Ride Cowboy Ride

May your pony not stumble and your pockets stay full.
May your spurs always jingle and bit always chirp.
When your done for the day may you eat and drink your fill.

May your hand be light and your word be the same.
May your good horses be many and your loop be big.
May it not be for pride when it comes tight on what you've set aim.

May your saddle set straight and not creep to the side.
May you always tell your loved ones that you do as often as you should.
May you never have to come clean and say that you've lied.

May your trail be long that you ride in this life.
May it take you over country that you love and admire.
May your heart be filled with joy and forget all the strife.

May your cack never grow dusty and your spurs always ring.
May your slack never kink or get where it shouldn't.
May you never forget those days in the spring.

May your legs stay in leather when that young colt starts to pitch.
May your hat stay snug on the windiest of days.
May your cattle stay healthy and out of the ditch.

May your rope always stay in place on the wood.
May your friends be many and enemies few.
May you remember your maker like all of us should.

May his words be a comfort when we reach the other side.
May he say you've done good son welcome your home.
Now get down to doing what I made you to do and ride cowboy ride.........

By Brian Brown

Dinner

I'm batch'n it and have had a chance to eat some good food with new and old friends. It has been fun to be invited to peoples homes and fellowship with them. It gives you a window into the family life and the events that take place day to day in the home. As you all well know I enjoy watching people and the last few nights with no children of my own to care for I have been able to concentrate on my other passion of observing.
The last family I had the chance to dine with were very dear friends we have been to there house for dinner before as a family but as i was on my own i was like a addition to their family this evening. After dinner was done and conversation was winding down the father pulled out the bible and asked each family member to read a verse of their choosing. I was floored... something I hadn't done before and something I didn't expect from this young christian family. I was blessed by that time with them and learned a very valuable lesson about our walk with christ and family life; from a unexpected source. Not my pastor or sunday school teacher, not a book or a parenting pamphlet but from a young (in the lord) christian who has only recently dedicated their life to christ.
Keep the TV off after dinner linger in the presence of your family discuss the things of God. His character, love, and mercy. Talk, listen, answer questions and grow together in Christ.
The bible says we are to speak of the things of the lord they are to be on our lips always and we are to speak of them in our going out and our coming in........

How blessed I have been to see this first hand and to be able to do this in my own family. God is very much alive and at work no matter how hard the adversary tries to destroy the family.

Well it's been a while. Figure if I'm going to have this thing I better wright on it. So spring work has been to say the least hectic and with one thing after another I've become quite busy. I find myself spending so much time at work and thinking about work that very little of anything else do i think about. However God; being faithful (far more faithful than myself) to finish the work he has started in me always finds pieces of time to speak to, convict, soften, break, uplift and mold me.
We recently undertook a job of picking rock from a field we planned to plant to pasture. A job I thought I had left behind in Idaho however turns out there are rock here too. Well I rounded up the neighbor high school kids and the other hired hand that works here and we set out to clean this field of rocks. I've finally graduated to driver instead of rock picker so that was nice. And as my new job of manager, I got to watch them pick the rock from the field and throw them in the bucket of the loader. My job basically was to make sure they got them all and no one got hit by rocks. My position high on the loader and my fascination for people watching I got to observe eight hours of interaction amongst three people. I observed many things but one thing really hit me. As we moved through the field each person had their assigned position around the front of the loader. The one man that i work with daily was keeping a close and i do mean close eye on these young men and every time they would miss the most minuscule rock he would leave his designated area walk into theirs and pick the one rock they had missed roll his eyes at them and grunt (yes grunt). He would miss five or six rocks on his side just to make a spectacle of the other workers one small mistake. He never missed a chance to pick up behind them and give them a good guilt trip. I was a little upset and had to get a handle on the situation before it escalated however as a part of my curiosity i allowed it to go on to see if he would realize what he was doing. He never did he continued until I was forced to say something.
Well after this I had to ask myself some questions. Do you go out of your way to point out other peoples problems (no matter how minuscule they are)? Do you take pleasure in pointing out those mistakes? Do you condemn other people for making the same mistakes you are making?
And ultimately do you extend the same amount of grace to others as you expect them to extend to you.
Since this experience I've noticed that people in general expect far more grace from others than they are willing too extend to others. God commands us in his word to Love your neighbor as yourself. In order to love you have to extend grace you have to look past the persons faults and love the person. Christ demonstrated this not only in that he died while we were still sinners but also when he washed the disciples feet. A story I'm sure you are all familiar with people talk about his servants heart and while that is part of the story more profound to me is that Christ washed all twelve of the disciples feet. You see he washed Judas feet. He knew Judas would betray him to his death in less than eight hours and yet he extended the same amount of love and grace to him. Wow ! Do you love people who don't like you? Do you love those who you can't stand to be around? How about those who the world has deemed unlovable? Jesus Christ did and does.

Are You Listening ?

I have recently become acquainted with a little girl. She is a very energetic, enthusiastic and carefree child. She is however very sick. Her symptoms are many and diagnosis few. Medication seems to not help and her family and friends have been left feeling helpless.

As I visited with this family one evening her mother told me of a event that took place a couple days ago. As they woke up one morning the girl told her mom "God talked to me last night and I saw him". Then she spent the morning singing praise songs from church. The mothers voice cracked as she relayed this story to me and my head spun as I heard it.

Very simple are these words she spoke but how inspiring and aah provoking they are for me to think about. This little girl said God spoke to her and that she was in his presence. The result was a rare morning filled with joy and singing instead of headaches and fatigue.

When was the last time you talked to God; or more importantly when was the last time that you heard God talking to you and felt his presence? So often we as adults are so busy talking to God we neglect one of the most important parts of communication. {listening} Have you heard his voice lately have you heeded that voice? Did it have the same impact on your day as it did this little girls?I think if we would become more like children; allow God to unclutter our minds of worldly worries, bills to pay, meetings, quotas. Then we might just hear him more often and be blessed with the joy and peace that only comes from a connection with our savior and creator. This is something he longs for. God wants you and me to communicate with him and fellowship with him. It was for this reason we were created, and for this reason real true genuine joy and happiness results in contact with him. I've been blessed by this little girls encounter with our saviour and hope you will be too. I plan to start listening to God more than I petition him. And worrying less and trusting him more.


Romans 10:17 "So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." kjv

Revelation 3:20 "Lo I'm standing at the door and knocking; if anyone shall hearken unto my voice and open the door I will come in unto him and sup with him and he with me." Rotherham

Four year old's wisdom.

Once again I find myself late at night reminiscing and actually in this case recalling events from just days ago. Things are pretty busy around a ranch at calving time feed, check,tag,record,mend fence..... Well the other day we had to pull a baby in. It's mother rejected it. The only two around here, that was excited about this little event; was Bailey and Birch.(my four year old girl and my two year old boy.) Bailey could not wait to go out and help me feed little "Kobe" as we now call him. So I mixed up a bottle and headed out with her in tow. Her eyes were dancing as she checked him out her facial expressions were that of pure excitement and joy. She said things like he is "so cute" and "so perfect." She also asked about his mommy and I explained how his mommy didn't like him and that was just not good enough for her. But that little moment of confusion didn't detract from the rest of the time as she ran with Kobe and became good friends with him. As we made our way back from the barn across the barnyard. I was holding her little hand in mine and she was on cloud nine she was so full of energy. But very quite she suddenly stopped looked up at me and uttered words that stopped this heart hardened cowboy dead in his tracks and brought him to a slump on the ground in the barnyard. "Dad I love you and I don't want you to die" WOW! As i caught my breath and my composure; i found myself asking God for the words to explain this thing she had brought up. I could have just brushed it off or gave her a token proud cowboy response that "I wouldn't die." But i felt a moment like this deserved attention and a honest conversation. However the tears were running down my face and I could hardly breath. Me in my cowboy hat, boots, spurs, sitting in the barnyard a crying mess with a four year old girls words to blame and her ears waiting for a response. I told her daddy is going die someday honey but when i do i'm going to see Jesus and live with him. And someday you can come and live with us. This little girl looked at me smiled and said to me exactly what i and everyone needs to be reminded of. She said "Dad Jesus Loves us all of us." Ok by now I'm not in tears I'm an absolute wreck!! I've never cried so hard in my life as I set there and she ran to the yard to play on the swing God began to speak to me. Basically no theologian no preacher, religious organization, author, or professor. Could have spoke as profound truth as I had just been witness. If only we as adults could disentangle our minds from this worlds; theology, dogma, worries, political correctness, and just see God and trust him like a child dose. If we could keep our doctrine so simplified in our minds that it is as simple as three words. And if we could be as joyful as a four year old little girl on a warm winters day with her daddy. My prayer is that all would come to know and trust that Jesus loves us. Brian Brown
Mark 10:15 Assuredly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means enter it.
Romans5:8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Jesus came into a world of religion a world steeped in culture and monotheism. He was trying to minister to a people who for centuries thought they had it all figured out. He was directly challenging many of the things that they believed in. Especially the legalism, hypocrisy, and lack of love and compassion. He struggled time and time again to explain to the Pharisees and Sadducees that he was preeminent to there feeble understanding of God's revelation in the law. And also that he was God's true and devine revelation.
This was sure hard for most of the people in Christ's day to stomach. This was a total revamp of what they had been taught for centuries. ie; Healing on the sabbath, praying in private and not to be seen by men, spiritual warfare, healing sick-blind-lame. "Who does this guy think he is?" I can hear them saying.
I 've made that point; to suggest this are we so far off that if Christ was to come to our world today that we would have a problem giving up rituals or ceremonies because he points out that they are scripturally inaccurate. would we like the Pharisees and Sadducee bow our necks. When we are reading scripture do we really take from it what it says or are we so busy trying to prove a point or disprove it that we miss it all together.
How about when someone questions your personal beliefs are you able to take a step back search out the scripture, pray and see if you might possibly in a million years be wrong? Not me for a long time. I was a SAD-U-SEE. Neck bowed and indoctrinated to the common Christian life. By common christian life I mean going to heaven but living in hell. No victory over sin on a day to day basis. On a eternal measure sure but daily living in sin is not the life described by Christ in john. "I come that you may have life and have it more abundantly." I for one think we need to quit the padded, Sunday school, politically canned, comfy wumfy answers to the questions we have. And start being men and women of God and studying his word for the real {possibly not widely accepted or easiest} answers.
I think our churches, seminaries, and leaders need to take a real good look at what the bible says and not what our church founders said. We need to become one body, so that we might more effectively minister to the lost and edify the saints. Lets choose Jesus not religion and lets get back to spirit filled, born again, humble, friends of God, full of love. Brian

Perspective

So calving time gives you a lot of time for thinking, and reflecting. I was running through my mind the events and the company of a late fall hunt I shared with my father-in-law. It is kind of a tradition for the Echeverria's to get together each thanksgiving. and while the women catch up and shop; us guys grab our bows and head off to hunt the mule deer in the rut. Like all the other years before we were excited. Due to some circumstances Todd and I were alone that day and looking forward to putting some miles and elevation under our feet. We began the hunt and split up at the truck and met up on top. As we met up Todd got my attention and showed me a nice buck chasing a doe across a large canyon in a chaparral covered basin. As we sat and glassed I began working out a way to stalk up close on this guy. I shared my idea with Todd and he said "OK I'll stay here and watch." "Go slow and it might work." You see Todd is very laid back and not one to discourage you or tell you his point of view unless you ask. So off I went. As I crossed the steep canyon and made my way along the side hill toward the basin I stopped to check and see if Todd was there sure enough right where he said he would be watching over the whole thing. I was getting close to where I thought the big guy was and began trying to control my breathing. See I was a mile and a half from were I left Todd and three miles from the truck and the adrenaline was pumping. As I crept over the last little rise I was anticipating my shot being no more than forty yards. So I have now crawled the last three hundred or so yards and can see the whole basin and no buck. So I pull out my binoculars and begin to scan. Wow there he is and at another look he is across my basin and on the other side of the next basin laying down. My depth perception was way off. Only two hundred yards off but still way off for a bow and arrow. This hidden basin was one thing and the angle at which I was previously had been misleading. As I sit down to ponder the rest of the day I call Todd on the radio and say "I thought he was right here." He replied "I know you did." My head snapped around and I swear even over that great distance I could see Todd, sitting right where he said he would be smiling!! So as I laughed and reminisced over this I was struck with how much like life this little adventure had been. You see Todd had clear perspective from were he sat which wasn't far from me but my view was distorted it gave me a vision that was false. My eagerness and confidence had just cost me a lot of time and energy. And the whole time Todd watched and didn't try to stop me he just let me learn on my own. See Todd could have said no you'll never make it or can't you see that open flat between that ridge and the buck. Much like our heavenly father who wants us to stay close and be near. However so many times we as humans start trying to see with our own eyes and through our perspective and not God's. That he has to let us go sometimes far from him that we might learn a lesson or two along the way. I believe God loves to see his children learn even if they are apart from him when they do so. I think God uses our ambitions and energy to form our character and mold us into vessels that will hold water. God can use your desires and dreams to motivate change, growth and blessing. You see after I crossed that canyon I found another buck in bordering basin and had a successful and blessed stalk. However no kill. But I have never been so at peace with a miss (i don't miss). But seriously I was close and did everything I could have done to harvest that deer. It just didn't work out that way. So don't be surprised if when blessings come they are not what you had expected at first but you are content and extremely great full despite your previous expectations. It might be possible your perspective is changing to more closely resemble that of your makers. So the next time you're in the valley of the shadow of death the worlds got you down and the future of your country looks bleak remember Christ's words do not fear for I have overcome sin, death and the world. And because of him your heavenly father is watching over you, protecting, guiding and most importantly teaching you along the way. Brian Brown