Out Our Way: Whose brand?

Out our way, we usually have fenced pastures and the stock stay together. But come Labor Day the land around Beaver Creek becomes open range and although herds still tend to stay together, there are now and then some mixing. Come to round up, we check ear tags and brands because not all red Angus belong to Mike and not all Charolais belong to old George. That's why we have brands, ear tags and brand registration.

Sadly, now and then some cattle and other stock don't need a brand or tag to identify what rancher or farmer runs them. Believe it or not, there are lazy farmers and ranchers who abuse the land and the stock with their indifference. Once in a while, we hear about some horses or cows that are found badly nourished and often dying of thirst because the person or people who owned the brand they wore were incredibly stupid, lazy, or mean-spirited ... and often all three.

A rancher friend of mine shared a story about another so-called rancher who had more money than brains and less sense than a newborn calf. He either didn't understand or didn't care that ranching - or farming - requires 24/7 care. Calves aren't born in June under a warm. sky. They come in February - in the middle of the night or early morning - and usually with an Alberta Clipper blizzard roaring its loudest "welcome to Montana!"

That fellow didn't do very well, as you can imagine, but before his lash up when belly up, nobody needed to check ear tags or brands to know whose herd they belonged to. Their condition and poor care made it obvious. As my friend noted, "Just 'cause he wears the hat don't make him a cowboy."

Same is true in the church as on the ranch and the farm. As Jesus said, "By their fruits you will know them." But just as the tourist may be fooled by the dude walking down the street in the hat, jeans and boots, some folks who are unfamiliar with the church can be fooled by those who talk the talk but don't walk the walk.

My late cousin Andi was one. Somewhere along the line she was badly fooled by what Christ called "wolves in sheep's clothing." Before she died she let me know she had no use for the church and the faith because of what she had experienced. Apparently she got involved in one of those TV "preacher" scams and came to assume that all churches were scams and cons just like the ones on TV that began to collapse as fraud, corruption and fake religion began to be exposed.

 Sadly, the rotten and diseased fruit left by the con-artist preachers soured many people like my cousin from the real thing. You may recall I shared with you working on a Billy Graham Crusade in South Dakota that was nearly canceled because so many churches and individuals were backing away after the Jim and Tammy Bakker as well as the Jimmy Swaggert fiascos were uncovered.

And the and the same thing has happened in local communities where people who proudly boast of their devotion to God prove themselves to be crooks, gossips, mean-spirited bigots and so forth. "By their fruits you will know them."

Old Doc knows good feed from bad - and I recall a time when some old rotted hay was tossed out along the way. He sniffed it, tasted it - and then just walked away to the good grass that was near by. He still loves hay and the good stuff makes him trot with delight as he smells me tossing into his paddock. But he also knows the good stuff from the rotten and doesn't confuse the two.

There are many good and righteous clergy in the world - indeed most I have met over the years are the real deal and the good stuff - but there are some bad ones as well, and once you take a close look and a good whiff, you know what is fresh and nutritious and what is decayed and rotten. There are bad apples on the tree here and there but you don't reject the whole crop because of the few. Same in the church. It is rare that anyone finds a congregation totally whole and ripe. Unripened apples can cause stomach aches unless you allow them to grow a bit more. Be patient. Bad and rotted apples tend to fall away in time. Let them go! The tree remains and so does the good and bountiful crop.

Before you desert the herd, make sure you check the brands. Not all who run with the herd actually belong to it. Check the brands, see how they live and act - by their fruits you will know which brand they wear and whose herd they really belong to.

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"Brother John" Bruington, Th.D., is a retired pastor here in Havre who, along with Doc, try to "ride for the brand of Christ" along with so many others. Different churches are different herds - but at the roundup, all those wearing the brand of Christ will find they are indeed the same herd and headed for the same pasture and still waters.