And the Good Lord gave him mercy,

Says he’ll never be the same.

Was it really a conversion,

Or a hard bump on the head,

If we call, God will save us,

That’s what the Good Book said.

And that’s what really happened,

And his mama says it’s so,

She prayed for him for many years,

To heaven he would go.

And when he tried to run from God,

She stayed faithful in her prayer,

Believing God would save her son,

And show to him His care.

So mama, she’s a-praisin’ God,

And the cowboy praises, too,

And both of them asked me to say,

That Jesus died for you.

“For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved…” (Romans 10:13, NLT)

We tend to complicate faith. This scripture promises salvation to anyone who calls on the name of the Lord. This is the essence of how to begin the Christian life. It’s about admitting you need the Lord, and then calling upon the Lord to do for you what you cannot do for yourself. There are no particular emotions connected to this experience, nor is there any special place or posture. It’s all about what’s happening in your heart, and your wilingness to call on Him. The thief on the cross did it, and Jesus promised him paradise. It does not get any more simple than that.

Lord, we call upon the name of Jesus to save us, in His name we pray.

Art by Clark Kelley Price, clarkkelleyprice.com. Used by permission. Thanks, Clark, and God bless you