Have Lord - Will Travel: Gore, OK

There are times when the Lord either causes situations to happen or places you in the path of others for the purpose of learning. We spend most of our lives learning, even when we think we know it all or can learn it by ourselves. It is interesting to see how the Lord orchestrates natural forces and our lives to prove His presence, His love, and His control – all to teach us a lesson in life.

The project at the United Methodist Boy’s Ranch outside of Gore, Oklahoma, provided the setting for valuable lessons. The Lord presented me with challenges that tested my humility, patience, futility, and patience. At the outset, I was excited to be working on a ranch and helping to better the lives of boys who lived there. It did not matter to me their stories, whether involving neglect or errant behavior or any reason. I was anxious to serve the Lord by being a mechanism of change or being a model to the young men. I realize every NOMADS project is different, much like the uniqueness of the many missions where I had previously served. This experience tested my tolerance, fortitude, and endurance. I sustained myself on faith that my Lord had led me there for a purpose. I just did not know what that purpose was.

The NOMADS projects scheduled during the fall were open on a first-come, first-served basis. I heard that the Boy’s Ranch was a nice project and it was highly recommended among all NOMADS projects. Since I tend to gravitate toward projects that involve outdoor work and a farm setting, I was anxious to sign up. After sending my application for that project to the NOMADS project administrator, I learned that I filled the last available allotted slot on the team. Hurray!

Soon after signing up, I learned that my daughter was in a healing facility in Florida. The facility staff asked me to participate in a Family Week scheduled during my first week at the Ranch. It was not a matter of priorities for me; I simply needed to arrange travel to Florida and excuse myself from the first week of the project. The Lord was already ahead of me on my arrangements. Prior to the Boy’s Ranch project, I attended the NOMADS Annual Meeting in Iowa and helped with parking. The team leader for the Ranch project was attending the Meeting also. Further, he was helping with parking too. We were able to meet and discuss my situation before the project began in Oklahoma, immediately following our week in Iowa. He readily agreed that I should be with my daughter. For me, the project could wait.

At the end of the Annual Meeting, I delivered my trailer to the Boy’s Ranch and left it there. Early the next morning I was flying out of Tulsa on my way to Florida. I spent a wonderful week with my daughter, which was a fantastic blessing in itself. The week passed quickly and again I was flying across country toward Oklahoma.

The project at the Ranch began on Saturday evening, October 1, 2001. Within minutes of arriving, a woman told me that everyone was attending a pie auction at a local church. She invited me to go and ride with her and her husband. I learned that the couple was not associated with the NOMADS but had been volunteering at the Boy’s Ranch rodeo for the past 15 years.

The pie auction was nice and it was perhaps the first auction that I attended and did not buy anything. This is not to say I did not want to. I had my eye on one of two very nice cherry pies, but due to what I would call sloppy auctioneering, the pies went to other people. Oh, well, at least I got to see them. I also got to see Elvis. He must have been hiding among the beautiful hills surrounding the pristine Lake Tenkiller. He paid a brief visit and sang a couple of songs. I did not get the chance to meet him up close but, like the pies, at least I got to see him too. He looked good for his age.

Sunday morning began with services at the Cookson United Methodist Church. It was a wonderful service. Oddly enough, the pastor seemed to resemble Elvis in a manner of speaking. No, it could not have been. Everyone knows there is only one Elvis. ‘Uh-huh, uh-huh, thank ya very much.’ After church, our team gathered at a local trough for some good eats. I got a chance to meet everyone. As I had anticipated, all the NOMADS were very friendly and welcoming.

Assorted small jobs filled my first week. I helped replace seats on bleachers beside the horse arena, fix a door on the announcer’s booth overlooking the arena, seal a new swinging bench that overlooked the lake, and seal two large wooden crosses. My second week included more small jobs. I helped install screen on a door and then mount it, mow around the bleachers, fix fencing around a chicken coop, and a little kitchen work.

I enjoyed working in the kitchen. The leader in the kitchen was a volunteer not affiliated with the NOMADS. She was gracious to pass around her recipes but the time spent with her was almost more valuable. She divulged many secrets of cooking and ingredients. I kept a notebook at hand and soon had a full page of notes. For example, have you ever heard of adding Red Hots candies to applesauce and pies? I helped make cobblers and fried pies for serving or sale at the rodeo.

My evening activities included two campfires – one on the lake with hotdogs and 20 or so boys at the Ranch and the other on a rock outcropping overlooking a valley while listening to one of the volunteers play a 1941 Gibson guitar. I also participated in a community meal with the boys and staff. I enjoyed interacting with the boys, hearing their stories, and sharing great times. They seemed very polite, gracious, and hospitable. I guess I expected them to be a bit rougher inside and out.

The staff gave our team a tour of the Methodist Children’s Home in nearby Tahlequah, which joins the Boy’s Ranch under the Oklahoma United Methodist Circle of Care for Children and Youth program. The Children’s Home houses girls. The boys and girls come together to participate in the rodeo and display their horse riding skills. Following the tour, we enjoyed a fantastic meal at a local BBQ restaurant. I have not yet experienced a NOMADS project where I went hungry.

Our NOMADS project officially ended on Thursday, October 13, but I volunteered to stay over and help with the rodeo. My job was ‘flag man’ and I would raise a small flag to signal the timekeeper when riders began their riding competition. It was joyful to watch the kids show off their creativity when they acted out a skit put to a popular song. It was also fun to watch the kids ride around the arena. Some of the games included two riders side-by-side holding a rope while they circled barrels (without dropping the rope), a Pony Express relay race, and riding after calves as they ran from one end of the arena to the other, and then guiding the calf through a gate. Some of the kids were new to riding but all did very well.

Oh, in case you are wondering where the Lord’s lessons were, they were incurred through dealing with other people, not the horses.

The Boy’s Ranch project was fun. I heard there is another NOMADS project at the Children’s Home in Tahlequah, which is associated with the Boy’s Ranch. I would like to return to Oklahoma and participate in either project.