Good Sunday Mornin'

[Shortgrass]

I enjoyed seeing everyone's brands this week. Sure, I like the 1 or 2 character, one iron brands like the Spearhead; they are easy to apply. The 22 below zero is a sure enough catchy name. The thing that makes a brand good, in my mind, is not what you call it. Many times I have heard some old cowboy say as he brushed off the burnt hair, "That ought to bring her home." That's what a brand is for – a mark of ownership. I really liked the Box R and that LF bar as applied on the cows in the pictures. The thing I liked about them was the fact that after they were healed and cattle had haired up, if you saw them on the far ridge, across the canyon you could glass them and know whose they were. When you run on the forest, and cattle can and often do mix with other herds. You don't want to have to ride a mile of rough country to see if that is your cow or not. The Box R, C K quarter circle or the Spearhead are much the same provided you can tell at a glance whose they are. The idea of a microchip and an electronic reader would be OK at the sale barn, but unpractical on the forest. You need something that anyone can tell at a glance whose that cow is. Let's make a spiritual application of that principle. Who do you belong to? The bible tells us that if you live, you live unto the Lord or if you die that you die unto the Lord, so that whether you live or whether you die that you are the Lord's. Are you branded? Do you have a little tiny brand that someone has to get close and shave off the hair to tell whose you are, or perhaps a microchip that takes a special reading device? I hope you have a very legible brand that anyone can tell from a mile away that you are a Christian. Do you have the kind of brand that will bring you home? That's what I want! Have yourselves a good Sunday mornin' and a fine rest of the week too.

 

[Soapweed]

That is a great analogy, Shortgrass, and a wonderful illustration for people in ranch country who depend on brands to prove cattle ownership. When I was a kid (here is the expression my kids use :roll: :roll: :roll: ) :wink: , there was a program that came on KSCR radio out of Chadron, Nebraska called the Peabody Hale Show. During the week, Peabody played country music records, and on Saturday mornings it was a live performance with local talent. Everyone had a good time whether they participated or just listened across the airwaves. Peabody always ended his program with the words, "And may the Good Lord take a liking to you." Someone corrected him saying that the Good Lord likes all of us. It is up to us to reciprocate and like Him back. After that, Peabody's closing words were, "And may You take a liking to the Good Lord."

 

[Lonecowboy]

I heard a story about a fine young upstanding Christian man that had finally came of age and was to go out into the world and find work.
He found a job at a large ranch and was readying to leave home.
His Mother came and warned him about the cowboys. She told him that the cow camps would be filled with rough,tough,wild, foul,sinfull men that might give hime a hard time because of his faith and for him to be carefull. Well the season came and went and when the fall work was through the young man came home. His Mother was anxious to know how all had went. Finally she asked how he had been treated, had he been persecueted for his faith?? The young man replied, " They never knew Mother, they didn't even notice."

 

[Soapweed]

I heard a story about a fine young upstanding Christian man that had finally came of age and was to go out into the world and find work.
He found a job at a large ranch and was readying to leave home.
His Mother came and warned him about the cowboys. She told him that the cow camps would be filled with rough,tough,wild, foul,sinfull men that might give hime a hard time because of his faith and for him to be carefull. Well the season came and went and when the fall work was through the young man came home. His Mother was anxious to know how all had went. Finally she asked how he had been treated, had he been persecueted for his faith?? The young man replied, " They never knew Mother, they didn't even notice."

That is pretty sad, but it happens all the time.