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Disabled rodeo-riding pastor overcomes obstacles
Posted: 2/16/07
Twenty years ago, doctors told Randy Bird he never would ride, rope or walk again. He not only rides and ropes; Bird also is pastor of Higher Trails Cowboy Church in Merit, northwest of Greenville. (Photos courtesy of Randy Bird) Disabled rodeo-riding pastor overcomes obstacles
By Toby Druin
Editor Emeritus
MERIT—Twenty years ago, in the midst of an almost yearlong stay in a Dallas hospital where medical specialists were putting him back together, doctors told Randy Bird he never would ride, rope or walk again.
They underestimated him. He not only rides and ropes; Bird also is pastor of Higher Trails Cowboy Church in Merit, northwest of Greenville. He hasn’t given up on walking again, either, and people who know him and his determination aren’t betting against him.
Randy Bird developed a therapy saddle that enabled him to ride and rope, even after a wreck 20 years ago left him unable to walk. 02/19/2007 - By John Rutledge
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Baptisms, mission dollars follow cowboy church growth
Posted: 2/16/07
The top team at the Pastors’ Ranch Rodeo at the Cowboy Gathering at Cowboy Church of Ellis County in November included (left to right) Larry Mitchell, pastor of Rim Rock Cowboy Church in Quitman; Jim Strickland, the Texas Fellowship of Cowboy Churches’ new representative in Lubbock; Mike Moss, pastor of Bull Creek Cowboy Church in Lone Oak; and Greg Horn of Fairlie, immediate past president of the Texas Fellowship of Cowboy Churches and East Texas representative for the fellowship. Moss also was chosen “top hand” at the rodeo. (Photo by Toby Druin) Baptisms, mission dollars
follow cowboy church growth
By Toby Druin
Editor Emeritus
WAXAHACHIE—If it meets its goal, the Texas Fellowship of Cowboy Churches will have 250 churches by the end of 2010—congregations that are expected to baptize 7,500 new converts annually, attract 50,000 in worship attendance on an average Sunday and donate more than $1 million to missions each year through the Cooperative Program of the Baptist General Convention of Texas.
The goal is an ambitious one, said Ron Nolen, who retired from his job as western-heritage ministries director for the BGCT last fall to become full-time coordinator of the Texas Fellowship of Cowboy Churches.
02/19/2007 - By John Rutledge
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Cowboy churches spread, thanks to laid-back approach
Posted: 2/16/07
Trading a traditional baptismal for a horse trough, a new follower of Christ is baptized at a cowboy church. Cowboy churches spread,
thanks to laid-back approach
By Barbara Bedrick
Texas Baptist Communications
STEPHENVILLE—On a chilly morning in Central Texas, a man in ostrich-skin cowboy boots stood shivering in a water-filled horse trough. Charles Higgs quickly dunked him. Higgs, the pastor of Cowboy Church of Erath County, also baptized the man’s wife and two children that same day.
The family-style baptism is just a sign of the times, Higgs said. He was a pastor at traditional churches 28 years but now says he has a passion for people interested in cowboy culture.
In six years, 7,000 people have been baptized at Texas cowboy churches. 02/19/2007 - By John Rutledge
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Leader roped into service
Posted: 2/16/07
Leader roped into service
By Toby Druin
Editor Emeritus
WAXAHACHIE—Ron Nolen got “roped” into the cowboy church business.
Nolen, coordinator of the Texas Fellowship of Cowboy Churches, was working many hours as a church starter for the Baptist General Convention of Texas in 1999, when his son, Matt, a roper, gave him a lariat to try as a means of relaxation.
Ron Nolen 02/19/2007 - By John Rutledge
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Cowboy church-planting school slated
Posted: 2/16/07
Cowboy church-planting school slated
The first advanced-track Texas Fellowship of Cowboy Churches church-planting school will be Feb. 24-25 in Bandera.
See Related Articles:
• Cowboy Churches: Roundin' Up Strays
• Disabled rodeo-riding pastor overcomes obstacles
• Baptisms, mission dollars follow cowboy church growth
• Cowboy churches spread, thanks to laid-back approach
• Leader roped into service
• Cowboy church-planting school slatedThe two-day symposium, designed for new and experienced pastors and lay leaders who want to begin a western-heritage ministry, will include team training workshops on pastor, elder and children’s ministries, plus western-style discipleship. Other sessions will focus on Christian leadership skills, communications and conflict resolution.
Presenters at the conference will include BGCT Executive Director Charles Wade; Paul Powell, dean of Baylor University’s Truett Seminary; and Joel Gregory, Truett preaching professor.
Following the Saturday sessions, participants will gather for a barbecue dinner, a concert by the Rawhide Fellowship Cowboy Band and an appearance by western movie stuntman Rudy Robbins. For more details or reservations, call (888) 611-2651.
02/19/2007 - By John Rutledge
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Cowboy Churches: Roundin’ Up Strays
Posted: 2/16/07
Cowboy Churches: Roundin' Up Strays
By Barbara Bedrick
Texas Baptist Communications
GEORGE WEST—Wearing a dust-covered cowboy hat and a pair of boots, Pat Traxler immediately made a connection with needy people in Africa even before he gave them food and water.
Monty Hill, men’s ministry leader at Rafter J Cowboy Church in Terrell, welcomes worshippers who relate to the congregation’s laid-back worship style and affinity with the western heritage. (BGCT photos by Barbara Bedrick) “It was amazing what that old Stetson could do,” said Traxler, pastor of Brush Country Cowboy Church in George West. “They were fascinated. The image struck a chord. Although the people didn’t speak English, they knew enough to call me ‘cowboy.’”
02/19/2007 - By John Rutledge
