The grass is always greener on the other side. Old English Proverb

One of the most important parts of any Vacation Bible School is snack time and our VBS is no exception. Since the preacher's house is situated adjacent to the church building, we have found it very convenient to serve the cookies and punch from underneath our carport. The only thing inconvenient about this arrangement is that we have a lot of lawn mowers and old windows and the like that are stored behind the carport. The obvious problem is how to keep curious 4 to 10 year olds away from these things that they might get hurt on.

Our solution was to stretch a garden hose between the building and the edge of the carport, and then explain to the kids that they could not cross to the other side. This has worked very nicely throughout the years, but the "line" has not always served to remove the "lure" of the other side. One day my wife called me over. She said that I just had to see what was going on out by the carport. What I saw when I got out there was a line of kids, mostly 4 and 5 year olds, all standing at the boundary of the garden hose. None were crossing the line, but they had found some branches from our big tree and were reaching over as far as they could to see what they could touch with those branches. They were obeying the letter of the law, but they were having a bit of a struggle with the spirit of the thing.

I had to laugh, because this is the very type of thing that we all struggle with all of our lives - no matter what our age may be. Whether its a group of little boys teasing a vicious dog, a teenage girl going out with that wild boy, or some of us pushing the speed limit because we are in a hurry, the results are the same: Someone nearly always ends up getting bit. Even if we "get away with it" this time, such outcomes just seem to make us bolder for the next time, and the next time is nearly always more fraught with peril.

Then there is God's way. God sets boundaries for us - not to be unreasonable or to keep us from fun - but to protect us. When our kids were little, we put up gates at the stairways to keep them from falling. Our loving Father does the same for us. If we are wise, we will mature enough to realize that the boundaries God sets are perfect and put in place to keep us from harm. Then we can begin to truly enjoy the blessings that are rightfully ours, rather than continually reaching over the line to get to that thrilling green grass on the other side.

The Lord will keep you from all harm - He will watch over your life. Psalm 121:7, NIV