In every sport there are times when you are on a winning streak. Other times losing is all you can can do. Frustration with losing is evident at every roping. Someone has to lose, we all know that, but it is sure more fun to win. Most team ropers have lost enough times, if they have roped very long, to be able to handle it calmly. Every now and then we will see someone who lets it get to them.
A few weeks ago I received the bad news that a buddy of mine had passed away. He was one of a set of twins that I had gone to high school with. All three of us had played baseball together through high school and college. We worked on ranches together and at one point shared a lease and ran some cows on a small ranch in the Willamatte Valley. After college I moved to Caifornia and he went to Eastern Oregon and then on to Montana where he stayed in the ranching business. We were the same age and of good health, I assumed. What I didn’t know was that he had a drinking problem that had taken over his life. He was just a fun, partying kind of guy when we were younger, but it got him. I went to Montana to bury him two weeks ago. His passing was a great shock to me and that loss hit me hard.
I don’t think we are ever prepared for the loss of a loved one or friend. In the past year or so, there have been several in the roping world that have passed away unexpectedly and many of us have been left wondering how to cope with it. We can have hope! The Bible says “To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.” When we are spiritually reborn we know we have hope of eternal life in heaven and will live with Him forever. We were designed by Him to live forever in a glorious state with no more pain, sorrow, or dying. When Jesus left this world He said “I’m going to prepare a place for you so that where I am you will be also.” Not only will we live with Him but we will see all our loved ones who have gone on before us. What a blessed hope!
It is with great confidence that I encourage you today, to trust in the Lord, and cry out to Him. Lean on Him for your comfort and strength. He will help you through the real tough losses in life and help you to go on. Losing at a roping is just part of TRYING to win. The greater reward, is to give your life to the Lord and know for sure that you WILL win. For eternity. Be confident, rope great and win!
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