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Ron Moore sits on a bale of hay and talks to his "cowdog," Will. Scratching the Australian Red Heeler's ears, he asks, "What's your favorite Bible verse, Will?" Will leans forward and "whispers" something into his master's ear. Moore grins and replies, "Nope, Will. The verse you're thinking about is James 4:7, 'Resist the devil and he will flee.' It's not 'resist the devil and you won't have fleas!'" Will wags his stubby tail as if he understands—and Moore believes he does, along with the 180 other country folk who come to the barn–church on Sunday morning to hear Moore preach and recite "cowboy poetry."

Cowboy poetry is a North American tradition. There are gatherings held throughout the United States and Canada, which Ron and Will faithfully attend. Like most cowboy poetry, Ron Moore's is rhymed, metered verse written by someone who has lived in the cattle culture. However, Moore's performances are even more intriguing, because he does Christian cowboy poetry. He presents the gospel in a unique and humorous way "in order to encourage Christians to be bolder witnesses." Moore picks his guitar as background music for the poems and ballads, and between poems Ron and Will interact, as Ron tells jokes and quotes favorite Bible verses.

Will also does tricks on cue, such as praying and waving at the crowd.

During the week, Will helps Ron in his work with horses and cattle. He seems to know when it's Sunday, because Moore finds him in the bed of the pickup waiting to go to church.

Twelve years ago Moore's first poem, "The Master's Cowdog," was inspired by his dog's eagerness to attend church—even if he had to sit in the truck during the service. Moore's verses talk about Will jumping in the truck raring to go, long before the family was ready. "Later, as we worked with horses and cattle, Will was always right close and I began to see a lot of parallels between the life of a cowdog (and this cowboy) and the Christian walk," Moore explains.

As Will helped him to gather the cattle in the pastures and move them from one corral to another, Moore had his first revelation: "Lord, I pray that I'm as obedient as this old dog. Like Will, I'm not just your servant. You're my best friend, too. I want to work for you."

Moore presents the full gospel using lots of cowboy stories and analogies drawn from his lifetime experiences as a professional saddle bronc rider and horse trainer. Using imagery from the western culture, he parallels the breaking of bucking horses to God's activity in the lives of sinners. Horse bridles are equated to bridling the tongue. Heaven is called God's barn "that's big enough for all." Will's fleas are used to point out the "itch" that results from sin.

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