Tag: Fruit Of The Spirit

The Song of our Heart.

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It was my observation that God’s love for us exhibits a beautiful eccentricity — he chose to bring us into his circle of friends, choosing to emotionally connect us with him. To be sure, He is self-sufficient. Yet he clearly states he desires our love and will not cease the pursuit until we acquiesce. This quest for us, on his part, is forever. This is God’s love, not that we loved God first, but that he loved us first, and permitted his Son to mediate our rebellion (see John 3:16).

Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 — Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away (NIV).

Paul assures us love will remain; God is our friend; he wants to be friends with us. Please note – no man alive would be foolish enough to think we came up with the idea to become friends with God. On our best day we defy, retreat, run, and hide from him. Yet he hunts us down. Abraham never said, ‘I am a friend to God’ but we read in James 2:23 that God said to Abraham – You are my friend. A smart person smiles and says, ‘yes sir.’  Abraham was a smart person. The disciples were not quick (out of respect) to claim friendship with Jesus, yet Jesus said – You are my friends (John 15:15). A wise person, who understands humility also understands the gravity of this situation. We are wise to honor what he says, and act with courage when the need arises – given we are his friend. We have no reason, because of this redemptive love, to hide in the brush.

Love is self-sacrifice. It considers nothing related to self but gives freely to the object of its affection. We see this constantly. A young mother, thin and tired, nurses a healthy baby, she gazes at her child with eyes of love. Jesus said – “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” God takes pleasure in His creation (Psalms 104:31). God’s purpose in creation of people was His own pleasure (Psalms 149:4). His pleasure is unmistakable when we read about his handiwork. Psalms 104 is an amazing poem about his creation, full of the delight of God for us and the things he made.

Love builds community. Elohim smiles broadly with us when we are walking with him. He is not a gloomy cranky old guy gazing down at us with a passing interest. I have found nothing in scripture that defines him this way. He is very affectionate. He is protective of us; Jesus endured the atonement process to open the door for fellowship. When we yield to the Spirit of God, he grins and reaches out to embrace us. Zephaniah 3:15-17 says — The Lord, the King of Israel, is with you; never again will you fear any harm. On that day they will say to Jerusalem, do not fear, Zion; do not let your hands hang limp. The Lord your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you; in his love he will no longer rebuke you but will rejoice over you with singing (NIV).

Finally, we look at music. As you might guess – love embodies music. Speaking to Job in the 38th chapter, God asks – where were you when I laid down the foundations of the earth you are standing on, did you not hear the morning stars singing together, did you not hear the sons of God shouting for joy? (Job 38:7-9). Music is an expression of the heart, we use our hands and voice to express emotion, we communicate emotion with and without words. Music is as much about silence (gaps between notes) as it is about hearing notes. Just as God blurted out the universe bathed in love when the stars were singing – we blurt out our secrets when we create music. The things we love become the song of our heart.  We are wise to respond to the hand of God extended towards us – he is offering his friendship to each of us.

I choose Jesus.

Difficult to Define Him.

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It was my observation, if John had aggressively declared that love is only what God is, we would be compelled to say God is what love is (see 1 John 4:8). If love is equal to God, then the God we have defined leaves little space for any other attributes, He becomes a man-made deity. He no longer is Elohim. Let us open the aperture of thought to a larger f-stop. When we examine God’s other attributes, we can learn more accurately about His love. For example, if God is self-existent, then love has no beginning; if Elohim is eternal, love has no end; if the Logos is infinite, he has no boundaries for his love; if he is holy, he is pure in love; if He is immense, His love is incomprehensible.  Now we can say his love is like a sea with no end, and we bend in silence at his grace and grandeur (see Psalms 36:5-9).

Psalms 104:30-35 says — When you send your Spirit, they are created, and you renew the face of the ground. May the glory of the Lord endure forever; may the Lord rejoice in his works—he who looks at the earth, and it trembles, who touches the mountains, and they smoke. I will sing to the Lord all my life; I will sing praise to my God as long as I live. May my meditation be pleasing to him, as I rejoice in the Lord. (NIV). Selah.

If we know God, we are compelled to try to speak of His love and grace. Try we must, but none of us do it very well. There are no words in my vocabulary to properly define the formidable and wonder-filled attributes of God. Children reach toward a star hoping to grab the light. Their outstretched arm points towards the love of God. This is the best we can do – encourage others to look up.

1 John 4: 13-18 says —   This is how we know that we live in him and he in us: He has given us of his Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God. And so, we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love (NIV).

I am not foolish enough to say – I know exactly what love is. But I can see many things that exhibit the notion of love. We can see love pours out goodwill towards other people. Love does not wish fear for others. John said there is no fear in love. Fear is a painful thing; it grips us and blinds us to a path towards safety. It persists and grows; it smashes our hope. Yet, the moment we encounter love, fear runs away. Fear is powerless over us; that is the impact of love. My mother is many things, but her love can arrest my fear.

Our world is full of trouble and enemies. A casual examination of the news suggests that our enemies’ resolve is strong, and trouble is inevitable. Soldiers are taught to focus on the endgame, get the job done, adapt to the situation and overcome the problem. Their answer to fear is to redirect their focus. Yet, I think, the effort to vanquish fear without addressing the cause is silly. Our heart is wise enough to know as long as we trust our plan to outmaneuver the enemy, we may have every good reason to be afraid; we may have overlooked something, may have failed to ask a question we did not know we needed to ask. But, in the end, we know that fear is a liar. We are wise to focus on love – the endgame.

This is what I know – God is a God who defines love, in the secret place of our heart, we lean on Jesus. Love is not the sum total of God; but it is an essential truth of his sovereignty. Our effort to adapt and overcome fear is nothing compared to his Love. His love casts away all fear. When we embrace God’s love and mercy – fear retreats into the shadows. Nothing can really hurt us, perhaps temporarily, but not forever. Love will win. I choose Jesus.

Hollywood and the Open Range

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Sometimes when Hollywood was riding with Miss Tillie on the weekends, he would really be working. They would be hunting for cattle trying to bring them back into the larger herd. But for Hollywood and Miss Tillie, this was a time of pleasure.

They got to enjoy the most beautiful place on the face of the earth from their viewpoint. The trees were magnificent. The valleys were deep with streams running in the bottom. They were gloriously clear. Sometimes you could see the trout moving around in the streams. These little brook trout were so happy, playful, and so content. There were no natural predators in the valley; and there were very, very few fishermen in those days.

Sometimes Hollywood would hear God speak to him in the wind when he was high in the hills. He would dream about what it was like for the men of old in Scripture who heard God’s voice speak a message of hope and then repeat that message to people in the city.

Remembering a vision in Ezekiel, it felt like he could almost see God at sunrise or sunset. He wondered how many times he bumped into an angel out there when a lone rider came by. Occasionally he would bump into somebody he did not know. This person would have a message of good cheer or questions, or he just had a pleasant smile on his face and said hello as he passed by.

Today, Miss Tillie and Hollywood were enjoying the afternoon as they searched for strays. When they found them, they brought them back to safety 1 by 1. After the stray calf could get down off the horse, the stray calf would start letting out little whelps to help mom find the calf. The mother would hear their calf calling out as they got closer to the herd and you could see the mother moving through the herd so that calf could find her. Then they would engage in a lot of nuzzling and then off they go.

Sometimes the mom would turn back and look at Hollywood, but not too often. She knew that was what Hollywood did for her. The cattle kind of just expected it to happen. At least that is how it felt to Hollywood. But they were grateful.

One time when they were out hunting for strays, they came across a trapped calf. The stray calf got stuck between two trees and it just looked a little silly. He could not go forward and he could not go backwards. After a bit of analysis, we realized all he needed to do was breathe in, compress his lungs, and then his rib cage would let go of those trees.

We took a close look and made sure he was ok to ride back to the herd. And then we gently eased him out from the two trees. He was injured pretty badly, so we cleaned up his wounds. We even put some gentle bandages on him and then threw him up on the horse with Miss Tillie. We rode very slow, so the calf did not feel too much pain. They worked their way back home and then put the calf back into the mom’s protection.

And the two of them kind of looked at each other and the mom licked the calf side. All was well. Few days later we checked in on that calf, healing was moving forward nicely, Hollywood suspected the calf hardly remembered the incident. Miss Tillie talked with me about my feelings when we are out in the in the High Plains. From that conversation, she took notes and created a short poem. This is what she wrote —

The open range is calling me across the miles, as I sit before the open sky, I guess I’ll dream a while.

I sit on a porch all day, with distant canyons steep, I think about my Jesus, His grace, a gift to keep.

Out in the open I can hear, where the wind cry’s, God sings on that distant ridge, he is calling out to me.

A trail that leads to somewhere, like a floating log, a song on a river, its calling me to God.

The first time Hollywood heard that bit of prose that Miss Tillie put together, he teared up a little bit because Hollywood did not realize how he sounded until she captured his bits and pieces together in a poem.

The next morning, we were out hunting for strays again and we came across three of them that had backed themselves into a corner of a draw and for some reason or another they got lost in this little bitty bit of heaven. They could not find their way out. We could see them; they had been moving around. There was water there, and there were things to eat, so maybe they just were not that anxious to leave. But there they were, kind of playing with each other, ignoring us. We rode in. We looked around to make sure no predators were in the area. When we knew they were clear, then we gathered them up, and got them heading in the right direction.

They were actually a little resistive, Miss Tillie thought they liked the little place they had found. But we needed to get them back to the herd, so we started moving them along. Now Miss Tillie could not help but notice Hollywood looking to the left and to the right. It was an unbelievably beautiful draw, the pine trees, and the craggy rock. It was stunning. Then we came across a stream and that is where they were getting their water. It was crystal clear and was not very wide, but it was enough – a spring fed water source.

We took a detour and rode back up the stream a little bit, following the stream until we came to the place where it came out of the earth. It was just magnificent, just a bubbling, gurgling little pool of water gradually going out. And it became a beautiful source of water.

Eventually we found our way back to the herd. The day was coming to close; the sunset was glorious. Hollywood started thinking about Miss Tillie’s poem. He knew that God had provided a beautiful day to celebrate life.  He enjoyed the evening breeze and the rocker on his porch.  All was well on the ranch…

Ezekiel 1:25-28 — Then there came a voice from above the vault [heavens] over their heads as they stood with lowered wings. Above the vault over their heads was what looked like a throne of lapis lazuli, and high above on the throne was a figure like that of a man. I saw that from what appeared to be his waist up he looked like glowing metal, as if full of fire, and that from there down he looked like fire; and brilliant light surrounded him. Like the appearance of a rainbow in the clouds on a rainy day, so was the radiance around him. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord. When I saw it, I fell facedown, and I heard the voice of one speaking (NIV).

Please note: In 1956 a cowboy poet, Jim Jennings, published a short book about his experience working at ‘dude’ ranches in the west. My Great grandmother, Goldie Livingston, obtained a first edition copy of Jim’s self-published book in the fall of 1956. The poetry in this story is adapted from Jim’s book.

Hollywood and the Fever

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I looked across the trail, about 25 feet away and there she was, rested on her beautiful tan pony. She was smiling, wondering when I was going to catch up, so we could ride together over the ridge. We have been moving through the Black Hills most of the day. And so, we were near the Cheyenne River, at the south end of the Black Hills. Moving a little bit north and a little bit west towards the Wyoming border.

Watching the clouds dance over the horizon, Miss Tillie asked – Hollywood, are you enjoying the view on the Cheyenne River Valley?

Hollywood replied – Oh yes, as he was looking at her…

As they roamed, every once in a while, they could hear the cry of an eagle, telling Miss Tillie all about dinner, scurrying to safety. That eagle was deciding if she was going to bring dinner home to her kids or let that little creature move on for another day. Sometimes, the shadow of that eagle would get really, really close to dinner, but then that dinner would bolt to the left or bolt to the right and slip away from the eagle. We would watch and just smile; then the Eagle would move on. There is always another rabbit in the foothills.

Miss Tillie and I kept riding and just enjoying ourselves, talking about life, talking about things that had happened in her classroom, and talking about all manner of stuff around the ranch. Then, out of the corner of my eye, I saw a little bit of smoke. I did not remember a cabin out in this area. Maybe we had better go over and take a look and see what that’s smoke is all about. So, Miss Tillie and I nudged our horses towards the smoke. It took us a while to get there. We were a fair distance away from the smoke.

As we got closer, I wondered what we were going to encounter. I reached down to my side and made sure I had my 45 unstrapped. I felt my back to be sure I had ammunition in my belt from the last time. I glanced at the side of my horse and saw my 30-30 Winchester; I unstrapped the rifle. Quietly, I checked Miss Tillie’s horse and saw that she also was carrying her 30-30. I did not say much, but I felt comfortable — we were fine and in a good position to defend ourselves if needed.

We drifted towards the smoke, looking, and wondering. As we got closer, I realized it was a campfire. And it was not any normal campfire, it was exceptionally large so that it could be easily seen in the daytime. I knew people did not do this sort of thing without reason. It is not wise to bring attention to yourself when you are out in the wild. So, we inched closer – I felt no immediate danger. However, at this point, I suggested to Miss Tillie we should both check and be sure that our 30-30’s were loaded. I was not expecting trouble, but just in case trouble was looking for us, I did not want us to be unprepared.

Finally, we got close to the fire and I could see there was a family there, but they were not moving. The man looked and waved his hand as if he wanted to get my attention.

So, we rode closer and I called out — your fire is exceptionally large. Do you need help??

The man said — Yes, we are extremely sick. All of us have something wrong. We do not know what it is. None of us can move far safely, so all I could do was gather wood, build a fire, and hope somebody saw the fire. God sent you to us. We are incredibly grateful that you came by. We need a doctor. We need help.

No one else in the family could even speak. Miss Tillie hopped off her horse and immediately checked the children. And she looked at me and I saw the look in her eyes. She knew these children were extremely ill. She said they have a temperature, their color is not right, and they have no energy whatsoever. This is serious, whatever it is.

So, I looked at the man and I said — we are going for help. We are going to leave water with you. We will leave our blankets. Do you have a weapon?

The man said – no I do not.

I Said — I will leave you my 30-30, do you know how to use it?

The man said – yes, I do.

I Said — OK. Do you have a lot of firewood??

The man said — I think so.

I looked at his wood pile and I said — Is that all you have?

The man said — No, there is more behind that tree.

I told him – I will move the firewood close to him so he could feed that fire into the evening. We might not get back before the sun goes down and need to keep that fire going so, we can find you. Plus, the fire will help to reduce problems with wolves.  We are going to get help. Our horses are swift. We have not been riding them hard. We can move. We promise to return.

Miss Tillie looked as the mom moved her hand ever so slightly. The Mom tried to smile and she mouthed the words thank you.

Miss Tillie said — maybe I need to stay with them.

I looked at her and said – No. You need to ride with me. If something happens when we are riding, one of us can still get through to the Doc.

Miss Tillie said — OK, I understand.

We turned our horses, planned the best route to travel, and off we went. We started pushing our horses to get to where we needed to be. I was sure we had about 30 miles, maybe 35 miles to cover immediately.

I knew it would not be very safe at night if that fire burned down. We started riding, hats pulled tight, focused on the destination. We watched where we were going. We made sure that the horses were taking the safest route possible, but the most direct route. It was as if we were racing. First, I was up front, then Miss Tillie was up front, then I was up front, but we were determined to get to where we needed to be. We were riding for somebody’s life.

Finally, we got to the town, we found the Doc just as he was locking up his office. We told him what we had seen, asked him if he could ride. He did not have a riding pony. I went and rented a pony for him and put him on the horse. I rented two more fresh ponies for me and Miss Tillie. We picked up medical supplies, warm blankets, food, everything we thought this family might need.

We headed back with the Doc as the sun dropped low, it was getting hard to find our way, but fortunately we had left some markers on the trail. We looked for our markers and we kept pushing ahead hoping that he kept that fire alive. Eventually, as the wind died down, we could smell the smoke. We knew that we were close, we kept riding, then, we could see them. We could see the fire, but it seemed so far away. We kept riding.

The Doc turned out to be a good rider, he kept up with us. Finally, we got back to their camp. The Doc looked them over and started pulling things out of his black bag to help them. He pulled out some medicine. He gave each of them a shot, and he settled down and he said — I think I will spend the night here with you guys. I will make sure they are OK before I leave.

So, I asked him — what is wrong with them?

Doc said — they have a strong fever and Pneumonia. But you found me in time and we can help them recover.

Miss Tillie and I started praying for them and we just stayed in prayer even as we helped keep them comfortable. A couple of days later, they started moving around a little bit. They started healing up. The doc had left medicine with us to give to them. We kept giving them the medicine. We just stayed with them. We made broth to help them get stronger.

Miss Tillie showed me a song that she had written while looking after the family. This is what it said —

I remember a time of deep trouble, on the bank of the Cheyenne Creek,

Found a family down with fever, so sick they could not speak.

We headed out for the Doctor; I knew you would not let me fail,

We swam the wild Cheyenne, we pushed hard on the ole trail.

We pushed across the prairie, racing the antelope in play,

The smell of rain in the air, thunder chasing us all the way,

Found the doctor in our town got him on a horse in time.

We rode back to the family, because of You, God, they were fine.

And gradually, bit by bit, this family came back alive. It was a remarkable thing to watch. Eventually we looked over the area and found their horses grazing a few miles upstream. This family was fortunate that God had kept the horses near. Eventually we got them back on their horses and got them on their way. We followed them for a long time till they were safe in the village with the doctor. And then we headed back to our house. We stayed in contact with that family for years. The oldest daughter became a schoolteacher.

Luke 10:30-37 — Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. The next day he took out two denariiand gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’  Jesus asked, “Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?”  The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.”

Please note: In 1956 a cowboy poet, Jim Jennings, published a short book about his experience working at ‘dude’ ranches in the west. My Great grandmother, Goldie Livingston, obtained a first edition copy of Jim’s self-published book in the fall of 1956. The poetry in this story is adapted from Jim’s book.

Hollywood and Two Friends

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In the early years of Hollywood’s cowboy life, he roamed the range and he worked on many, many ranches. He took a task from one ranch for a few weeks, then went to help someplace else for a month, and sometimes for an entire summer, but he was not very stable.

Gradually, Hollywood took a liking to ranches called Dude Ranches or Guest Ranches. People would come from the East Coast and spend all summer learning how to wrangle a cow. People came to the ranch to understand what it was like to be in the wild. Hollywood enjoyed teaching people the cowboy way, they would visit with him asking questions, and he would lead them around all through the day, showing them all about looking after cattle. Hollywood would tell stories and help them understand things. In some cases, he got to know them pretty well and they would become friends. But he was quick to say friendship did not always happen. Once, Hollywood made friends with two men: Buck and Jim. Buck started writing poetry and singing songs, and this was what Hollywood’s new friend sang —

Two friends spent the summer, on a ranch where I was a guide,

Mattered not what I was doing, they were working by my side.

We would ride the trails together, Dakota plains were the place,

Almighty God brought his mercy, hearts were changed by his grace.

These two guys, Buck, and Jim spent a lot of time on their horse with Hollywood. They would ride all over the foothills on the Wind River Ranch. After a while, they started asking him, why do you do the things you do? You are not like everybody else. Down here you have kindness and gentleness, but yet you have strength and the way you act and the way you speak and the way you handle yourself. How is it you are this way? Who taught you these things?

And Hollywood would just say –well, you know, I learned these things from my mother and from my dad.

A few days later Buck asked — why do you think the way you think? I mean, most people would not react the way you do to trouble. You do not seem to be flapped by much of anything.

Finally, Hollywood said. Well, the answer is simple. Are you sure you want to know?

Buck says – sure…

Hollywood replied — So tell me, do you know anything about Jesus?

Jim smiled, he kind of laughed, and he said — ohh yeah, I read about him once.

Buck mused — Who’s that?

Hollywood looked at him with amazement and said — you do not know who Jesus is at all? You have not ever been to church?

Buck said — Yes, I have. But I do not remember much. I was just a kid.

Hollywood replied — This is how we are going to do this. I am going to get my Bible tonight and I will bring it with me tomorrow, and I will show you a few things to help you understand who this Jesus is. You have questions. I will try and help you find some answers.

So, the next day, Hollywood showed up with his Bible. He just started reading stuff. He read aloud. He told them to listen to the message and to stop him when they had questions. So, he would read a piece of scripture and they would talk about it. And then he had read something else and they would talk about it. And sometimes they would make fun of the scripture and sometimes they listened. Very carefully.

But over the weeks their views started to change and they started to really understand what God was about. They started to understand what the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus was about. They started to understand what it was to Walk with God and how to make Jesus Lord of their life.

Then they both wanted to know what to do.

Buck said — We do not really, really want to become an old guy who carries a Bible around, talks a lot, and makes people want to run away. But we like this message – it resonates with us. We like what you are saying, both of us. We talk about it when you are not around and we think about the things that you say and we ask each other questions. Then we ask you questions, and you have answers.

But you are not pushy, Hollywood. You are not a raving, loud person with a frivolous message to share. You are gentle and kind, you know your job, you really know your message, you look after the cattle, you teach us well, and you make sure we are safe. And you do not let us get into too much trouble without providing a little bit of scolding to bring us back where we belong. You are so gentle, kind, and firm all at the same time. We want to understand more, tell us more about the principles that drive your life.

So, all through the rest of the summer, Hollywood explained the wisdom of God and finally, one by one, each of these men gave their life to Jesus. So, they came out west, not knowing much of anything about the wisdom of God, and they went back to the East Coast as Christians.

Hollywood followed up with Buck and Jim. He wrote letters and they wrote him back and told him about the things that were going on in their lives, how they were gradually growing, and bringing glory to God in the way that they were living. They were instructing their children and their friends about things that they learned about in the wild west on the Wind River range. So, one of them wrote this prose for Hollywood. Jim wrote —

From the top of the Rainbow Mesa, good news shared under the sage,

Break the hold on long shadows, over a hundred miles of range.

I loved every moment, we learned on eagle wings to ride,

Soon the winds of autumn came, and we had to say goodbye.

When Hollywood got a letter in the mail from Jim near thanksgiving, the letter had these 4 lines. He just sat down, smiled, and tears came to his eyes.

Miss Tillie said — what is the matter, Is there something wrong?

Hollywood said — no, no, these are tears of joy. Look at this! My friend sent me this poem. She looked at it and tears came to her eyes.

Miss Tillie said — you know, it was an incredibly good summer for you and for those two men, a very good summer indeed.

Romans 1:16-17 –For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile. For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed—a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.”

Please note: In 1956 a cowboy poet, Jim Jennings, published a short book about his experience working at ‘dude’ ranches in the west. My Great grandmother, Goldie Livingston, obtained a first edition copy of Jim’s self-published book in the fall of 1956. The poetry in this story is adapted from Jim’s book.

Hollywood and his old Boss

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As Hollywood got older and spent his Christmases with his wife, Miss Tillie, sometimes he would go through his old Christmas cards, remembering the memories from that time frame, recalling who sent the card, and where in Wyoming or South Dakota the card came from.

Hollywood had one specific Christmas card that really touched him because his old Boss had written a song and inserted it into the card. He did not exactly know how the song sounded, but he knew the poetry. From time to time, he would remember and apply sage advice from his old Boss.

His old boss, like Hollywood, also had Christmas cards, he did the same thing that Hollywood did. His boss would dig through those old cards and spend time thinking about the men that used to work for him. He would often reach out to those men with little notes of appreciation and of kindness, hoping that they were doing well.

And so, Hollywood would carefully place these cards on the mantle of the fireplace in his little cabin. Miss Tillie and Hollywood would go deep into the pine forests of the Wind River Range and locate the perfect Christmas Tree. They carefully pulled the tree home with her horse, set it into the cabin, and would stand up the tree to stretch out overnight. Then, the next day, they would decorate that tree with ribbons, cookies, and small candles. Miss Tillie was more than a little bit careful not to burn those candles on the tree. They burned their candles on the table because they never wanted to have a problem. But they loved the way the candles look on the tree.

Hollywood had a hand carved star that he had made many years ago that he carefully protected through the year. Early December, each year, that star would come out from a little hiding place in the cabin. During the second week of December, that star would be placed on top of that tree. It would sit there ever so beautifully until the 1st week of January. Then this family treasure would be carefully taken down, wrapped up and tucked away in its secret hiding place. Miss Tillie very much treasured that star.

In addition to the star, they created little mementos each year for the tree. Something fresh and something new to go on their tree to remind them of all the blessings that God had given during the year. Sometimes, when the year went well, they were able to get each other a small gift, but more often than not, they just made something for each other. It was never the size of the gift, rather it was the love and the care that went into building those gifts for each other that was important.  Anyone could walk down to the local store and buy something. The love between them created the memories.

They always had a nice meal; they obtained extra vegetables and spent a little extra time preparing those vegetables — they were just ever so tasty. Hollywood read the Christmas story to Miss Tillie and then they would sing Christmas carols. So then out came his favorite Christmas card on Christmas morning and he would read the poetry that came from his boss. He reads each year —

I was digging through my Christmas cards, from friends near and on the coast.

One card stood out from all the rest, the one I treasured most.

It was a small birch bark card, With a twig of Spruce inside.

Sent by the boss of the Box Elder ranch, where I once worked as a Guide.

The card told me about Grace, God’s mercy given to me.

The card talked about a child, born to hang on a tree.

The card told me about God’s love, eternal life for me.

The card talked about Jesus, born to hang on a tree.

The words are running through my mind, like a gentle sweet refrain.

May you climb back in the saddle when the grass grows green again.

May you climb into God’s arms, when the grass grows green again.

May you see his face smiling at you, when the grass grows green again.

And then when it got to be New Year’s Eve, Hollywood would remember his mother because she always liked to sweep out the old and bring the new in on that evening. And so, Hollywood would continue that tradition, he would think about his mother’s songs, remember all the things that she taught him, and he would think about the one true living God he serves now. Hollywood was very aware that he would have never known about the one true living God had it not been for his mother and Miss Tillie.

Finally, they always would thank God for all the children that Miss Tillie had taught in the classrooms over the years. Hollywood and Miss Tillie knew that they had had a good life; they had been helped by many people; and they had been able to help others. And with that, they went to bed, rose the next morning, and embraced the new year — it was a very, very good year.

Isaiah 7:14. Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel…

Isaiah 9:6-7 For unto us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the greatness of his government and peace, there will be no end.  He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this.

Please note: In 1956 a cowboy poet, Jim Jennings, published a short book about his experience working at ‘dude’ ranches in the west. My Great grandmother, Goldie Livingston, obtained a first edition copy of Jim’s self-published book in the fall of 1956. The poetry in this story is adapted from Jim’s book.

Hollywood and the Midnight Ride

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After Hollywood settled down in life, he found a job working at the Q-Bar Ranch on the far west side of the Black Hills. He did not know how much he was going to love this job until after three or four years of work. He found it to be the perfect balance of solitude, time out on the range, chasing down the cattle that were in trouble, protecting them from the wolves and the bears and all the other critters that chased the cattle. He also loved the time spent with the men who worked on the ranch, working as small teams and sometimes in the evenings as they would sit and talk to each other, solving all the problems of the world.

But gradually, his most favorite time of all was the evening watch. Late at night, he’d go out on the range and he spent his turn on Guard. He was working and looking after the cattle to be sure that they were safe through the evening. It was the same type of job as a shepherd. He had read about this type of work in the Bible. Over the years he developed an affinity for scripture, he loved to read and study the passages his mother had introduced him to.

Yet tonight, there he was, riding his horse, watching the stars move, watching the shooting stars light up the sky, seeing the horizon change as the moon shifted across the heights. They could see the ridge outline and the mountains. They could see the cabin lights at the ranch. They could see the tree outline. And then he could hear his friends, who were a long way away, but they would be singing. They could hear each other sing. They sang beautiful harmonies. Slowly. He learned what they were singing. And then, when it was his turn, he would start a song for the others to sing. He would share the songs he learned from his mother. He often sang —

Moonlight on the prairie, cowboys are singing low.

Cattle are all sleeping, riders look to and fro.

Protecting the herd from trouble, cattle decide to trust us.

They come and touch my hand, never want to make a fuss.

These are simple songs. But they told the story of what a cowboy did and what a Cowboys life was like. The men that worked the range loved what they did for a living. Hollywood loved looking after the cattle. They all knew that these cattle ultimately would wind up on a dinner table someplace. So, while the cattle were in their care, they looked after them and gave them the best life possible. Make no mistake, the cattle are rough and tough. And yes, the cattle made a lot of noise and often resisted our efforts to look after them. Yet, the moments of tenderness we would experience with the members of the herd spoke volumes of the character and resolve the herd felt.

But in the end, everybody understood their role and the cattle really grew to appreciate these men as they raised them up over the years. Eventually the day came when we had to bring these herds into the gathering points. We gently loaded the cattle onto the train. These cows would go on a long journey.

But we know, we all seem to understand, and we even think sometimes the cattle understood how important their role was — people’s lives depended upon having something good to eat. The cattle lived a good life on the range but then gave themselves for others to live. And so, life progressed — it was not easy. It was not a life that was made for everybody. Our life was protecting and herding cattle. We spent time roping and gathering the cows during the daytime. We rode out into the rain, snow, hail, lightning, and heat to find and help the cattle. Sometimes we would see trouble on the horizon, when you are the only cowboy for 50 miles around, you are it. The cattle were our responsibility.

Yeah, you had those songs to sing, and at night when you could hear the silence, it was so, so quiet and so beautiful. But we had God on our side to keep us safe. We stayed the course, doing what needed to be done. And then came the songs and the poetic lyrics about real life, his life. And he was saying things like —

Soon it will be morning, west wind is turning gray.

Cattle will soon awaken, At the break of day.

Up the trail we travel, each step defines the fun.

We count heads carefully, Never want to lose one.

For hours he would spend time on his horse, moving to and fro, checking on the herd, talking to them quietly, keeping the peace, keeping them calm. They would gather in small bunches, and the young would circle around, nudging his horse.

He would wait quietly for the night to pass because the cattle knew he was there to protect them; they knew that they were safe. So, they just rested.

Sometimes things did not go so well. Sometimes a coyote or a wolf would move in looking for an evening meal and you would have to isolate those cattle and get between the cattle and the threat – Hollywood would stand his ground. The cattle knew their guard was going to take care of business. So, Hollywood would stand there and he would talk quite loudly and let that predator know he needed to move on, he was in the wrong place. Gradually Hollywood would coax the enemy away, and then the cattle would once again be relieved. They would be at peace and they would settle down once again, and he would return to his singing. Hollywood’s eye was always watching to be sure that the threat stayed far away and did not come close to his precious cattle.

Hollywood enjoyed the evening with his horse and his wonderful songs. He would look up at the stars, and he would describe the stars in song to the cattle. He would describe the way the moon looked, singing how the moonlight wrapped around his shoulders and lit up their eyes. He would sing what it was like to see the sunrise just starting to emerge. He would sing songs about how the warmth from the sun gradually emerged and filled up your face with pleasure. And then those songs would talk about the morning breakfast, what it was like to get a bite to eat during the day, and how welcome the rest was when your night’s work was done.

The songs were the threads that connected his life to God and to his work. As he got older, his songs became more important, he started writing them down so he would not forget. His voice lingers, even to this day, on the Wind River Range.

Exodus 14:13-14 — Do not be afraid, stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today … the Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.

Exodus 15:2-3 – The Lord is my strength and my defense; he has become my salvation. He is my God, and I will praise him, my father’s God, and I will exalt him.  The Lord is a warrior; the Lord is his name.

Please note: In 1956 a cowboy poet, Jim Jennings, published a short book about his experience working at ‘dude’ ranches in the west. My Great grandmother, Goldie Livingston, obtained a first edition copy of Jim’s self-published book in the fall of 1956.  The poetry in this story is adapted froSm Jim’s book.