A Cow, A Car, and a Purpose

By Josh Michael

Late-night calls rarely bring good news, and for Ryan Stover, a late-night call in September of 2022 brought news of a particularly unwelcome sort. Ryan had recently purchased ten head of cattle to raise over the coming year, but the cows had gotten out earlier in the week and not all of them had yet been found and coaxed back onto his property. He had looked for them, but as he noted, finding black cows in the woods at night when they don’t want to be found isn’t particularly straightforward.

The voice on the other end of that phone informed him that one of his cows had been hit by a car near his property on US 42. As the cow’s owner, it was up to Ryan to figure out some way of removing the cow, which was still alive but clearly not going to survive. There really isn’t a good time to receive that kind of news, but late at night on a Wednesday felt particularly discouraging. Not only was there now the prospect of some very unpleasant work to be done, but the loss of the cow represented a significant financial loss as well. What would be running through your head at that moment? What do you do in a moment of crisis - when your plans go awry or bad news catches you off-guard?

The needs of the moment that night didn’t provide much time for reflection. First, the cow had to be put down. Then it had to be moved to Ryan’s property where, after it had been cooled in a commercial freezer, it could be butchered. Which presented another problem - Ryan raised cows, he didn’t butcher them.

But this provided an opportunity for others from New Community to step in to help. It turned out that field dressing a deer is a reasonable preparation for cutting up a cow so several men who hunt pitched in to help. And others even had some butchering experience. The act of working together to help someone in need provided a chance to deepen or develop relationships and connect with one another. This unanticipated calamity also provided unanticipated opportunities.

Finally, late that week, much later, the last of the ten cows came back. The most skittish one - the one that didn’t get acclimated to Ryan’s barn and pasture. The one that had been spooked enough to break down the fence in the first place and the one that wouldn’t come back no matter how hard Ryan tried to lead or entice or corral it. Ryan has thought a lot about that cow and what he could have or should have done differently in those first few days. But as he shared with our house church, you can’t always see what is going on internally with animals, and sometimes people are the same way.

It may not be obvious when someone is hurt or stressed and in need of attention and care. They may have a lot hidden under the surface. They may resist our best efforts or our attempts to help. They may be determined to go off on their own and follow their own instincts, even when those are obviously not safe. But even when our efforts may feel all for naught, it is good to remember that our God cares, and cares deeply, about the one who is wandering and is working to return that one home.