"By-Gones"
In the long ago by-gones,
I was raised on old Hank songs,
And Calijah the one I loved most,
Plus the hymns and King Jimmy,
And my eyes would get swimmy,
When they prayed down the Lord’s Holy Ghost.
Raised up to be cowboy,
But not far from the Lord’s joy,
The mixture was just what it was.
‘Tween Dixie and Elvis,
Saved sure and let’s hell miss,
Some don’t understand it because,
It was one phone for all then,
On a stand with a book when,
We looked up a number to call.
One TV, three channels,
Black and white, a knob handle,
And a big roof antenna, don’t fall.
The road was all graveled,
But still was well-traveled,
By the kinfolks and friends to come see,
Our old country home place,
With a big smile on each face,
And always we loved company.
And the music was playin’,
As long as they’re stayin’,
I remember it like yesterday,
It was country and gospel,
Just a bit pentecostal,
My soundtrack of life all the way.
And as Kid Rock said it,
And that’s to his credit,
His life changed because of the two,
Bocephus and Jesus,
And no doubt He sees us,
For me there’s no question it’s true.
Long since a grown man,
But still the old fires fan,
The circle was wide but led home,
The name of the Lord praise,
The banner of truth raise,
A cowboy with no need to roam.
“And we have received God’s Spirit (not the world’s spirit), so we can know the wonderful things God has freely given us.” (1 Corinthians 2:12, NLT)
The Holy Spirit interacts personally with every child of God, and one of His roles is to show us what God has freely given us. This would include natural blessings and talents, as well as supernatural gifts and abilities. All of these combine to equip us to fulfill God’s purpose for our lives. The Lord’s gifts are never just for us but are meant to be a blessing to others. He gives us assignments and then energizes us to carry them out. It’s the best way to live.
Lord, give us all we need to do Your will, in Jesus’ name.
Art by Mark Maggiori, used by permission. Thanks, Mark, and God bless you.