1. Word from the Pastor (pg.2) 4. Heritage Days Pictures (pgs. 5– 10)

2. Church Calendar (pg. 3) 5. Summer Intern (pg. 11)

3. Arena Update (pg. 4) 6. The Parent Link (pgs. 17-20)

June 2012 Issue 36

Home Sermons Calendar Children Youth CAMO Roping

Father’s Day Prayer

God our Father, in your wisdom and love you made all

things.

Bless these men, that they may be strengthened as

Christian fathers.

Let the example of their faith and love shine forth.

Grant that we, their sons and daughters, may honor

them always with a spirit of profound respect.

Grant this through Christ our Lord.

Amen

IN THIS ISSUE

Page 2 Word From The Pastor

As they were going out, they found a man from Cyrene named Simon, whom they forced to

carry his cross.

–––Matthew 27:32 NET

As a general rule humans do not enjoy forced service. I personally know several men

who were forced into serving their country during 1969 and 1970 for the Vietnam War. This

forced service forever changed each of their lives. Some made life long friends and to this

day carry many good and beneficial memories of their time in the military. Others held in

their arms the friends they had made while they suffered and died on the battlefield, and the

memories that remain haunt them to this very day. Regardless of the experience, none of these

men I know appreciate the way they were forced to serve. We should however be thankful

that they did along with all of their other comrades who have faithfully served the United

States of America throughout history. Take time to thank a service member today!

In reading the passage above I pondered how I might have felt if forced into service

like Simon was. Granted it was the Roman soldiers not God who forced him to serve, but

there are no accidents or coincidences in God's Kingdom. God knew that Jesus would be un-

able to carry His cross after the terrible beating He endured and therefore positioned a for-

eigner in the perfect position to be thrust into forced service to help the Son of God. So what

can we learn from this man? First, we learn that we must always be prepared to serve. As be-

lievers we are not promised time to prepare or plan out our service. At times God will simply

have us in the right place at the right time and through some circumstance of events we will

find ourselves, like Simon, quiet unexpectedly serving. Second, we learn that this service will

likely require sacrifice, and some amount of suffering to our own lives. Carrying the cross

was a hard, grueling exercise demanding all of Simon's strength. By the end of the journey he

would have been bruised, scraped, and raw portions of his own personal flesh would have

ached with pain. Finally, it has been my experience that these moments of forced unexpected

service always result in the greatest and most unexpected blessings. Simon is the only man in

the history of the world to have carried the cross for Christ. Today any believer would jump

at the chance to be able to serve our Lord in such an amazing and practical way. As I reflect

on the times I have been forced into God's service I can't help but see a pattern of extreme

blessing, and fulfillment after completing the task.

So next time you feel the unction of the Holy Spirit calling you from the crowd into

the street to serve boldly step forward, pick up the cross and carry it to its destination. God

knows what He is doing, your name was called for a reason, and long after the pain is gone

the blessings from the experience will remain for eternity.

Pastor Pete

*The following are reoccur-

ring events that take place

each week/month at the same

time unless otherwise de-

noted:

Church Services - Sunday: @

10:45 AM

Discipleship Classes –Will

resume in September.

Children’s Play Group Every

Tuesday from 10am - 11:30am.

CFY R.E.A.L.M. - Every

Wednesday @ 7:00 pm unless

otherwise noted.

Pre-Teen Ministry—Every

Wednesday @ 6:30pm—Bldg

D

Living Hope - Every Thursday

@ 7 PM Call Paul @

830-570-4301 for more info.

Men’s Fellowship Breakfast

Every 3rd Saturday

@ Stage Stop - 8:00 AM

Share The Harvest—Every

Wednesday @ 5:00pm

Please Go To Our Website For

Times And More Information!

www.cowboyfellowship.org

June Schedule

Of Events

SUN MON TUE WED THU FRI SAT

1 2

3

10:45 a-12 Sun Morning Wor-ship Serv.

10:45 Baptisms

12 Potluck

12:30 Growth Spurt

4

5

10a-11:30a Play group

6

6:30p-8p 5th & 6th Grade Youth

7

6:30p-9p CF band prac-tice

7p-8p Living Hope

8 9

10

10:45a-12 Sun. Morning Wor-ship Serv.—Amanda Car-penter Town Hall Mtg.

Leadership Mtg.

5:00 p

Saddle Up

11

12

10a-11:30a Play Group

13

6:30p-8p 5th & 6th Grade Youth

14

6:30p-9p CF band prac-tice

7p-8p Living Hope

15

16

8a-9a Men’s Fel-lowship Breakfast

17

Father’s Day

10:45a-12 Sun Morning Wor-ship

18

19

10a-11:30a Play Group

20

6:30p-8p 5th & 6th Grade Youth

21

6:30p-9p CF band prac-tice

7p-8p Living Hope

22

23

24

10:45a-12 Sun Morning Wor-ship

12-1 Lay Pastor Mtg.

25

26

10a-11:30a Play Group

27

6:30p-8p 5th & 6th Grade Youth

28

10:30a-12 Helping Hands

29 30

Psalm 91:2

I will say of the Lord” He is my refuge and my fortress, my God in whom I trust.”

Page 3

Page 4

Work continued in May on the Cowboy Fellowship covered facility in anticipation of

our Heritage Celebration May 11th and 12th. Thanks to so many workers putting in

many long hours the work was completed in time for the festivities. We are now be-

gin Phase ll of the Covered Facility This will consist of having permanent bleachers

built. Below are drawings of the new bleachers.

www.cowboyfellowship.org. We are grateful for those who continue to faithfully

support this project with your financial gifts. In the month of May you gave

$ 20,577.00 toward the second phase of this project. Donate Here

Covered Facility Update

Heritage Days Exhibits

These pictures represent a sample of the fun activities that were enjoyed by the attendees of the Cowboy Fellowship Heritage Days.

( more pictures on the following pages)

Page 5

Pictured are some of the participants and

winners of the Youth Rodeo

These young cowboys and cowgirls did an outstanding job.

Page 6

Ranch Rodeo and

Team Roping

Page 7

The Pie Contest THE JUDGES THE GRAND PRIZE WINNER

THE PIES

When do we eat?

The Grand Prize winner of the Pie Contest was Myrtle LaGrange.

Congratulations Myrtle !!!

Page 8

Page 9

Heritage Days Events Guests and Participants enjoying the festivities

The winning teams in the #13 slide were :

1st place- Joel Rocha and Devin Hayes

2nd place- Dustin Wright and Devin Hayes

#13 Slide Average winners were:

1st - Corey Blaschke Randy Silguero

2nd- Deno Hayes Sergio Gonzales

3rd- Little Joe Arizmendi Corey Bader

4th- Deno Hayes Joel Huerta

The #10 Round winners were:

1st- Randall Gaydos and Bubba Jahns

2nd-Clint Tieken and Ricky Gonzales

The #10 Average winners were:

1st- AJ Lopez Dustin Powell

2nd- Jimmy Baker Rene Guerra

3rd- Slade Malone Butch Bode

4th- AJ Lopez Dustin Powell

Pictured are the High

Point Ropers from the

#10

AJ Lopez &

Dustin Powell

Pictured are the Buckle Winners from the #10

From left to right:

1. Clint Tieken 5. Dustin Powell

2. Rene Guerra 6. Ricky Gonzales

3. AJ Lopez 7. Deno Hayes

Bob Berg Buckles were given to first in average in #13 slide and to 1st-5th in average in the #10. Justin

Boots were awarded to the fast time in the first round. High point header and heeler in #13 were

awarded $500 each. Fully tooled custom saddles will be given to high point header and heeler in the #10.

Heritage Days Team Roping Results

Over 400 teams competed for buckles, boots, jeans, saddles, and $1000 added money during the Heritage Days

Team Roping on May 12. Team roping is an annual event to celebrate the anniversary of Cowboy Fellowship.

this year's event was held in the new covered facility on the grounds of the church. Producer Cass Ringelstein

and his crew did an outstanding job. The roping teams competed all evening and into the wee hours of the

morning before the winners were decided.

Page 10

Page 11

Welcome Andrew Higdon. Andrew will be serving as our summer

inter . We are blessed to have such a fine young man with us serv-

ing the Lord.

Andrew is from Detroit, Texas and is attending Pensacola Chris-

tian College in Pensacola, Florida. He is working on a degree in Bib-

lical Studies. He enjoys

playing guitar, reading,

flying kites, and playing

with his yo-yo. He is very

excited about what God

has in store for him as

he comes to serve along

side Tanner and Adam

this summer at Cowboy

Fellowship

One of Andrew’s favorite

verses is:

Ephesians 6:20, for which I

am an ambassador in

chains. Pray that I may de-

clare it (the gospel) fear-

lessly, as I should.

SHARE THE HARVEST

The SHARING THE HARVEST Spring garden has started

producing some great looking vegetables. The first distribution

of vegetables was on May 16th. Zucchini, yellow squash, and

cucumbers were distributed. On May 23rd there was yellow

squash, zucchini, potatoes, cucumbers, and tomatoes. There was

a good turnout on both days. The Share The Harvest distribu-

tion day is Wednesday at 5:00 p.m. in the Sanctuary.

We would LOVE nothing more than to have you join our team

and help us further God’s kingdom through the sharing of our

harvest!!!

If you are interested in joining our ministry please contact: Kelli

Hindes (830)570-2388 or Cuatro Hindes (830)570-0248

Page 12

Month of May

On May 10th and 11th the Helping Hands Ministry met at Cowboy

Fellowship to put the finishing touches to the brochures for the

Heritage Days Celebration. They stapled meal tickets and

information cards into the brochures. (Sorry no pictures this time.)

They took time off for lunch and then back to work.

On May 24 our wonderful Helping Hands showed up again to put

together the packets for the Children’s Ministry.

Page 13

Volunteer teachers that I work with

The kids at school got to partici-pate as well and try to guess how

big my belly was!

Being on the mission field is difficult at times, especially during times like this. I never imag-ined I'd be having my 1st child in a foreign country! But I have to say that the love and re-sponse we have received from the people here and the people back home, has made it such an enjoyable and amazing experience. In the States, I wonder if I would have taken this for granted. Waiting on the Lord, and seeing Him provide has strengthened our faith. From baby beds to baby bouncers, from bibs to burping cloths, we just could not be more blessed. We thank the Lord for His continuous provision and how He lavishly gives His children good gifts. And thank you for being so incredibly wonderful. Thank you for your prayers and your random acts of generosity. You have truly made this couple feel loved and special. Thank you!

I can not begin to express the gratitude to family, friends, churches, bible studies, friends of family who have shown us God's love by providing for our little girl. It has been so fun to be a part of and so amazing to see how God uses His people to love on us. The Lord has provided everything we need and more. We could not be more grateful, our hearts are truly overflowing with gratitude!

I remember having some of the same fears when we found out we were going to have a baby nearly 9 months ago. Would our support cover this new life being given to us? Would we be able to provide for her? I was re-minded that God is control of all things. And if He provided for Larry and me, beyond what we could have imagined, wouldn't He also provide for our baby girl? The answer is YES!

Page 14

Showers of Blessing

Shower from ladies at HCJB

And the Lord said, "Test me in this and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it." Malachi 3:10

These words will always be etched on my heart. We began the journey 3 years ago. Larry quit his job at the end of May 2009 and we raised support so that we could come and minister to the people of Ecuador. We were nervous and scared at first about the whole thing. To ask others to support us was frightening... at first. Then we realized that God was going before us and preparing the hearts of friends and family. It was such a blessing. He gave me the verse above to encourage me during those months of uncertainty. It wasn't until later that we understood and experienced the truth behind it.

Ladies from the church that Larry and I attend

Shower given by family/friends in

My 1st "Double Baby Shower" with

Williams in the Wilderness

Imagine if you were there when Jesus died, one of His followers. You have been with Him three years, watched Him heal the sick, befriend the

poor, open His arms to the rejected children, and preach the good news that the kingdom of heaven is at hand. He has told the world that they have

a heavenly Father that loves them and is calling out to them. Their heavenly Father cares about them, their needs, their struggles, their suffering,

and He desperately wants to replace all of the pain with Himself. He tells them for the first time that they can talk to Him, hear from Him, and have a

full-fledged relationship with Him. Then Jesus dies, and you cry, wondering what will come of all this. He sends His Holy Spirit whom He said would

actually be better than having Him there. You get it now! You have to show the world that they can have God live with them, love them, and relate to

them! So what is your next step?

Do you begin by renting yourself a local office in town and then maybe gathering a few of the other followers to strategize with you? Maybe you

convince them that if they will give you a certain amount of money you can spend your whole day telling people the truth. You talk about how you

are going to get into the streets, the alleys, and the walking paths, into people's homes and their places of work in order to make God known. Fi-

nally, you and the followers decide to build a building and see if you can get all of these new people you meet to come to your place instead. Some-

one asks the question, “Why are they going to come to our place?” You explain that you will just give them a few catch lines concerning what the

meeting is about, and they will be hooked. It seems simple enough. A few people are not sure this will work, but they decide to watch and see.

Is that really how you want to begin? I mean, Jesus was on the road, walking from town to town. He was sharing in houses, on mountain sides,

and in the streets. Why didn't He just call everyone to the local synagogue where they could form neat rows? What if it rained while He was on the

mountain? Then what would they do?

Jesus sat in the homes of the unchurched, the unclean, and the sinful and taught them, places the pastors of the day wouldn't even venture.

Eventually you decide that you should do it like Jesus. You think about the lady who was unclean, bleeding for twelve years. She wouldn't have

been able to come into your building. You think about the man they called Legion that had so many demons. Jesus healed him and changed his life.

You don't think he would have come to your office. You probably would have made the roof to your building up to code so that the four friends

couldn't have dug a hole through it. No lowering of paralytics into your building, only a good, strong roof. The more you think about it the more you

realize that all of the experiences you had with Jesus just wouldn't have happened in your building.

We discovered a few years ago that “church” has to happen where the people are. Jesus' way might not have been the most efficient or the easi-

est way, in fact it was often messy and uncomfortable, but man, listen to His stories! Don't you want stories like that? We do, and we are here in

Karamoja, Uganda, trying to live out those stories. How do we plant churches? We make friends in a village and ask them if they would like to sit

under the tree with us and talk about God and His kingdom. Sometimes once a week, in other places multiple times a week we sit, read the Bible,

and talk about what it says. When someone wants to follow God we have a church. I don't say “church” because we start doing it more formally, but

because there are now two of us, two children of God gathering together. Sometimes we sing, but sometimes we don't. Usually we read, but some-

times we don't. We almost always pray for one another because we have yet to find a day when someone doesn't need it. We do this under trees, in

homes, and wherever works. The Spirit of God is moving, and people are gathering to hear the word, deciding that it is what they want for their

lives.

The other day a man's son went missing. A search could not produce any results, so we prayed. The next day the son came back! He was lost

and then found, and our friend's faith increased. A woman came into our home almost dead. We cared for her as well as we could, but she died

anyway. Despite her death her village was able to see God's love, and another church was birthed. We have made loads of mistakes like asking the

wrong man to lead. I didn't know he was an alcoholic and thief, and we start over and try again. Oops! No big deal. I think God is being glorified, and

lives are being touched so I am excited.

I find that people get excited when we tell these stories, and they encourage us to keep on. My question is, why don't we do this at home? Why is

this great for missionaries in foreign countries but not for America? What keeps us from inviting coworkers to Starbucks or into our homes for a meal

and talking about God and His kingdom? Why does church need to be more complicated than that?

Let's dream together. Imagine our “churches”, as we will call these gatherings. Imagine a place where someone has a need, and the group uses

their tithe to pay that person's rent for the month. Their money is not being used to pay off buildings, pay utility bills, pay pastors' salaries, put in new

carpet, run their programs, or buy new choir robes. Imagine a place where everyone's prayer requests and needs are made known...a place where

everyone can use their gifts of music, hospitality, teaching, service, etc...a place where when someone's husband or wife dies, the whole group

mourns together...a place where everyone gets a chance to share the truths God is teaching them. In this place you can worship God together with

your children. They don't have to be completely quiet because we believe that God speaks through our kids. Imagine a church where a homeless

person comes to Christ, and the group loves on that person until they are back on their feet. I like the early church as described here:

They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. And awe came upon every soul

and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. And all who believed were together and had all things in common. And they

were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. And day by day, attending the temple together

and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having the favor with all the people.

And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.” Acts 2:42-47

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Cowboy Fellowship

P.O. Box 68

Pleasanton, TX 78064

Our Links

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