"Old Rider"

There’s a time when every cowboy,

Finds the truth about the ride,

Nothing left for him to prove,

And nothing he must hide.

Knows what all he used to do,

And just how good he was,

Remembers times he missed his loop,

And hit the ground because,

Some young horse was just too fresh,

Or old one counterfeit,

Found a way to loud unseat,

From wood he used to sit.

Wobble-headed cows to cuss,

And bulls that hook and kick,

Some that ignore every fence,

And those you’d never pick.

And, yes, he has survived it all,

And plenty more to boot,

And when he wears his hat and scarf,

It’s more than just a suit.

But who he is and where he’s been,

He’s known much better hands,

And quite a few that he could school,

Though they have lots more fans.

‘Cause the buckle doesn’t make the man,

It’s who he is inside,

And all the rest is blown’ smoke,

And just their foolish pride.

So before that old man goes,

Might listen for a spell,

The things he’s seen and done and learned,

That only he can tell,

Could maybe do somebody good,

From older days back when,

The Good Lord might just show the way,

From where that cowboy’s been.

“Oh give thanks to the Lord, call upon His name; Make known His deeds among the peoples. Sing to Him, sing praises to Him; Speak of all His wonders.” (Psalm 105:1-2, NAS)

The Psalmist calls upon us to be thankful, and one of the ways we express our thanks is to speak of what the Lord has done. This is particularly true of “tenured” Christians who have been through some things and learned about the Lord’s faithfulness. When young believers are challenged it is the older crew that can give them the strongest encouragement. Rather than find fault with them, that’s exactly what we should do! And they should be humble enough to listen when we have something to say. Thankfulness motivates all of us.

Lord, help us express our thanks by speaking of all Your wonders, in Jesus’ name.

Art by Jason Rich, used by permission. Thanks, Jason, and God bless you.