March 10, 2003
Cowboy church does Fairlie well, baptizing 40 so far
___By George Henson
___Staff Writer
___FAIRLIE--Pastor Shannon Moreland's eyes gleamed as he stood beside a portable baptistry in his boots, blue jeans, white shirt and blue bandanna,.
___He looked out at 230 people sitting elbow-to-elbow on folding chairs and a half-dozen pews in a cotton gin turned to a church. Children sat in parents' laps. Some adults stood along the walls.
___This was not a standing-room-only crowd; there wasn't any more room to stand.
___Nor was this overflow crowd attending a Sunday morning worshi
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| PASTOR Shannon Moreland (right) and Lay Pastor Greg Horn stand in a tank of water ready to begin a baptismal service for 14 converts reached through the ministry of Cross Trails Bapist Church in Fairlie. Both Moreland and Horn were laymen in First Baptist Church of Commerce when they were inspired to reach out to fellow cowboys. |
p service. This was a Sunday night service, something Cross Trails Baptist Church normally doesn't have.
___The occasio
n was a baptism service for 14 people who recently gave their lives to Christ. They follow in the line of about 40 who have been baptized in the eight months since the church had its first service May 5, 2002.
___The building wasn't overflowing just because of the water flowing in the baptismal pool, however, the pastor said. "Anytime we have a service, it's a packed house."
___The humble cowboy-turned-pastor wasn't bragging. He quickly tells all who will listen that God is the one leading people to this building on a country road a few miles outside a tiny community whose only non-residential building is a cotton gin.
___"It's just such a blessing, and I'm still in awe of what God is doing," Moreland said. "Not very much time goes by in a day before I find myself thinking again of how God's hand is moving here."
___Teens William and Chelsea Mosley were two of the 14 baptized that night. Their mother, Lisa, committed her life to Christ the week before. Eyeing the teens' baptism from the fifth row were Kate and Jack Routt, 81 and 85 respectively, who were baptized at Cross Trails in December.
___"Jack had known the Lord for a long time but had never been baptized," Moreland explained. "Kate had been baptized as a girl, but she rededicated her life and said, 'If Jack's getting baptized, I'm getting baptized with him.'"
___Cross Trails is one of several Western-heritage churches springing up across the state with backing from the Baptist General Convention of Texas. The church also is backed by First Baptist Church of Commerce and Hunt Baptist Association.
___This is not a traditional Texas Baptist church. The parking lot includes two dozen horses members rode to church. Old gospel favorites like "I've Got A Mansion" and "I'll Fly Away" are sung to the strumming of guitars.
___Across the state, Western-heritage churches are experiencing remarkable growth. An Ellis County church reaching out to cowboys recently drew 800 for Sunday morning worship.
___While the Fairlie church is bursting at the seams, the congregation's next project is not a building, but an outdoor arena to lure some of the more reluctant cowboys in the area.
___Moreland's dream is for Cross Trails to spin off other Western-heritage churches throughout the county and for his church to stabilize at about 250 people.
___However, the need for churches that appeal to people with an affinity for Western culture is not unique to Hunt County, he said. "Cross Trails Church in great, but the picture is much bigger than this. This culture is much, much bigger than this, and it's our job to be non-judgmental and accepting of other people because we've all fallen short."
___Greg Horn, the church's lay pastor, described how Moreland and he had been driving down a rural road with a load of cattle feed, and Moreland first broached the idea that led to Cross Trails.
___"He said, 'I think we might need to hold a service for boys who might not go to a church,'" Horn recalled.
___The two men, both laymen in First Baptist Church of Commerce, talked to a few friends and met that Wednesday night in a barn.
___"It wasn't anything special," Moreland recalled. "I just gave my testimony. But the next Wednesday night, we had even more, and I gave my testimony again."
___That went on several months until about 25 cowboys were attending.
___Then Moreland and Horn met with Ron Nolen, a church-starting strategist with the BGCT. "He said, 'You boys need to start a church,'" Horn recounted. "I thought he was crazy."
___But the two laymen took his advice, and the church is flourishing. "I'm just thankful to be here to witness it, and this is nothing to what God is going to do," Horn said.
___Nolen continued that theme when he spoke to the overflow crowd gathered for the baptisms.
___"I want you to know that none of us are anything, but God is everything," he said. "God doesn't have any problem using nobodys, but he does sometimes have a hard time using somebodys."
___Whether nobody or somebody, residents of the Fairlie area are flocking to Cross Trails to learn about God and to worship in a western atmosphere.
___"Many people find excuses to not come to church, but it's not that way at Cross Trails," Moreland said. "The people here can't wait to come, and if they have to miss because a child is sick or they're sick, they want you to videotape it for them so they don't miss any of the excitement."
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