Gerald Oscar Dubose, if nothing else was a cowboy. He had been born on a ranch, raised up on a ranch and over the years had compiled large acreage and much cattle. His houses and barns were many. His barns were usually full of hay and his pastures full of cattle. "Boss" as everyone called him knew cows. He knew ranching and loved what he did.
In his earlier years he had developed quite a dynasty. He had a good crew of ranch hands who worked hard and got the job done but over the past few years times had changed and things had changed. Many of Boss's hands had left the ranch for greener pastures. Because of this a lot of work around the ranch had gone undone.
Now the house was in much need of repair. The barns were leaking, the fences were down, the pastures were not as fruitful as before. Heck, in some places there was no grass for the cattle to eat. And the cattle, oh my, the cattle looked "middlin" at best.
So Boss decided that something had to be done. One morning he called in his faithful foreman, a man everyone called "Shep" and told him to go into town and hire some more hands. "Get as many as you can", Boss said. "We must have good hands to run a ranch".
"But Boss" Shep replied, "most folks don't know how to cowboy anymore. I'm not sure how many good hands I can round up".
"Do your best", Boss said and sent him on his way.
Well, Shep did his best. He made poster signs and put them up on the telephone poles in town. He took out adds in the local paper. He went to the café and told everyone he knew about Boss's need. He even spent some of his own money and got a spot on the local radio station asking for those who needed a job and wanted to work. He listed all the benefits of working for such a good rancher at Boss.
He didn't get a lot of response, just as he expected. However, he did find a few and signed them on and carried them back to the ranch. They were given a place in the bunkhouse, given a horse, saddle, rope and all the gear and training they needed. They started work and seemed to be doing what was asked of them.
Not too many weeks later Boss told Shep that they needed to go down to the lower range and bring up the stray cattle that had wondered away. He had a load of stock that needed to be sent up to the rail head and sold. Shep got the men together. They were told of the importance of finding and bringing back all of the lost cows that they could find.
"Each one is important" Shep said, "we can't afford to loose even one. The fate of the ranch and our welfare depend on us don't a good job".
So off they rode. Shep sent them out to search and find the lost cattle. It wasn't too long before one of the men spotted Boss's prize bull. The bull started running away and the cowboy called for his co-workers to come and help him catch to runaway.
Suddenly the big old bull ran headlong into a slime pit. It was like quicksand and immediately the old bull started sinking.
"We've got to do something" the first cowboy cried. He quickly pulled out his rope and lassoed the old bull by the horns. His horse strained and pulled but the old bull wouldn't move.
"I'll help" another cowboy cried as he swung his lasso and caught the old bull by it's right front leg.
It wasn't long before the other riders saw the situation and galloped up to assist. One on the east side of the pit threw his rope and caught the bull by the left front leg. Another snagged him by his right rear leg and another by his left rear leg. One cowboy, riding up late even roped the old bull by his tail.
"He's a big one" one of the cowboys yelled, "pull as hard as you can". And they did. Each understanding the importance of saving the old bull. Each having honed their cowboy skills so as to know how to pull with their rope and horse. Each making every effort to accomplish his task.
But you know what happened don't you? With each individual cowboy pulling in an opposite direction, the old bull finally came out of the pit.......in pieces.
What a disaster! They meant well. They put their whole hearts into doing a good job. They had good equipment. They had been trained, but they were all pulling in a different direction.
I think God must have known something about "cowboy-ing". Acts 2:1 says it this way, "...They were all with one accord in one place". They were dedicated followers of Christ, they knew the mission, they had been trained well, they had good talent, skills and equipment, but God knew if they pulled in opposite directions the cause would be lost. So with much prayer, soul searching, surrender and trust they finally got to the place where they could pull in the same direction and look what happened. Three thousand "strays" rounded up in one day.
I don't have to tell you our ranch is in ruins. The house is in need of repair. Your house looks better than God's house. The fences are broken down. As Christians our parameters have been jeopardized. Souls are scattered and lost. The cowboys are few and far between, most have left for greener pastures.
But you say, "I'm still here. I'm still working for God's kingdom". But can I ask, are we pulling in the same direction? If we all are determined to do things "our way" and maintain the attitude "It's my way or the highway", souls will be lost.
Spend time in prayer, be obedient to the lessons you have learned, 'cowboy up" and pull in the right direction.
