The Outrider

What is an Outrider?

An Outrider is a beloved son or daughter walking the path to restoration, learning his or her place in the battle, and partnering with Jesus in the rescue of others. The Outrider is the role we play in the Larger Story from our beloved identity as a child of our Father, a co-heir with Christ (Romans 8).

I first saw the image of “My Bunkie,” a painting by Charles Schreyvogel, at a Wild at Heart event in Colorado in 2011. A shift in focus has led to a deeper understanding, and has changed everything for us and we want to share this revelation with you.

I had been to a number of events and had been working on my cousin for four years to attend one. Finally, Jason, who was in the US Cavalry and a part of the horse detachment unit stationed at Ft. Hood, was able to attend the Wild at Heart Boot Camp in Piney Woods, Texas a few years back. He was beyond excited to receive the image of “My Bunkie” in his packet (he was wearing the exact same uniform the day before), calling it a sign and began to share much detail with me about their training. They re-enact the pic at the detachment, which is known as “Downed Rider Pickup”. He began to decipher the picture, which includes four individuals: the “Downed Rider”, “Rescuer”, and two “Outriders”. He explained that new riders to the detachment have to be rescued. The other three are the best riders. They’ve been there for a while. Not only had they been “rescued”, but each had then spent a lot of time in the saddle. The reason for this is simple…it’s dangerous. Running full speed with a 1000lb animal at a downed rider standing on the ground in order to have the jump on the back of that animal can go all kinds of wrong in a hurry. I was blown away by his description of training and process and soaked it all in like a sponge. 

That weekend, after the poser session, Jesus pointed me to a hard reality. I had switched my pose. He said, “Stop posing as the Rescuer!” A vision of the whole picture came to mind, then He said, “You’re the Outrider,” as the image zoomed into a tight shot of the rider in the back.

I rose quickly from my nap, my cowboy hat flying from my head, amazed and completely ashamed at the same time. I had been attempting to rescue people, but was instead running them over. The frequent (and hardest hit) casualties were my wife and kids. I broke with that pose quickly and had to seek deep forgiveness to be free from the shame.

Upon my return home, I prayed and stared and listened at a picture of “My Bunkie”. God then unpacked a deeper understanding of the image. The “Downed Rider” is just that. Down. It is a person who needs to be rescued for the first time or a rider who has been taken out, shot off his (or her) horse. The “Rescuer” is Jesus. Notice He’s the only one with His sleeves rolled up. This is His intimate touch of restoration.  Then there are the two “Outriders”, which are there to provide cover and protection during the rescue so the “Downed Rider” can focus on Jesus and Jesus alone. The one to the right has no face and represents the Holy Spirit. The Outrider in the back…that’s the roll we are to play.

First you have to be rescued. Then you have to learn how to ride. You have to “earn your spurs”, so to speak, as my cousin described the process of training at the US Cavalry horse detachment. Even if this “ain’t your first rodeo”, it takes time in the saddle, being trained by the best…Jesus and the Holy Spirit. It’s a process that requires healing and unlearning. Unlearning the things we’ve learned wrong about God as Father, Son and Spirit, ourselves and others. We then begin to learn the deep truths rooted in scripture and unpacked by the Holy Spirit which provide training as we grow as desciples (maturing sons and daughters of God). When we release the pressure to rescue and leave the out comes of that role with Jesus, it frees us up to be the beloved we are created to be. We learn to operate in our role as the Outrider, in partnership with the Holy Spirit, and allow the Downed Rider to focus on Jesus and the pommel of His saddle, it’s an amazing and beautiful sight to behold!

Embracing the concept of the Outrider is, understanding the difference between role and identity. It allows us to bring our value as beloved sons and daughters into what we do as opposed to seeking value in the doing. There’s so much more to explore within this concept and we continue to grow deeper and wider in our understanding of living in our beloved identity and bringing that love into all we do. Stepping into the saddle as an Outrider is a lifestyle that is a beautiful partnership with the Holy Spirit in all that we do for the Kingdom. If you would like to learn more about the process of becoming an Outrider, please send us a message. We also have quality Outrider caps available for purchase that are a great conversation piece to talk about Jesus, beloved identity and the process of becoming….being revealed. Order your cap and send us a message from the links blow.

Outriders! Let’s Ride!