Jan. 18, 2026

"A Cowboy's Prayer" (Excerpt) by Badger Clark

"A Cowboy's Prayer" (Excerpt) by Badger Clark
"A Cowboy's Prayer" (Excerpt) by Badger Clark
The Concise Verse
"A Cowboy's Prayer" (Excerpt) by Badger Clark

Oh Lord, I've never lived where churches grow.
I love creation better as it stood
That day You finished it so long ago
And looked upon Your work and called it good.
I know that others find You in the light
That's sifted down through tinted window panes,
And yet I seem to feel You near tonight
In this dim, quiet starlight on the plains.

0:01 "A Cowboy's Prayer" by Badger Clark. O Lord, I've never lived where churches grow. I love creation better as it stood That day you finished it so long ago And looked upon your work and called it good. I know that others find you in the light That's sifted down through tinted window panes, And yet I seem to feel you near tonight In this dim, quiet starlight on the plains.

0:45 "A Cowboy's Prayer" by Badger Clark.

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Starlight on the Plains: The Rugged Faith of Badger Clark’s "A Cowboy's Prayer"

Badger Clark, the first Poet Laureate of South Dakota, captured the spirit of the American West with a voice that was both rugged and deeply reverent. His poem "A Cowboy's Prayer," first published in 1906, remains one of the most beloved pieces of "…