Pastor Cody Drews drove up to the sanctuary and watered and fed the two horses.
Still Water Cowboy Church, Semmes, the only cowboy church in Mobile Baptist Association, meets in a red barn and held its second service the night of April 27.
That was a Tuesday.
“I put it on Tuesday so there wouldn’t be any excuse not to go,” said Drews, who recently moved to Semmes from Sulphur Springs, Texas, under the auspices of the Southern Baptist-rooted American Fellowship of Cowboy Churches specifically to start Still Water.
“You’ve got your (weekend) trail riders, and the rodeo cowboys are gone all weekend, and then there are those people that own a type of ranch or something and go hunting on the weekend,” he said. “Their hobby is a priority over church. I’m trying to get their priorities more in line.”
Yes, there are still cowboys in Alabama, beyond “the Wal-Mart Wrangler” types, Drews said. And yes, they need their own church, he said.
Thomas Wright, executive director of missions for Mobile Association, agreed.
“There is a definite need for the Western-themed ‘cowboy’ worship, Bible study, outreach and fellowship,” Wright said.
“Half of the population of Mobile County is lost. Obviously we need some creative, biblical approaches to supplement what our other 108 churches are doing.”
He said Drews is the perfect man for that job.
“(Drews) is a quintessential cowboy,” Wright said.
“He was raised on a ranch, and the cowboy hat, boots and buckle look natural on him. He has the heart of a church planter and the gifts of an evangelist,” he said. “He was able to lead his parents to the Lord and baptize them in the cowboy church he started in Texas, and he has the amiable personality that makes it easy to talk to people matched with a quiet confidence that earns respect and credibility. Those traits build bridges to lost people.”
The association’s executive committee recently accepted its membership committee’s unanimous recommendation for Still Water to join the association as a mission of Haven Woods Baptist Church, Semmes. It might soon be accepting a few more.
“(Still Water’s) first information meeting had 40 people,” Wright said.
“Initial research indicates that we actually could have three regional, Western-themed congregations in Mobile County.”
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