Circle M Ranch, tucked away in Pelzer, is home to more than rodeos and horse shows. On any given Tuesday night, the cafe at Circle M is filled with boots, jeans, 10-gallon hats and the gospel.
The newly constituted Happy Trails Church is part of a growing “cowboy church” trend across the U.S., which started as a response to a segment of the culture who do not quite fit the traditional church mold.
“I think this is a ‘lifestyle-niche’ church that is providing – for a group of people in their culture. This group does not respond well to traditional church,” said Floyd Tidsworth, one of the founding members of Happy Trails.
Happy Trails meets on Tuesday night rather than on Sunday to allow members to participate in horse shows and trail rides, which often last through the weekend. Worship music is country- or bluegrass-driven. Feed buckets are located at the back for offerings. The approach is “laid-back, come-as-you-are” style.
“The Bible teaches in 1 Corinthians 9:19-22 that Christians are to adjust methods to the lost in order to reach them for Christ. So we are trying to remove all the barriers to reach people in the horse culture,” said Tidsworth.
The horse population in South Carolina has increased 28 percent since 1979, and there are now more horses per capita in the state than in the traditionally cowboy-associated Texas. Areas such as Aiken and Anderson report having upwards of 6,000 horses and numerous horse events each year. It is a growing mission field.
“The cowboy church actually grew out of equestrians’ concern for their friends in the horse culture whom they could not get to go to church with them,” said Tidsworth.
North American Mission Board consultant Jeff Smith, who works solely with this growing segment of churches, is pleased with how cowboys have embraced church. “These churches are one of the hottest things going,” he said. “The cowboy church movement has grown so fast. Cowboys who weren’t going anywhere before now have somewhere to go.”
There are currently cowboy churches scattered throughout North Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee and Texas, among other states, but there is value in starting more in South Carolina.
“Several South Carolina areas could reach more people for Christ by having a cowboy church,” Tidsworth said.
For now, South Carolina’s lone cowboy church is praying for more communities to embrace these churches. In the meantime, they are bidding all “Happy Trails until we meet again.”