“Only give heed to yourself and keep your soul diligently, so that you do not forget the things which your eyes have seen and they do not depart from your heart all the days of your life; but make them known to your sons and your grandsons.” Deuteronomy 4:9

I had heard ‘the boys’ down in the valley as they rode their motorized chariots back and forth, over and over again. I knew they were limited in how far they were allowed to go. Which is WHY they were now in my driveway at the Cabin. Bored, they came to visit ME for a possible adventure! I snickered in shock when they said, “Hey, is that an ax? Can we try to split some wood?!!”

Now these 2 tough guys are in their early teens. Teenagers are not typically prone to hard work, especially work that involves a splitting maul! Years of experience with teen boys and splitting mauls, I figured out that they had NO idea how to actually USE a splitting maul. So thanking God for the opportunity, I grabbed my gloves and headed toward the wood pile.

“First things first boys,” I said. “You MUST learn HOW to SAFELY handle an ax, saw and maul.” Then I set about explaining THE RULES! It was a test in itself. If they didn’t want to learn HOW, they would only get hurt. Then I had shock #2. THEY LISTENED! Soon, I was watching, advising, correcting, rebuking for close calls. Over an hour later, I was satisfied that they had it down.

Today’s verse starts, “Only give heed to yourself,” God’s way of saying, “Hey! PAY ATTENTION!” But it does not stop there. It follows with an extensive list of rules ‘The LORD of the Universe’ expects from ME. He has a safe and secure plan for me and mine, requires that I learn it and pass it on. Not just with words, but action, resolve and purposeful attention. Because the world… is dangerous!

I had to leave, but the young men didn’t want to stop. “Can we PLEASE keep cutting and splitting!” Shock # 3! What could I say? I had taught them, showed them, watched and confirmed their safety, so I added incentive, “go ahead, but if you get hurt I’ll break your fingers!!!” Shock #4! When I got back, they were gone, the tools were placed perfectly, and there lay a half-a-cord of wood!

Are you diligently giving heed to yourself in the arena of God’s wood pile? Are you skilled at remembering what He has taught and shown you? Are you passing that on to those in your world? That Bible verse was written around 3500 years ago! Long enough to become boring… but STILL at the heart of God’s adventure!