Paths, Choices, and Cub Scouts

I have dedicated the last 15 years of my life to the ideals of Boy Scouting. I have been and still am a leader; teaching the youth of my area the ideals and fun of being a scout. This past weekend, I had the opportunity to take my pack (elementary school aged boys) to the local state park for their first taste of the outdoors. Shortly after we arrived, came their first adventure. The kids, parents and I, all went on a hike around a lake that was near our camp site. When we first started off, it was a constant battle to keep the boys from running too far ahead. The words "SLOW DOWN" rang throughout the park. Soon, we cam to our first rest stop. I told the boys that they needed to move slowly and keep their eyes and ears open because of the alligators that inhabited the park were all around us. It didn't take long to drive that point home, because in the lake about twenty yards away was an alligator hunting for a snack. After that, these young ones started to listen a little closer to what was being said. Two stops and four alligators later we came to a small creek that had some tall reeds and wild grasses growing on it's banks.
I took the opportunity to give a visual bible study to the kids. I asked them if they had ever heard the story of the evil ruler who had all of the male children killed? Only one could remember something about it . I asked if they had ever heard of Moses. Again only one responded. I took the challenge and taught the story of Moses' birth to the children, who, by the way, did attend church on a regular basis. I then used the path we were walking on to illustrate other life challenges. As we came to places where the path would fork or have another path merge in, I would relate the affects of choices in our lives. Along the way, there were many paths from which to choose. Some made the journey longer. Others made it a little shorter. Still others were closed to us, being blocked and not allowing us to enter. Once we returned to camp, I used a map to show the boys where they had just been. I also showed them how much longer or shorter the hike would have been if they had chosen different paths. Even as children, they began to see the affects of choices in life.
The greatest part of this little camp out came the next day at church. God reaffirmed to me that what I did was right. The pastors sermon that day was on paths and choices we make each day. Thank you Jesus for confirming my little lesson to these boys. I just know you were a Scout.
God Bless,
More later