My backyard is to die for. Ask anyone who has seen it. It is over an acre with a huge playset, 2 treehouses with a rope bridge, swimming pool, 150' zip line, tire swing, trees to climb, plenty of room to run, and a huge forest to hide in and build forts.

So why is it that this weekend we discovered a hide-out the boys had built just over the fence? It is in another yard...someone whom we've never met...someone who has not given us permission to be in their yard.

Why is it so enticing to be in someone else's yard? What is so tempting about the other side of the fence?

I think it has something to do with our flesh. No matter how wide the parameters or broad the boundary markers, there is something that pulls us across the fence.

• Your marriage is great, but there is a relationship just across the fence that is interesting and exciting.
• You have enough money, but you think the amount of money just across the fence would make you happier or give you more freedom.
• Your job is good, but the guy across the fence seems happier. You love the church where you work, but you've seen all the buzz in the blogosphere about that one church, and wonder if you should drop some hints or put out some feelers.
• You're doing great watching your weight, but it sucks to have to count every calorie. That juicy cheeseburger just across the fence surely won't take you too far off track.
• In your yard you are single, surely the married yard is better. Or you are married and wish you were single again. Or you don't have kids and wish you did. Or you have kids and can't wait until they are out of the house, like the couple across the fence who has total freedom with their time.

Yes, there is something enticing about the "possibilities" across the fence. You can pray this week that God gives me the wisdom to enjoy my own yard, and the courage to deny the temptations from across another yard. I'll pray the same for you.