I Eat Oatmeal Now

Taste and see that the Lord is good.

Psalm 34:8

I hate oatmeal.

...At least, I used to. It just tastes like bland mush.

For breakfast, I used to live on sugary cereals (Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Honey Bunch of Oats, Captain Crunch were faves), Hot Pockets, or toaster waffles with syrup.

Eventually, I realized those habits weren't the healthiest, so I switched to breakfast bars or just skipping the meal entirely.

Then I learned I needed to improve my cholesterol. I learned that to do that, I had to focus on two things: increasing soluble fiber and reducing saturated fats. As it turns out, oatmeal is packed with soluble fiber, so I started forcing myself to eat it. At first, I needed to add brown sugar or syrup just to get it down. 

One of the funny things about growing up is realizing you have to become "okay" with things that don't taste amazing if they're good for you. But I also found that taste buds actually change when you eat something often enough. After many bowls of oatmeal, I can now occasionally eat it plain!

This mirrors my experience with my faith. I used to dislike a lot of "responsibilities" that come with being Christian. I’d rather be hanging with friends or playing video games than going to church. I felt embarrassed when religion came up because I didn't want to be made fun of. Reading the Bible felt like a chore, even though I knew it held authority.

But as I’ve grown in my faith, the "bland mush" has become desirable. Now, I genuinely enjoy being in a church community and building relationships there. I think following Christ is cool. I can still get shy, but I want to be more forward about what I believe in. And I'm even finding more wisdom and joy from reading the Bible that I didn't see before.

I think it just goes to show, sometimes there are things that we want to do, but then there are things that are good for us. And then, by the help of the Holy Spirit, there are things that are good for us, and we want to do.

And that's what my oatmeal journey has made me think of. I really want to go back to eating Cinnamon Toast Crunch. But then again, I actually really want to continue eating oatmeal! It's as if God is reshaping my appetite!