From the Home Place

October 9, 2025

Teddy Roosevelt once commented that “The outside of a horse is good for the inside of a man.” A truer statement has never been spoken. There is just something about having a good horse around the place that brings rhythm. He will nicker at you the first time he sees you each day and will gladly let you visit with him while he is eating his breakfast, especially if there is a brush in your hand. A good horse is loyal, trustworthy and kind. Perhaps that is why we speak of having “good horse sense?”

If only we humans consistently revealed those same three characteristics. Being loyal means to be dedicated to another. Oh my, what this world would look like if more of us lived our lives for the betterment of others. Not because we are getting paid for it, but because it is just the right thing to do. Read your favorite Gospel and note how often Jesus speaks of “the least” of persons being blessed if they are loyal to Him. Note how often Jesus challenges us to live our life for others as a sign of loyalty to Him. Note how often Jesus invites us to loyally advance the Kingdom of God.

The second great characteristic in a good horse is that of being trustworthy. Perhaps the best way to appreciate this characteristic in a horse is to have to ride one who is not trustworthy. You know, that one who is always waiting for you to get too relaxed so they can blow-up. Or the one who waits for you to make one little mistake so they can try to pile-drive you out in the pasture. A untrustworthy horse will sure enough make a person appreciate a trustworthy one!

If you have someone who wants to ride one of your horses, you will catch the one that is trustworthy, knowing that you ‘ol horse will take good care of the dude. A trustworthy horse will always give you everything they can in an effort to please you – they won’t “cheat” you. If you have never had to ride a horse that you couldn’t really trust, you have been extremely blessed, and probably wealthy enough to afford only good horses.

So, this characteristic invites the question, “Are we trustworthy to God?” Can He depend upon us to always do the right thing as a reflection of His characteristics? Being trustworthy means that no matter what God might ask of us, we happily do our best to please Him. We never use words like “can’t” or “won’t.” He can depend upon on us to give our very best every time. And just like that trustworthy horse, God can trust His trustworthy servant to take good care of those He places in our care.

The last characteristic of a good horse is kindness. When a person learns to read horses, you will quickly recognize a horse with “a kind eye.” You can see in their eye that they want to be your buddy. When a kind horse looks at you, you don’t see any fear or anger in their eye, just a softness that says, “I want to be your friend.”

Of course, I saved the most difficult characteristic for last. How often do we look down our nose at another person? Or when someone walks into our space, we look at them with fear and a fair amount of resentment? When folks look into our eyes, do they see comfort, contentment and calm? When folks look into our eyes do they see us saying, “I just want to be your friend?”

Yep, the outside of a good horse is sure good for the inside of a person. I wonder if our Lord had this in mind when He said, “Well done my good and faithful servant.” I think Jesus would love to say, “The outside of My servant is good for others.”

Yep, I sure miss having a good horse around, and I reckon there are those in my life who would love to have a good Christian around. Perhaps we would all do well to have some “good horse sense” and treat others like we want them to treat us.

Ridding into the mission field with you, Neal