Eat Your Vegetables!

“You know, one of the best ways to lose weight is to eat lots of vegetables, especially at the beginning of the meal...”

Those were my words as I counseled a morbidly obese boy and his mother in the examination room. The child was referred to see me because his blood tests showed very abnormal results that suggested liver damage and possible early signs of type II diabetes, and it was clear that his life would likely be dramatically shortened unless he reversed his seemingly accelerating trend of weight gain. I asked the child whether he liked to eat vegetables. He shrugged. His mother seemed a bit embarrassed, and said that she rarely gave him veggies because he wouldn't eat them.

“OK, let's play a little game. I want you to name for me a few vegetables right off your head. It can even be something that you hate to eat. See if you can name at least five. Ready? Go!”

The boy was in fourth grade, so I figured that he'd at least come up with a few common ones. I've asked this question to many other children, and most would include carrots and broccoli among the first three or four answers. I couldn't believe what I heard.

“Bananas?”

“No, that's a fruit. You know what vegetables are, right? Try again.”

“Apples?”

“OK, think about stuff that's in a salad. There are vegetables in your salad. Name me a vegetable that you'd find in a salad.”

“Cheese?”

“No. You're kidding, right?” I was starting to feel a bit frustrated, and the mother's face was turning red.

“Chicken?”

“Hmm, I bet that if I ask you to name five different kinds of hamburgers at fast food restaurants, like the Big Mac and the Whopper, you'd have no trouble.”

Something I said about hamburgers finally got him thinking, and miraculously, he started to rattle off names of vegetables...

“Lettuce? Tomatoes?...”

Great. At least he recognized that there were veggies in some hamburgers.

“...Pickles?”

Ugh.

Many of us are picky eaters or parents of picky eaters. It matters little whether the health authorities tout the benefits of eating a variety of foods for their nutritional values, as most of our eating habits and preferences have developed at an early age, and are difficult to change. Former U.S. President George H.W. Bush (the senior President Bush) openly declared that he did not like to eat broccoli, and that as president of the United States, he had the right to dislike broccoli. I don't like eggplants. However, I'd eat eggplants if someone serves them to me. Other than that, I can't think of any particular vegetable that I really will not eat, though I definitely like some better than others. Right now I'm craving a big bowl of kabocha with ginger and some stir-fried chayote. Yummy.

In the same way, Christians often treat God's word like they treat food. Some love to read the New Testament, but can't stand the Old Testament. Many cling to verses about God's love for us, but would rather not know about his justice and judgment. Some love to read about end-time prophecies, while others fear them. I have read every word of the Bible several times over many years, but I admit that there are some passages that I relish much more than others, and that I have made little effort to understand the latter parts of the Old Testament. However, just as I advised that the obese child eat his vegetables, the Bible also teaches us not to be picky about God's word, for,

“All Scripture is God-breathed, and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.” (2 Timothy 3:16)

Let's play another game...how many Old Testament prophets can you name?