So what's a cowboy church meeting like? Well, for starters, the dress is casual. Cowboy hats, cowboy boots and working clothes are the usual.

Chris and Sharky start things off by asking who is a first time visitor and where they are from. We are always surprised at where people come from - some recent visitors have been anywhere from close to home - like Calgary, Bottrel, Cremona or Airdrie - and from further away like Devonshire in England, Des Moines in Iowa, Burlington in Ontario and the Canadian Maritimes. (That was just in one meeting!) There was also a fellow from Quebec who is hoping to start a Cowboy Church there. That's really exciting!

Then we sing. Good old gospel songs sung country style - with steel guitar, dobro, mandolin, banjo, guitar, bass, etc. - led by a great group of singers and musicians.

Next comes the chores (elsewhere known as announcements) delivered by Bryn as only Bryn could tell them.

Next, we usually have a special feature. Some nights it's a testimony, sometimes a guest musical group, or whatever.

We then have a time of prayer (hats off for that) and the reading of the scriptures Bryn has chosen for his message.

Then Bryn's message. Now for those of you who have never been to cowboy church before, this will be different. This is not your usual Sunday sermon. Bryn Thiessen, who is our preacher, is a working cowboy as well as a very well-known cowboy poet with a unique sense of humor.

After the message, we sing the Cowboy Blessing. We sing it once, then Sharky reads a poem Chris has written especially for this meeting and then we sing the Cowboy Blessing again.

The end? Nope! Everybody pitches in to stack the chairs and put away the hymn and song books. And then we grab a good cup of coffee (or tea or juice) and some munchies and have a good visit with our friends and neighbours before heading home.

Oh - and by the way, if you come to Cowboy Trail Church, come early or you'll have to hoof a ways to get there. The parking lot has a tendancy to fill up early. (Our latest directory has over 250 people listed and attendance usually averages over 250.)